Themes by tag: Kyiv

On October 29, “VETERAN SPACE. IRPIN” will open in Irpin, Kyiv region — a space where veterans can receive psychological and legal assistance, consultations on business development projects and, most importantly, rehabilitation and social reintegration.

Participants:

• Ruslan Prykhodko, Deputy Minister of Veterans’ Affairs,
• Ruslan Kravchenko, Head of the Kyiv Oblast State Administration, 
• Ihor Meshchan, Head of the Department of Social and Veterans’ Policy,
• Oleksandr Markushyn, Mayor of Irpin,
• Borys Balmasov, developer and head of the Veterans’ Space, head of the Department of work with disabled people, veterans, wounded and families of fallen soldiers,
• Veterans and families of fallen Heroes.

Accreditation is required for participation.

For more information: “VETERAN SPACE. IRPIN is a joint project of the City of Irpin with the Kyiv Oblast Military Administration and the VETERAN. PRO platform of the Ministry of Veterans Affairs of Ukraine. It was realized with the support of local businesses and charitable donors, without the use of budget funds.

• Kyiv

Recently, five combatants, including veterans who lost limbs, joined the Ukrainian program of The HALO Trust, the world’s largest non-governmental, non-profit humanitarian demining organization. The soldiers, who defended their country on the front lines, will now work on a remote sensing team, analyzing drone imagery to identify potentially dangerous areas and explosive hazards.

By prior arrangement, journalists can cover the veterans’ work in the Kharkiv and Kyiv regions. 

Background: The HALO Trust is the world’s largest international nonprofit organization specializing in mine clearance and ammunition disposal, with 35 years of experience in 30 countries and territories worldwide.

• military
• Kharkiv
• Kyiv
• demining

Rita is from the town of Avdiivka, Donetsk oblast (13 kilometers from Donetsk, now occupied). In 2015, 11-year-old Rita lived there without her parents, only with her grandmother. Their house was located in one of the most dangerous parts of the city. Rita had to attend school under constant russian shelling. Rita was one of the first children that Olena Rozvadovska, co-founder of the Voices of Children charitable foundation, met while helping children in eastern Ukraine. Since then, Olena, Rita and her grandmother have remained friends.

After the outbreak of the full-scale war, Rita and her grandmother moved to the west of the country. There, Rita worked at the Voices of Children charity center, helping children affected by the war. 

Later, Rita moved to the Kyiv region and got married. Her husband is now defending Ukraine. The Voices of Children foundation helped organize her wedding, and since Rita grew up without a father, one of the foundation’s employees walked her down the aisle. Rita is now expecting a child.

By prior arrangement, journalists can talk to Rita in the Kyiv region. (Footage of her wedding is also available).

Background: In February 2024, russian forces occupied the town of Avdiivka in the Donetsk oblast. Enemy shelling has left the settlement in ruins.

• casualties
• children
• occupation
• women
• Kyiv

On October 24, Kyiv will open the exhibition Protest/Architecture. Barricades and Camps: The World and Ukraine at the National Museum of the Revolution of Dignity. The event, organized in collaboration with the German Architectural Museum in Frankfurt, and supported by the Goethe-Institut, is also in partnership with the Museum of the History of Kyiv. This exhibition coincides with two significant anniversaries in Ukraine’s history: the 20th anniversary of the Orange Revolution and the 11th anniversary of the Revolution of Dignity.

The exhibit explores the architectural elements of protest movements worldwide, comparing them to those seen in Ukraine’s historic uprisings. Highlights include the barricades of the 1848 revolution in Western Europe, the 2013-2014 Maidan protests in Kyiv, tent cities from the Arab Spring, and the 2019 light laser demonstrations in Hong Kong.

The Maidan Museum team will also delve into how Kyiv’s urban space became integral to the protests. They’ll examine how the Orange Revolution of 2004 shaped the swift organization and spatial structure of the Euromaidan protests in 2013, which in turn drew on the lessons from the 1990 Revolution on Granite.

Accreditation is required to attend the event.

• culture
• Kyiv

Nadiia Zharkykh, a coffee art instructor, had long dreamed of opening her own barista school. In 2021, she relocated with her family from Mykolaiv to Kherson, a city in southern Ukraine. But just two months after settling in, her plans were shattered by russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Her barista school, tentatively set to open on February 26, 2022, never saw its grand debut as the war swept across the region.

Caught under occupation, Nadiia sought refuge by working at a friend’s coffee shop, where she also volunteered, cooking and helping however she could. But as threats from russian forces mounted, she knew she had to leave. The escape was grueling—she passed through 70 checkpoints to reach Zaporizhia, and from there, made her way to Kyiv.

On August 7, 2023, exactly a year after leaving occupied Kherson, Nadiia’s resilience paid off when she opened a coffee shop near Kyiv with the support of a government grant. The shop is more than just a business—it’s a place of learning. Nadiia and her team now teach young women the art of coffee-making, and some of her students have gone on to open their own cafes, both in Ukraine and abroad.

During the summer blackouts, the café also served as a co-working space, offering a sense of community during challenging times. In addition, Nadiia and her close friends established a charity foundation in Mykolaiv called “Welcome to Ukraine,” which supports both military personnel and civilians across the country.

For those interested, interviews with Nadiia can be arranged by appointment in the Kyiv region.

Background: Kherson fell to russian forces on March 1, 2022, in the early days of the invasion. Ukrainian troops liberated the city on November 11, 2022, but russian shelling continues to threaten the area.

