Themes by tag: culture
To mark Vyshyvanka Day, a special blood donation event combining Ukrainian tradition, care, and a real opportunity to save lives will take place in Kyiv. On May 21, the mobile blood donation hub “Teplokrovni” will stop near the Ivan Honchar National Center of Folk Culture.
Symbolically, the donation event will take place on the holiday itself. One of the main symbols of Ukrainian embroidery is the Tree of Life — a sign of continuity, the connection between generations, and strength passed on to descendants. This connection is also reflected in blood donation: when one person shares their blood, they give another person a chance to continue living.
“Teplokrovni” is a 13-meter double-decker bus converted into a modern mobile donation center. During the operation of the “Teplokrovni” mobile hub, more than 1,000 liters of blood have already been collected, helping save thousands of wounded military personnel and civilians.
What visitors to the “Teplokrovni” hub can expect on May 21:
1st floor — an interactive exhibition about blood and its life-giving power. Free admission;
2nd floor — a comfortable and safe donation area staffed by a professional medical team.
Participation in the donation requires prior registration.
On May 18, Ukrposhta and the National Museum of the History of Ukraine in the Second World War will hold a special cancellation ceremony for the “Let’s Fill It Together” art stamp sheet on International Museum Day.
The release supports the War Museum’s fundraising campaign, launched on February 13 this year. The campaign aims to raise UAH 20 million for the renovation and expansion of the institution. The funds will be used to create new museum exhibitions beneath the “Motherland Monument” — including the “Museum of Modern Military Technologies” and the “Museum of Soviet (russian) Propaganda.”
During the event, organizers will present a collectible set featuring a postcard, an envelope, and nine stamps depicting the monument. Ukrainian artists Volodymyr Taran and Anton Lohov, as well as designers Liudmyla Nikorych and Daria Dashynhevych, contributed to the collection’s development. Each created their own interpretation of the “Motherland Monument,” a symbol of Ukrainian resilience and resistance during the russian-Ukrainian war. Together, the artworks form a multifaceted portrait of a nation undergoing a transformation of its identity amid Europe’s largest armed conflict since World War II.
The cancellation ceremony will be attended by Ukrposhta CEO Ihor Smilianskyi, Museum Director Yurii Savchuk, and the artists behind the stamp designs. All proceeds from sales of the postal products will be transferred to the Museum’s dedicated fundraising account.
Journalists are required to register in advance to attend the event.
On May 16–17, the MHP Run4Victory Kyiv Marathon will take place in central Kyiv. For the first time since the start of the full-scale war, the event will open its city routes for mass participation. All registration fees and donations will go toward prosthetic treatment for Ukrainian servicemen and servicewomen through the Protez Foundation.
Participants can choose from several distances depending on their level of preparation:
- 42 km — full marathon for experienced runners
- 21 km — half marathon for trained participants
- 10 km — endurance race
- 5 km and 2 km — introductory and charity runs
- 500 m — “People Titans” inclusive race
- 500 m — pet-friendly race (all distances allow participation with dogs)
- Online distance — participate remotely from anywhere
- Free children’s races: 500 m, 300 m, and 100 m
Background: The event is organized for the third consecutive year by MHP in partnership with the MHP-Hromadi Charity Foundation. The sports organizer is NewRun.
On May 14, the War Museum in Kyiv will host the event “Ukrainian Rescuers: Heroes of the Past and Present,” dedicated to the Day of Remembrance of Ukrainians who rescued Jews during World War II.
The discussion will focus on the phenomenon of rescue, the moral choices people make during wartime, and how the memory of World War II is being reinterpreted through the experience of the modern russian-Ukrainian war.
A total of 2,713 Ukrainians have been awarded the title of Righteous Among the Nations — the fourth-highest number in the world. The War Museum continues to collect stories of people who risked their lives to save others during the nazi occupation.
Among the guests will be Anatolii and Olena Tartakovski, children of Righteous Among the Nations recipient Lidiia Savchuk from Vinnytsia region, who together with her parents hid a Jewish man, Isak Tartakovski.
The discussion will also feature Oksana Chertsova, a lecturer at the Institute of International Relations of Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, a volunteer from Bucha, and a representative of the Nikolaienko family, recognized as Righteous Among the Nations for rescuing Jews in Babyn Yar. She will share her experience of living through the russian occupation of Kyiv region in 2022.
Sofia and Volodymyr met through sports. Sofia came to a gym in Kyiv where her future husband worked as a coach. She is a trained teacher of Ukrainian language, literature, and history, while Volodymyr is a professional CrossFit athlete and coach with 15 years of experience.
The couple decided to open their own gym. That is how the T11CF sports space was established in Kyiv.
On March 4, 2022, Volodymyr joined a combat unit of the National Guard of Ukraine. He took part in the battles for the village of Moshchun in Kyiv region, the liberation of the Kyiv region, and later fought on the Zaporizhzhia front.
During that time, the project was put on hold. The gym eventually opened in September 2024. Later, thanks to a grant from the Ukrainian Veterans Foundation, the sports space expanded into a network of two locations.
Today, T11CF is not only about sports, but also about community. Soldiers, veterans, professional athletes, and people with disabilities train there.
Interviews with Sofia and Volodymyr can be arranged both online and in person in Kyiv by prior appointment.
On May 15, Kyiv’s War Museum will host a public discussion titled “Chingene in Crimean Tatar Lists — From Rescue to Deportation: Little-Known Stories of Crimea’s Roma.”
The discussion will focus on the dramatic history of the Chingene — Crimean Roma (literally translated from Crimean Tatar as “Gypsies”) who were partially assimilated with the Crimean Tatars, or Qirimli. The Chingene are considered guardians of the Crimean Tatar musical tradition.
