The British International School, Ukraine’s Post

Join Us for ATHENA4PEACE: Promoting Global Peace Through Education Passionate about making a difference in conflict-ridden areas? Join us for ATHENA4PEACE, a new lecture series by Athena European University in collaboration with IMPACT-EVE. In this series, we'll engage in meaningful dialogues with educators and students from conflict zones around the world, including Ukraine, Israel, Kosovo, Bosnia, Georgia, Armenia, and more... Through these discussions, we aim to: ♦ Delve into the realities of conflict zones and understand the challenges faced by educators and students. ♦ Explore how the international community, particularly universities, can provide support. ♦ Discuss ways to promote education for peace globally. Our goal: ♦ Transcend political rhetoric and foster genuine understanding and peace through education. ♦ Gather insights to develop more effective support programs. ♦ Amplify the voices of those living amidst conflict. Join us for the first lecture: 👉 Topic: The situation in Ukraine 👉 Date: Thursday, May 16th 👉 Time: 3:00 PM CET 👉 Guest Speaker: Professor Yuliana Lavrysh, Head of the Department of English for Engineering at Igor Sikorsky Kyiv Polytechnic Institute Register for free:  https://lnkd.in/dUr9gWdc Open to all: Academics, students, youth, and concerned citizens. Nominate speakers from other conflict zones: We're seeking diverse perspectives to enrich the dialogue. Together, we can build a more peaceful world! #ATHENA4PEACE #EducationForPeace #ConflictResolution #GlobalPeace #IMPACT

Rumors are circulating on social media and in political circles in Ukraine that I might be appointed as Ukraine’s ambassador to the U.S. This is simply not true. I will not be Ukraine’s ambassador to the United States; no one has discussed this with me, and my name is not on any official list. To understand my current and future focus, look at my actions and my public personal brand. Four defining features of my personal brand for Ukraine: • Innovator in education and reform • Public intellectual and advocate for change • Wartime leader of an educational institution • Global collaborator I have two short-term objectives: • Strengthen and expand KSE’s role during the war • Advocate for Ukraine’s economic and political stability And two long-term objectives: • Rebuild and transform Ukraine’s economy • Boost the global recognition and influence of Ukrainian institutions My experience in politics and governance has taught me that Ukraine’s main barriers to growth are not personalities or ideologies but the culture and education of our society. Our politics and business reflect our people, not the other way around. We need to cultivate a new generation that can lead Ukraine toward sustainable development. From this perspective, the most effective use of my time and resources is building a world-class university, KSE. This is the path through which I can drive these objectives forward.

For those of you working on peace-building, check this out!

🌍 International Partnership: A Path to Shared Victory and Development Today, Ukraine needs strong allies more than ever. We believe that collaboration with international partners is the key to transformation and progress. That’s why the Education for Victory program has become a unique platform for experience exchange between Ukraine and the United Kingdom. 📍 A cornerstone of the 4-week program is an intensive week in London. This event brings together leading Ukrainian and British experts, thought leaders, and public figures to gain unique insights, exchange expertise, and create new solutions for effective national development. 🤝 In collaboration with the LSE IDEAS think tank of the The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), the program provides access to top international practices, strategic planning expertise, and connections with leading institutions. 🙌🏻 Program No. 3, Education for Victory, was organized with the support of the Ukraine-Moldova American Enterprise Fund, expanding opportunities for participants to grow and innovate. ⚡️ Through the Education for Victory program, we contribute to advancing the 100-year partnership agreement between the United Kingdom and Ukraine. This initiative fosters knowledge exchange, drives innovation, and strengthens ties between the two nations for Ukraine’s recovery and prosperity. Together, we are creating opportunities for systemic change and laying the foundation for long-term success! #LSEIDEAS #UMAEF #educationforvictory #grandstrategyua

Bath Spa University Support for Universities During a Time of War: Working with Ukrainian Partners 🤝 As an institution, we began working with Ukraine in 2012, and a decade later our European Projects team was leading three Erasmus-funded projects with Ukrainian partners:    ◾ DESTIN: Journalism education for democracy in Ukraine - a four-year capacity-building project involving 10 Ukrainian universities, a local radio station, the Ukrainian Association of Students and Ukraine’s Ministry of Science and Education.    ◾ ACCELERATE: Accessible Immersive Learning for Art and Design - a two-year project involving six partners, including two Ukrainian universities.    ◾ A staff mobility project involving two universities in the Ukrainian cities of Sumy and Chernivtsi.    These projects had already been affected by the pandemic, but the impact of the Russian invasion in February 2022 brought immediate, profound and heartbreaking disruption.     In the two and a half years since the Russian invasion, Bath Spa University’s European Projects team has continued to provide support and solidarity for our Ukrainian partners. Plenty has been learned in this time - from equipment and funding; to how to best show support; communication and flexibility; documentation; and self-care.    📖 You can view the full report from Ian Gadd and Rachael McDonald here: https://lnkd.in/e2UUQwii   #BSU #BathSpaProud 

