As we begin 2024 and embark on a new phase of our journey, we reflect with deep gratitude on the past year, appreciating the events that have shaped it for us and our integral civil society partners. This special issue of our newsletter opens the door to a world of events that will shape our work and inspire us in the new year.
While not an exhaustive account of the innumerable contributions made by our partners over the course of last year, we invite you to join us on a journey filled with remarkable achievements and extraordinary moments. May 2024 be a time of inspiration, patience and great personal achievement for you. We look forward to the events and opportunities that the new year will bring. Welcome to 2024 – a year of new challenges and opportunities!
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Ukrainians start the new year with solidarity and a firm belief in victory. This is one of the key conclusions of the survey “Results of 2023: public opinion of Ukrainians”, conducted by our partners, the “Democratic Initiatives” Foundation and the Razumkov Center. According to the research, 88% of Ukrainiansbelieve in a victory over Russia. Crucially, in 2023, citizens also actively helped the army and war victims – 63% actively contribute to volunteer and charitable organizations that support the Armed Forces of Ukraine, and 51% provided assistance to internally displaced persons.
Ukrainians look with hope both to their future (55%) and to the future of Ukraine (61%). When thinking about their own future, Ukrainians, in addition to hope, most often feel anxiety (40%) and optimism (28%).
Read more about the perceptions and attitudes of Ukrainians here
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Year in Review: ENGAGE Partners
- Orchestrated 16 diverse events, encompassing expert discussions, roundtables, press conferences, and lectures. This resulted in the robust engagement of over 300 participants.
- Executed a comprehensive nationwide sociological study, held 2 impactful press releases to disseminate key findings.
- Authored and published 12 insightful works, including 4 translated into English. he Center’s media outreach featured over 200 articles, interviews, comments, and video insights by Center experts, amassing an impressive 2,000,000 views.
- Collaborated with a working group at the request of the Armed Forces of Ukraine’s Management of Volunteer Formations and Population Preparedness for National Resistance, focusing on analyzing and improving the regulatory framework for voluntary territorial community formations.
- Significantly contributed significantly to national policymaking by developing and presenting 8 comprehensive recommendations for the reform of Ukraine’s pension system, in response to a request from the Committee of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine on Social Policy and Veterans’ Rights.
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Center of Policy and Legal Reform
- Partnered in the independent monitoring of Ukraine’s adherence to the recommendations presented during the conferment of its candidate status by the European Commission.
- The CSO’s team has meticulously prepared five comprehensive reports assessing compliance, offering expert evaluations, and recommending actionable steps for the ongoing judicial and law enforcement reforms.
- Contributing to the creation of informative digests, we’ve kept our international partners apprised of Ukraine’s legislative alignment with EU standards across various negotiation chapters. Within the fundamental reforms cluster, we took charge of materials pertaining to chapters 23 and 24, along with governance.
- Led advocacy efforts were fervently directed towards Ukraine’s European integration. Engagements in France, Germany, Belgium, and Spain involved in-depth discussions with authorities on the intricacies of Ukrainian reforms. Special emphasis was placed on the timely initiation of accession negotiations, addressing potential challenges. Meaningful dialogues with the European Commission and Parliament delved into the challenges of integration and the need for improvements in the negotiation process, particularly concerning civil society.
- As part of the GIZ project, the CSO experts conducted a thorough analysis of the state of local self-government in Ukraine. Their examination focused on assessing how local self-government is gearing up for European integration, resulting in a set of proposed policy documents aimed at assisting Ukrainian authorities in making well-informed decisions.
- Led the preparations for the adoption of the Law of Ukraine on Administrative Procedure and ensured meticulous groundwork for the seamless implementation of the law upon its enforcement.
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Kharkiv Anti-Corruption Center
- After thorough public deliberation, the Kharkiv City Council revoked the tender for the construction of a multifunctional center in the Sarzhyn Yar park zone. The project was relocated to a different area, and the matter of funding was excluded from the city council session agenda.
- In July 2023, agreements totaling USD 158,000 for image projects during the Russia`s invasion were brought to light. Subsequent to the investigation, an audit of expenses was initiated in the city council, leading to the dissolution of the management of image projects.
- The Kharkiv Regional Military Administration swiftly canceled a USD 52, 632 tender for its own PR, just a day after the HAC publication. This decision was made against the backdrop of their previous expenditure of UAH 12 million on analogous services during the ongoing war, sparking considerable public outcry.
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Ilko Kucheriv Democratic Initiatives Foundation (DIF)
- DIF experts joined Ukrainian CSOs on advocacy trips to countries worldwide, including Spain, South Africa, Indonesia, Cambodia, Brazil, Argentina, Malaysia, Nigeria, and more. These trips helped DIF build connections with think tanks and academia, engage with government officials, present Ukraine’s perspective on the Russia`s-Ukrainian war, counter Russia`s narratives, and influence decision-makers to support Ukraine.
- DIF researched community stability during war in (Odesa, Chernihiv, Sumy), providing authorities with actionable recommendations.
- DIF conducted two key projects in 2023: a March study on national memory of the Russia’s-Ukrainian war and a September-October project on public attitudes towards the Ukrainian Insurgent Army. Findings were presented jointly with the Ukrainian Institute of National Memory (UINM). In November, DIF consulted UINM on their citizen awareness research, solidifying our leadership in national identity studies.
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- Updated the Sumy Community Development Strategy, conducted information campaigns for community residents on the importance of a strategic vision of development and the impact of citizens on monitoring the implementation of planned goals.
