Themes by tag: Kyiv
From September 20 to 22, Kyiv will welcome the “All Together” festival, an annual event organized by Mystetskyi Arsenal designed to engage children and teens in a variety of experiences through interaction, exploration, and creative play. The festival’s program features around 70 events, divided into two distinct sections. The first section, a long-standing part of the festival, caters to children under 12 with approximately 30 activities. New this year is a special program specifically designed for teenagers, marking its debut at Mystetskyi Arsenal’s educational festival. This teen-focused lineup includes 37 diverse events, such as film screenings, theater performances, discussions, and talks with psychologists, filmmakers, and artists. Festival-goers will also have the chance to participate in workshops led by artists, museum experts, book bloggers, and theater directors. Attendees can practice their English, take part in live podcast recordings, connect with peers, enjoy Odesa funk music, and engage in discussions on topics like movies, dreams, and subcultures. Teen participants can also explore career aspirations and join creative workshops led by their peers.
Journalists interested in covering the festival are invited to view the full program but must obtain accreditation in advance.
On September 18, Kyiv will host the launch of the “Silenced Voices” campaign, a major initiative aimed at raising awareness about the reform of Ukraine’s child care and support system, known as deinstitutionalization. As part of the event, organizers will unveil an interactive installation—a phone booth where visitors can listen to stories from children in boarding schools, allowing their voices to finally be heard.
Participants:
– Daria Herasymchuk, Presidential Commissioner for Children’s Rights and Child Rehabilitation;
– Representative of the Ministry of Social Policy of Ukraine;
– Inna Miroshnychenko, blogger, adoptive mother, lawyer, partner at PRONIN&PARTNERS Law Firm, public figure;
– Mykola Lytvynenko, Deputy Head of the Coordination Center for the Development of Family Upbringing and Child Care;
– Serhii Lukashov, Director of SOS Children’s Villages Ukraine;
– Daria Kasyanova, National Program Development Director of SOS Children’s Villages Ukraine;
– Kyrylo Nevdokha, Head of the DIYMO Office for Children and Youth;
– Representatives of young people who grew up in boarding schools.
Many children in these institutions remain unheard, with their dreams and struggles often going unnoticed. The “Silenced Voices” campaign draws on a 2022 media and sociological study, which revealed widespread societal tolerance toward the boarding school system and a lack of understanding about the needs and challenges faced by children in institutional care.
The goal of the campaign is to spotlight the reform, which seeks to ensure that all children in Ukraine can grow up in family environments rather than institutions.
For more information, contact the organizers: SOS Children’s Villages Ukraine.
On September 22, Kyiv will host a large-scale festival of veteran culture, Veterans’ Circle, the first event in Ukraine to truly bring together military and civilians. The organizers, Ukrainian Veterans Foundation, note that the event aims not only to provide moral support and create opportunities for reintegration of veterans, but also to show unity, respect and strong ties of civil society to those who have gone through extremely difficult events in their lives.
The Veterans’ Circle Festival is a large platform that will bring together veterans, combatants, their families and all concerned Ukrainians.
The festival will feature six interactive zones: an adaptive sports area, including archery, sitting volleyball and wheelchair basketball, with an arsenal of prizes. Visitors can also enjoy a literary space, a marketplace where veteran-owned businesses will sell their products and pitch their ideas to potential investors, and photography and art zones where guests can create something special with their own hands.
Journalists can learn more about the program of the event and cover it. Accreditation is required.
On September 17, the Museum of History of Kyiv will present a large-scale multimedia exhibition project “Guarding St. Sophia”. It shows the modern russian-Ukrainian war as a result of the centuries-long confrontation between the russian and Ukrainian civilizations with their completely opposite values.
