Themes by tag: Kyiv

Scheduled for June 14th in Kyiv, this event marks the grand inauguration of a physical rehabilitation facility at the Okhmatdyt Children’s Hospital.

After an extensive year-and-a-half-long renovation effort, the pool, dormant for over three decades, has been meticulously restored to its former glory. The refurbishment encompassed a comprehensive overhaul, including the replacement of piping, ventilation systems, sewage infrastructure, and more.

This new aquatic resource plays a vital role in the recovery journey of children requiring specialized care following severe injuries and illnesses. Specifically tailored for patients impacted by war, disabilities, developmental setbacks, orthopedic issues, and scoliosis, the facility will be staffed by dedicated physical therapists.

Distinguished guests from the United States, Europe, and Ukraine, alongside philanthropists, patrons, hospital leadership, medical professionals, patients affected by conflict, individuals in need of rehabilitation services, members of the press, and supporters of Okhmatdyt, will grace the opening ceremony.

Accreditation is required for journalists interested in covering the event.

For reference: As the largest children’s hospital in Ukraine under the Ministry of Health, the National Children’s Specialized Hospital “Okhmatdyt” annually serves over 20,000 young patients, with an additional 65,000 receiving outpatient consultations.

• children
• Kyiv

On June 14, Irpin will host a presentation on the start of the new stage of construction of the expansion to the Irpin Central City Hospital.

Speakers:

• Viktor Liashko, Health Minister and representatives of the Ministry;
• Representatives of the World Bank;
• Oleksandr Markushyn, Irpin Mayor, representatives of the Irpin City Council;
• Anton Dovhopol, Director of the Irpin Central City Hospital non-profit municipal enterprise;
• Doctors, hospital staff and locals.

At the end of the event, there will be a tour of the medical center and the construction site.

For reference: The Ministry of Health of Ukraine is implementing the project Health Enhancement And Lifesaving (HEAL) Ukraine project.

• reconstruction
• Kyiv

On June 14, a capsule laying ceremony will be held to commemorate the start of the construction project for the new building of the Kyiv Regional Mental Health Center in Vorzel. The new 5,500 m² building will be constructed out of modular structures from the USA and will include a rehabilitation space connected by a corridor to the main building. The American side will pay for all the expenses. The local community has dealt with the land plot, service lines and landscaping. The construction is to be completed in November 2024.

The ceremony will also include the handover of 50 ambulances collected by volunteers from all over Europe. They will be provided for the needs of different communities of Ukraine.

Participants:

• Viktor Liashko, Minister of Health of Ukraine,
• Ruslan Kravchenko, Head of the Kyiv Regional Military Administration,
• Yaroslav Dobrianskyi, Chairman of the Kyiv Regional Council,
• Anatolii Fedoruk, Mayor of Bucha,
• Tetiana Ponomarenko, Director of the Kyiv Regional Center for Mental Health,
• Brock D. Bierman, President and Chief Executive Officer of Ukraine Focus,
• Brent Yessin, General Counsel at AMC Healthcare,
• Kathy Sheehan, Mayor of Albany (USA).

For reference: the Kyiv Regional Mental Health Center was captured by the occupiers at the beginning of russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The russian military settled in the facility and stole valuable equipment from there. The center itself was badly damaged. The restoration of the medical facility began after the de-occupation.

• reconstruction
• Kyiv

From June 21 to 23, the Land of Dreams festival will take place in Kyiv celebrating its 20th anniversary. This year’s festival program includes: 15 thematic areas, 35 ethnic and folk bands, a book fair, craftsman alleys, children’s lawn as well as Crimean Tatar and Japanese spaces. This year the festival will for the first time feature a spiritual mystical scene and a poetry workshop.

Land of Dreams international ethnic music and culture festival is currently the largest of its kind, it’s been held in Ukraine since 2004.

One of the important missions of the festival has to do with helping children and the military. “Charity Fund of Oleg Skrypka “Kraїna Mriy” will hold special fundraisers and activities.

Among other things, the festival will feature a zone for writing “Letters to a Free Crimea,” exhibitions about military personnel from Crimea, and a fundraiser for the needs of Crimea special unit. In addition, the festival will also feature poetry from the front lines written and recited by the authors, who serve in the military.

Journalists have the opportunity to look at the detailed program of the festival and cover the event. Accreditation is required.

For reference: since 2004, the festival has been attended by about 1 million visitors, in addition to the traditional Kyiv location, it was also held in Lviv, Dnipro, Oslo and London. The festival is held in 2 seasonal formats – summer and winter. The festival has already featured craftsmen and performers from 30 countries.

• culture
• Kyiv

Eight years ago, Lesia Mandur moved from Avdiivka, Donetsk region (the city has been occupied since February this year) to Irpin, Kyiv region. At the beginning of the full-scale war, she had to leave home again.