• occupation
• volunteers
• women
• Kherson
• Kyiv

To support Ukraine, the Association of Sustainable Development Experts (ASDE) and its partners have joined forces to create an international sustainable business ecosystem for economic recovery and development of the economy based on sustainability principles. They are organizing the International Sustainability Forum (ISF’2024) for the fourth time.

The forum, which will take place on October 24 in Kyiv and October 25 in The Hague, aims to unite the business sectors of Ukraine and the EU, international investment banks and funds, as well as representatives from the executive and legislative branches of government. The goal is to foster effective and practical discussions on identifying mechanisms to attract investments for sustainable development and the green recovery of Ukraine.

The forum will feature interactive panel discussions, presentations of relevant research, and opportunities for expert networking.

The forum in Kyiv will be attended by:

– Oleksii Sobolev, First Deputy Minister of Economy of Ukraine, 

– Victoria Kireeva, Deputy Minister of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources of Ukraine, 

– Kateryna Rozhkova, First Deputy Governor of the National Bank of Ukraine, 

– Volodymyr Mudryi, Chairman of the Board of the Independent Association of Banks of Ukraine, 

– Jaco Silier, Resident Representative of the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) in Ukraine, 

– Olena Voloshyna, Senior Country Director, IFC Ukraine, 

– Oleksii Povolotskyi, Head of the Department for Restoration and Development of Energy Infrastructure at DTEK, 

– Adomas Audickas, Deputy Chairman of the Board of MHP.

Journalists can access more detailed information about the full program and participants for the events in Kyiv and The Hague (Netherlands).

Accreditation is required for the event.

• Kyiv

On October 27, the charity race Run4Victory, organized in support of the 13th Khartiia Brigade of the National Guard of Ukraine, will take place in Kyiv. The event will bring together athletes, military personnel and concerned citizens united by a common goal – to help our defenders who protect Ukraine.

The program of the event includes

• participation of 100 soldiers of the National Guard, who will run in support of their comrades;
• for the first time in Ukraine – a 2 km race with a unique robotic dog of the Khartiia reconnaissance unit;
• participation of Andrii Hrechanov, a rescuer from Poltava, who set a Ukrainian record at the previous Run4Victory race in Cherkasy by running 21 km in full gear in memory of a fallen comrade;
• charity auction of unique items prepared by the Khartiia soldiers; 
• performance of Orchestra 59, a musical project of the Cultural Forces formed by soldiers and veterans
• reading of children’s fairy tales by Sashko Lirnyk, a renowned storyteller, scriptwriter, actor and TV presenter.

Journalists can access more detailed information about the event program. Accreditation is required. 

For reference: A robotic dog of the reconnaissance unit of the 13th Khartiia Brigade of the NGU has recently returned from a combat mission in the Kharkiv sector, where it helped scouts gather information. It can climb stairs, carry a load of up to 10 kg, move at a speed of up to 12.5 km/h, and its battery lasts for 4 hours. Its use reduces the risk to the lives of our military.

• Kyiv

Kyiv will host the “Festival of First Plays”  from October 18-20, showcasing works written by participants in the Veterans’ Theater project. This event focuses on the development of emerging playwrights, with every aspect—from the directors’ efforts to the actors’ performances and audience engagement—centered on helping military veterans learn the craft of drama, write their first plays, and quickly gain stage experience.

Audiences will have the chance to see 11 new plays written by veterans and active military personnel, along with four works from civilian participants in the project.

The Veterans’ Theater project was created by the Communications Department of the Territorial Defense Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (TRO Media), in collaboration with the Theater of Playwrights. 

Journalists can access the full event program for the Festival, which runs from October 18 to 20.

• culture
• Kyiv

Irpin, a city in Kyiv Oblast, has introduced a free demolition program for owners of private homes destroyed during the war. Launched by the Irpin City Council, the initiative is being executed by local utility services, which have already cleared dozens of plots for residents. This effort is designed to help homeowners begin reconstruction more quickly, while also reducing costs related to the initial cleanup.

The Irpin Housing and Utilities Department is using heavy machinery provided by the Japan International Cooperation Agency, including excavators, loaders, and crushers, to carry out the demolitions.

Journalists, with prior arrangement, are welcome to report on the demolition efforts underway in Irpin.

Background: During russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, 1,130 private homes in Irpin were damaged, and 1,483 were completely destroyed.

• casualties
• reconstruction
• russian crimes
• Kyiv

The Voices of Children Charitable Foundation is offering free training sessions in Kyiv for journalists, local producers, and communicators from civil society organizations. These workshops, titled “Ethical Approaches to Interviewing Children in Time of War,” aim to equip media professionals with the tools to conduct sensitive, responsible interviews with children affected by war.

Participants will:

• gain hands-on insights into creating a safe and trusting interview environment;
• navigate delicate questions without causing further trauma, and recognizing when to pause or end an interview;
• ethically report on child bereavement, suicide;
• share stories that both respect the child’s experience and inspire hope.

The training will be led by Yuliia Tukalenko, a psychologist from the Voices of Children Charitable Foundation, and Olena Lisova, PhD in Medical Psychology, also from the foundation.

Event details:

Location: Kyiv (in person)

Duration: 4 hours

Language: Ukrainian

Cost: Free (registration required)

For participants from other cities, tickets and accommodation can be arranged if needed.

Training dates:

November 2: National media journalists 

(Application deadline: October 28; Travel/accommodation deadline: October 23)

November 23: Local producers and foreign media representatives

(Application deadline: November 18; Travel/accommodation deadline: November 13)

• Kyiv