The exhibition consists of three thematic sections – ‘Ukrainian Civilization’, ‘russian Civilization’ and ‘Defense of Kyiv’. The first section will present the progress and the continuity of Ukrainian civilization from the Princely era to the present day, highlighting the development of crafts and industry, science and education, the church and the arts, the formation of the state, and the processes of decolonization. The second section will explore russian-soviet civilization, tracing its roots to the era of the Golden Horde, focusing on authoritarian rule and totalitarianism, repression and coercion, expansionist wars, and the cult of personality. The third section will immerse visitors in the recent history of Kyiv’s defense against russian invaders in February-March 2022, showing the fate of various towns in the Kyiv region that suffered from war criminals and testifying to the devastating consequences of the russian presence on Ukrainian soil.
The exhibition features artifacts from the collection of the Kyiv History Museum and the National Museum of the History of Ukraine in the Second World War.
Media representatives are invited to attend an inclusive and interactive theatrical performance for children with disabilities, “Symphony of Ukrainian Fairy Tales”, performed by the chamber ensemble of the Kyiv Classic Symphony Orchestra under the direction of UNESCO Artist for Peace Herman Makarenko. On September 14, the performance will be held for the patients of the Okhmatdyt hospital.
The premiere of this performance took place on July 5 in the main building of Kyiv’s Ohmatdyt Hospital, just two days before the russian shelling. As a result, the musicians of the Kyiv Classic Orchestra had to perform a Requiem over the ruins – footage that was seen by the entire world.
Initially the authors of the project hoped to perform the show in the Okhmatdyt hospital several times during the summer. Unfortunately, these plans were thwarted by russian missiles.
For reference: The project is supported by the Ukrainian Cultural Foundation.
On September 16, Kyiv will host the opening of the temporary Georgiy Gongadze Memorial Alley and a commemorative event dedicated to the 24th anniversary of the murder of the Ukrainian journalist. The event is organized by the Georgiy Gongadze Prize.
Journalists, human rights activists and all interested people are invited to the opening of the temporary Georgiy Gongadze Memorial Alley, which will consist of information banners about Georgiy’s life and contribution to independent journalism and civil society in Ukraine.
The alley will be created in cooperation with the National Museum of the Revolution of Dignity.
At the opening of the Alley the following people will speak:
- Tetyana Teren, Executive Director of PEN Ukraine;
- Myroslava Barchuk, Ukrainian journalist and TV presenter, Vice-President of PEN Ukraine and a person who knew Georgiy Gongadze personally;
- Valentyna Telychenko, human rights activist, representative of the Gongadze family;
- Olha Salo, Deputy General Director of the National Memorial Complex of Heroes of Heavenly Hundred – Museum of the Revolution of Dignity;
- Mykhailo Tkach, investigative journalist with Ukrainska Pravda;
- Tetyana Pechonchyk, Head of the Board of the Human Rights Center ZMINA;
- Oksana Romaniuk, Director of IMI.
For reference: The Georgiy Gongadze Prize is an award and ecosystem of initiatives for independent journalists, founded by PEN Ukraine in partnership with Kyiv-Mohyla Business School, and Ukrainska Pravda publication. The prize is awarded once a year on May 21, Georgiy Gongadze’s birthday. Previous laureates were Tetiana Troshchynska (2024), Bohdan Logvynenko (2023), Yevhen Maloletka and Mstyslav Chernov in tandem (2022), Myroslava Barchuk (2021), Pavlo Kazarin (2020), and Vakhtang Kipiani (2019).
The Children’s Voices Charitable Foundation launched the “Children Dream” campaign and asked children from different regions about their dreams. The aim is to show that despite difficult circumstances, children continue to dream and need the support of adults. Moreover, children’s dreams are a source of strength for adults as well.
“I hope that when the war is over, we will have a very beautiful sea that will be very popular with tourists. (…) Let our music flourish all over the world…”
This is an excerpt from a letter written by 12-year-old Eva, who shares her dreams. Three months after the outbreak of the full-scale war, she was forced to leave her native village in the Zaporizhia region (now occupied) and moved to the city of Zaporizhia, where she participates in the activities of the Center of the Children’s Voices Charitable Foundation.