After the russian retreat from Kyiv region, Lesia returned to Irpin. And at the beginning of 2023, she founded a volunteer movement that makes energy bars for the military. Parishioners of one of the local churches (about 10 women) joined the initiative.

Volunteers make 44 kilograms of energy bars every week, which amounts to more than 500 bars. The ingredients include various nuts, cranberries, dates, dried apricots, dried plums and apples, raisins, sunflower seeds and honey.

This week, the volunteer movement faced difficulties – they could not work due to power outages. After all, a special device for grinding food is used in production, and it requires electricity. So now they are collecting fuel to start using a generator starting next week and continue working.

• volunteers
• women
• Kyiv

Founded in the early weeks of russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the PowerKit project began with five friends and has since grown to over 100 volunteers from across Ukraine and abroad. The project’s mission is to supply the Ukrainian Armed Forces with free-of-charge, powerful, and user-friendly power banks. Each PowerKit power bank features a red LED strip, USB outputs, and a special connector for charging military radios.

In addition to supporting the military, the project has an environmental focus: repurposing disposable electronic cigarettes. These devices contain lithium batteries, which are well-suited for creating rechargeable powerful power banks.

Since its inception, PowerKit volunteers have produced 5,015 power banks, reusing 200,600 e-cigarettes in the process.

Journalists are invited to meet the project team and report on their work in Kyiv.

• volunteers
• Kyiv

On June 7, Kyiv will host a panel discussion titled “Feminization and the Present: Trends, Issues, and the Role of Women in Ukraine’s Recovery” at the Media Center Ukraine – Ukrinform. The event will address the rapid feminization of the labor market, examining how this shift is impacting various sectors of Ukrainian society amid the ongoing conflict. Panelists will review current state policies and propose additional measures needed to support this transition.

Participants:

– Kateryna Levchenko, Government Commissioner for Gender Policy;

– Svitlana Voitsekhovska, co-founder of the Ukrainian Women’s Congress;

– Milena Goryachkovska, Ukrainian Women’s Fund, project coordinator;

– Yaryna Voloshyn, Head of Communications, Ukrainian Women-Lawyers Association “JurFem”;

– Oksana Hryhorieva, Gender Advisor to the Commander of the Land Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

For reference: Since the onset of the full-scale invasion, the number of women in Ukraine’s Armed Forces has surged by 40%. As of March 2024, over 47,000 women are serving, with more than 4,000 on the front lines, according to the General Staff. Additionally, the State Employment Service reports that in 2023, it helped 240,000 individuals secure new jobs, 66% of whom were women.

• women
• Kyiv

The International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), the Center for Civil Liberties, and the Kharkiv Human Rights Group will present a submission to the International Criminal Court (ICC) detailing hate crimes committed by russians against Ukrainians. Ukrainian and foreign media are invited to the presentation, which will be held on June 6 at the Media Center Ukraine – Ukrinform.

The submission highlights the accountability of five prominent russian propagandists—Vladimir Solovyov, Margarita Simonyan, Dmitry Kiselyov, Dmitry Medvedev, and Sergey Mardan—for inciting hatred against Ukrainians. It also addresses the responsibility of Alexey Gromov, the first deputy chief of staff of the presidential administration of russia.

The document is based on an analysis of 526 hours of broadcasts, from which over 300 statements were quantified as hate speech. These remarks not only urged russian troops to capture, mistreat, harm, or forcibly displace Ukrainians but also sought to garner approval from the russian populace for these heinous acts.

Journalists wishing to attend the event must be accredited.

• russian crimes
• Kyiv

Lars Fersters, a Swedish citizen and former sailor, has embarked on a mission alongside the Kyiv-based volunteer group, Dobrobat, to restore the home of a senior woman in Irpin. Her dwelling place sustained significant damage from shelling during the spring of 2022 and requires meticulous reconstruction.

Fersters expressed his inability to idly watch as Ukrainians suffer from russian attacks, prompting him to leave behind his domestic affairs and join Dobrobat as a volunteer.

For context: “Dobrobat” is a volunteer construction unit dedicated to swiftly restoring housing and social infrastructure facilities in de-occupied territories.

• volunteers
• Kyiv

On June 5, Media Center Ukraine – Ukrinform will hold a briefing ” The results of a sociological survey on russians’ stance toward the ongoing war.” The results of a sociological study conducted on the territory of the russian federation will be presented during the event. The main topics of the focus include: attitude towards mobilization, russians’ assessment of their losses, attitude to negotiations.

Participant:

• Vadym Denysenko, political scientist;
• Igar Tyshkevich, expert at the Ukrainian Institute for the Future;
• Volodymyr Nahirnyi, expert at the National Institute for Strategic Studies.

• Kyiv