During the Nazi occupation of Crimea and the genocide of the Roma, many Chingene identified themselves as Qirimli, while Crimean Tatars in turn tried to save them by including them on Crimean Tatar registration lists. After the soviet reoccupation of Crimea, those same lists were used on May 18, 1944, to deport the Chingene alongside Crimean Tatars to Central Asia, the Urals and Siberia.
After they were later allowed to return to their historical homeland, many Chingene came back to Ukraine together with Crimean Tatars and continued preserving Crimea’s musical traditions by performing at weddings and ethnic celebrations within the Qirimli community.
The discussion will explore the history of the Chingene, the origins of the parallel name “Daifa,” and the differences between Chingene and Krymy Roma communities. Speakers include Romani studies scholar Natalia Zinevych, ethnologist Oleksandr Rybalko and researcher of Romani culture and literature Yanush Panchenko. The discussion will be moderated by Roman Kabachii, a researcher at the War Museum.
Kyiv Military Hub, together with the Kyiv Hippodrome, holds horse riding classes twice a week for Ukrainian defenders and veterans.
Each session lasts 40 minutes — enough time to learn basic riding skills, enjoy the experience and simply recharge.
Equine-assisted therapy for veterans includes:
- physical impact, as the horse transmits rhythmic movement impulses to the rider, activating muscles and the vestibular system;
- psychological and emotional support, as interaction with animals — even without riding — helps reduce stress, alleviate depression and support emotional recovery.
By prior arrangement, journalists are welcome to attend and cover the classes held in Kyiv.
Background: Since the initiative was launched, more than 2,000 defenders, veterans and their family members have taken part in the classes.
On April 30, 2026, the Academic Council of the National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy officially approved a two-year master’s program titled “Russian Studies: Challenges to International Security” — a first-of-its-kind initiative in Ukraine combining international relations, security studies and postcolonial theory.
russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine exposed a major gap: the world lacks specialists who truly understand the logic of the russian regime rather than merely observing its actions. The new Kyiv-Mohyla Academy program is designed as a comprehensive response to that challenge. It aims to train analysts capable not only of tracking the kremlin’s moves, but also understanding their internal logic, anticipating consequences and effectively countering russian influence on the international stage.
The program is offered within the field of international relations and combines two dimensions that are usually studied separately: security analysis — including the regime, military, foreign policy and international law — and critical research into how russia legitimizes aggression through culture, propaganda, colonial myths and identity manipulation.
Over the course of two years, students will acquire competencies necessary for work in think tanks, government institutions, international organizations and reputable media outlets, including:
- understanding the logic of an authoritarian regime and how russia’s power structure shapes its conduct in war;
- analyzing russian foreign policy as a strategic system with specific goals, instruments and vulnerabilities;
- deconstructing imperial narratives and mechanisms of “soft power”;
- applying postcolonial analysis to russia and understanding the position of peoples historically subjugated by it;
- practical OSINT skills, including the collection, verification and analysis of open-source data;
- understanding international law in the context of armed conflict and aggression.
The teaching staff includes leading international scholars specializing in russia, Ukrainian analysts and experts with practical experience in security and intelligence.
On May 9-10, Kyiv will host the premiere of the Veterans Theater production “Wake Up, Head” (“Razduplis, Galava”).
The sound therapy performance, based on the play “Razduplis, Galava,” tells a story of personal transformation possible only on the edge of life and death. It explores the search for inner support when all external sources of stability have become too fragile to rely on. The production also reflects on what a person turns to and longs for when both their inner and outer worlds descend into chaos — and on the path toward the divine.
The sound therapy and meditative performance seeks to immerse the audience in an open state of consciousness and reach the deepest corners of the soul through words and sound. The sound healing practice used in the production employs instruments that directly interact with the nervous system and can significantly improve emotional well-being. In times of war, healing and recovery have become necessities that should not be neglected.
The production was created by Dmytro Susiekov, Velimir Horyslavets, Mykyta Poliakov and Alia Kholba.
Background: Veterans Theater is a social and artistic project launched through a collaboration between the Communications Service of the Command of Ukraine’s Territorial Defense Forces (TDF Media) and the Theater of Playwrights.
The idea for Veterans Theater emerged in response to the urgent need for therapeutic support for veterans of russia’s war against Ukraine returning from the front line. The project combines art therapy and theater, serving as a platform for creativity, recovery and dialogue, where participants use dramaturgy and acting to speak about their experiences and transform them into art. It brings together veterans, their loved ones and civilians who have lived through traumatic experiences.
On May 7, Ivan Roman, a patient at the UNBROKEN rehabilitation center in Lviv, will open his own business — an archery sports club — together with his wife, Larysa. Roman lost a leg, an arm and part of his eyesight in the war.
The 38-year-old from the Mykolaiv region first joined Ukraine’s defense back in 2014. In January 2024, he was serving as a driver in an aerial reconnaissance unit. He was transporting fellow soldiers to positions when an enemy FPV drone struck the windshield.
Despite severe injuries, during rehabilitation he tried archery and became passionate about the sport. He learned to draw the bowstring with his teeth and to shoot accurately. The veteran now actively competes and aims to join Ukraine’s national Paralympic team.
The idea to open the club was sparked by Roman’s participation in the ReStart program, “From Idea to Veteran Business” — a free business course for patients of the UNBROKEN Center. The course teaches participants how to develop a business plan, understand finance and taxation, explore grant opportunities, and build communication skills.
After completing the course, Ivan and Larysa applied for a grant, won the competition, and secured funding for equipment.
At their club, the Romans plan to develop adaptive sports, working with veterans and also creating a separate section for visually impaired people.
Journalists are invited to attend the opening, where they will have an opportunity to speak with the founders, tour the new inclusive sports space, and see Ivan demonstrate his archery skills.
Media accreditation is required.