Among the dreams shared by other children is the desire to attend school in person instead of studying online. And, of course, the children dream of Ukraine’s victory and the liberation of the occupied territories.
Journalists can learn more about the “Children Dream” campaign and, with prior agreement, speak with the children (whose parents consent), particularly in the Zaporizhia, Kharkiv and Dnipropetrovsk regions, and in Kyiv.
On September 13, the Media Center Ukraine will present a new study titled “(Non-)Return of Children: Ukraine Faces Its Greatest Challenge Since Independence.” The research, conducted by the Regional Center for Human Rights, the Ukrainian Child Rights Network, and the Voices of Children Charitable Foundation, delves into the legal and humanitarian challenges surrounding the return of Ukrainian children from russian control.
The study highlights the experiences of these three NGOs in defending the rights of children who were under russia’s control and have since been returned. It provides insights into the legal efforts, the return process, and the reintegration of these children. The findings are based on interviews with children, their parents or guardians, return specialists, and a detailed review of international humanitarian and child rights law.
Participants:
– Kateryna Rashevska, PhD in International Law, expert at the Regional Center for Human Rights;
– Olena Rozvadovska, co-founder and director of Voices of Children Charitable Foundation;
– Daria Kasyanova, Chairperson of the Board of the Ukrainian Child Rights Network, Program Director of SOS Children’s Villages Ukraine.
Moderator: Natalia Yemchenko, member of the Supervisory Board of the Rinat Akhmetov Foundation.
For reference: Since russia’s full-scale invasion, over 19,500 Ukrainian children, including 4,000 orphans, have been forcibly displaced or deported, with the vast majority remaining under russian control. Among them are 1.6 million children from the temporarily occupied regions of Ukraine.
On September 14, Kyiv will host the “Run for Freedom,” an advocacy race aimed at securing the release of Ukrainian soldiers and civilians held in russian captivity. Organized by students of the Kyiv School of Economics, the KSE Foundation, DefDev, and the project to support Mariupol defenders—Heart of Azovstal, the event will bring together activists, veterans, and families of those still imprisoned.
Timothy Snyder, a Yale University professor and ambassador for the UNITED24 initiative, has thrown his support behind the race and will participate in person. Snyder, who is also leading a fundraising effort for demining operations as part of the UNITED24 Safe Terrain project, stands in solidarity with Ukraine’s cause.
According to Ukraine’s Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights, Dmytro Lubinets, around 28,000 Ukrainian citizens remain in russian captivity. The race aims to spotlight the plight of these individuals—military personnel, civilians, men, women, and even children—and amplify calls for their release.
The event will include military personnel, veterans, former captives who have survived imprisonment, and families still waiting for their loved ones to return, along with anyone who cares about the freedom of Ukrainian prisoners.
On September 12, Kyiv will hold a roundtable discussion at Media Center Ukraine, titled “Exploring Multiple Citizenship: Opportunities and Risks” which will delve into the potential benefits and challenges associated with holding multiple citizenships.
Participants:
– Paul Grod, President of the Ukrainian World Congress;
– Nataliia Naumenko, Head of the State Migration Service of Ukraine;
– Volodymyr Viatrovych, Member of Parliament of Ukraine, European Solidarity faction;
– Solomiia Bobrovska, Member of Parliament of Ukraine, Holos political party party.
With millions of Ukrainians now residing abroad, this community represents an enormous intellectual and economic resource that could play a key role in Ukraine’s recovery and future stability. Implementing a framework for multiple citizenship could mobilize the global Ukrainian diaspora to contribute more effectively to the country’s development. It would harness the talents and skills of Ukrainians abroad while ensuring that their identity and connection to their homeland remain intact.
The adoption of a law on multiple citizenship could open doors for Ukrainians living abroad to engage fully in Ukraine’s political, economic, and social spheres. Since 2019, this issue has been a top priority for the Ukrainian World Congress and has gained even more urgency following russia’s full-scale invasion.
For the global Ukrainian community, it is essential that any law on multiple citizenship reflects a unified stance among all relevant parties.