- About 40 billboards were placed in the city calling for a joint search for ways to achieve the goals, rather than reasons to abandon them.
- Created an online publication “What Sumy can be like in 2027”
- Conducted a street survey of Sumy residents and visitors about their vision of the city of the future
- Launched the video project “Do you agree?” Discussion of topical issues for the city of Sumy with expert explanations
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- Conducted a comprehensive study on civic initiatives titled “Communities in Wartime: Effective and Timely,” interviewing 193 individuals from various sectors across 14 regions in Ukraine.
- Initiated the Ukrderzhbud 2.0 project, focused on elucidating the necessity for stable state institutions during wartime and their pivotal role in post-war reconstruction. Notably, 10 interviews with key government representatives gained traction with an audience of over 50,000 on YouTube and TikTok.
- Introduced the “Heard / To the Point” podcast and “Visible” video, underscoring the significance of inclusive policymaking for Ukraine’s European trajectory. Emphasized societal issues, analyzed parliamentary decisions, and advocated for a robust citizen-government dialogue concerning their needs.
- Presented a foundational position outlining essential principles and approaches for effective implementation in the reconstruction planning process.
- Conducted an in-depth analysis of more than 260 government decisions featured in 80 weekly digests and 47 episodes of the “Ok, and So?” podcast, maintaining a prominent position among the most popular podcasts in the News & Politics category on Apple Podcasts.
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- Continued to operate one of the most popular educational media outlets in Ukraine.
- Throughout the year, amassed over 11.7 million views on the New Ukrainian School.
- Provided ongoing educational support to students by conducting over 11,600 lessons, joined by more than 35,144 students.
- Facilitated psychological training sessions for teachers and launched the Resilience Help psychological platform. A total of 878 teachers completed training and received certificates across three educational programs.
- Developed and published over 280 audio lessons for students in grades 7-11, accumulating more than 150,000 listens.
- Released the third season of the educational podcast “Dopamine for Education” with 8 episodes garnering over 6,000 listens.
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- Implemented the #GenerationVictory project dedicated to resilient Ukrainian youth from border areas with Russia and Belarus, as well as communities affected by occupation or armed conflict, actively contributing to the formation and development of civil society. The project includes a photo exhibition featuring heroes, captured by renowned photographer Sasha Maslov, and a series of video publications on Ukrayinska Pravda.
- Implemented Catch-up Camps, educational recovery programs for high school students. Since the summer of 2023, 156 high school students from border regions with aggressor countries, communities under occupation, or conflict zones participated in catch-up camps. The goal of the camps is to help children make up for missed school curriculum due to the inability to attend schools.
- Engaged over 3,000 children from across Ukraine in GoGlobal Speaking Clubs for communication with their peers in English. International volunteers were invited to lead sessions in the clubs.
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Community Foundation “ZAKHYST”
- In 2023, the implementation of the “Saving Together Kherson!” humanitarian program was intensified, initiated promptly upon the commencement of the full-scale invasion, with a primary focus on safeguarding vulnerable population segments and fostering community rehabilitation. The program garnered heightened significance in light of the tragic events at the Kakhovska Hydroelectric Power Plant. To address the aftermath of flooding, the Foundation, in collaboration with the Kherson Regional Military Administration, orchestrated a comprehensive fundraising and informational initiative, successfully securing support from international donor organizations, Ukrainian civil society entities, businesses, and individual benefactors. Esteemed ambassadors, such as the musical ensemble “Kalush”, popular artist and entertainer Potap (Oleksiy Potapenko), and television hosts Kateryna Osadcha and Maria Yefrosinina, actively participated in mobilizing financial resources. Consequently, the Foundation efficiently pooled and allocated funds, amounting to approximately USD 526,318, encompassing expenditures on life-saving and personal protective equipment, as well as humanitarian aid to inundated rural communities.
- In parallel, the introduction of the E-platform “Hearing the Community of Kherson” unfolded, strategically designed to enhance communication channels with Kherson residents, facilitate reciprocal feedback, and actively involve them in civic affairs. This online repository disseminates up-to-date information on Kherson’s ongoing initiatives, avenues for resident assistance, and helped to provide 55 legal consultations on most burning issues to Kherson residents. Simultaneously, through the establishment of the Kherson Community’s Research Online Panel the Foundation has conducted 10 opinion surveys engaging 5,900 respondents. The outcomes of these surveys are submitted to both municipal and regional military administrations to make sure the voice of citizens is heard during strategic decision-making processes.
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- Launched two YouTube projects, namely “Gay-News” and “Gay-Propaganda,” amassing 69,000 monthly views and gaining over 10.6 thousand subscribers within a year.
- Engaged in advocacy efforts for Bill No. 9103 through collaboration with media outlets and influencers, resulting in 249,000 views and substantial interactions.
- Executed a successful event in partnership with “Rizni Rivni” at Kurazh Bazar, spanning two days and yielding sales of 168 merchandise units. The generated funds were directed towards supporting LGBTQ+ military personnel, accompanied by the collection of 554 signatures endorsing Bill No. 9103.
- Initiated a comprehensive humanitarian aid collection for LGBTQ+ individuals adversely affected by the full-scale invasion, distributing over 500 food vouchers and more than 300 food kits to those facing challenging circumstances.
- Coordinated a humanitarian aid collection specifically aimed at LGBTQ+ individuals in need of medical treatment, securing over 250 pharmacy vouchers and 160 medical certificates.
- Raised a substantial amount of humanitarian aid, totaling USD 7,105, to support the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The funds were directed towards the Sumy and Zaporizhzhia directions.
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