“Since the start of the full-scale war in Ukraine, UCU has taken a pro-active position regarding help for internally displaced persons, providing them with multifaceted support. Participation in the EXIL project is an important continuation of similar initiatives with an international scope. We expect, in particular, that the project’s activities will encourage the improvement of conditions for the cultural and social integration of students of our university in new educational environments as part of the realization of mobility programs,” said Nataliya Lahotska, manager of the EXIL project on the Ukrainian side. In spring 2024, with the financing of the European Union, the two-year Erasmus+ project EXIL (Sharing Experiences in Integrating Displaced Students) started. It is being conducted by a consortium of educational institutions, including Ukrainian Catholic University. The goal of the project is to improve practices for integrating displaced students into new university environments. While achieving this goal, the organizers plan to study the experience of students: their actual needs and challenges and to consolidate efforts and share practices which partner universities have developed in response to the arrival of Ukrainian students who have left the country in connection with the full-scale war. As a result, the consortium of the project is developing guidelines regarding the improvement of pedagogical approaches and support services. This will encourage the development of a safe and inclusive environment at universities for displaced students. The key task emphasized to the UCU team as part of this international project is the development of a research methodology to study the needs, expectations, and challenges of displaced students in foreign universities and analyze the data and prepare a multinational report on the results. https://lnkd.in/dFnKxwHR

In a new level of cooperation and solidarity, the University of Notre Dame will launch the Ukrainian Studies Hub (USH) — a research and coordinating center for Ukraine-related work at the Nanovic Institute for European Studies, which is part of the Keough School of Global Affairs. This joint project between the University of Notre Dame and Ukrainian Catholic University will explore ethics and religion amid global challenges, including Ukraine’s role. The Ukrainian Studies Hub will start its work with a major conference, “Revolutions of Hope: Resilience and Recovery in Ukraine,” March 6-8, 2025, with scholars from both universities presenting their work. Read more: https://lnkd.in/gZbr584J #Partnership #Community #EducationMatters #NotreDame #UkrainianCatholicUniversity #StandwithUkraine

If we think that the whole world knows about Ukraine, then we are simply mistaken. Here's my key insight after an eight-day tour of Great Britain, where our team savED presented the documentary «We. The Future» about Ukrainian teenagers during the war. The best universities of London. Cambridge. Oxford. Warwick. Google's Central Office... Recently, we visited one of the best independent (private) schools in England. 220 children aged 12-13, to whom I posed the simplest question: «What do you know about Ukraine?» Only three raised their hands, saying that our capital is Kyiv, there is a war going on, and «Ukraine is the breadbasket of Europe» (literally). Not bad, actually. Then they started asking questions. You know what was at the top? How do we study online, do we have WiFi in Ukraine?.. During lunch, there was a meeting with A-level students. 17-18-year-old boys and girls preparing for university entrance. When I asked if they had heard anything about the city of Mariupol, only one out of 40 raised her hand. Do you know why? Because she is Ukrainian. These episodes do not in any way indicate ignorance or indifference. They only prove that there is a lot of work for us. To talk about Ukraine. To show our reality. Our progressiveness. Our uniqueness. To articulate our challenges and needs. And every, even the smallest, cultural enlightenment product — let it be a drop in the ocean, but it is vitally necessary. Because the thirst is so overwhelming that it's hard to imagine until you feel it yourself. Whoever watched the film enthusiastically asked where we all and the children firstly mastered English so fluently, where we received education, and how come that despite the war, we still have the strength to generate so many ideas, not to despair, and to live a rich life. Children are our most powerful diplomacy. And this is my second insight. Because they communicate clearly, honestly, and sincerely with the world and with those who shape the opinion about Ukraine and Ukrainians. With those sitting behind school desks and standing behind university lecterns. With those making decisions today. And who will make them in the future. They are undoubtedly the greatest value of our country. Its greatest potential. And undoubtedly our greatest pride 🩵💛

65/75 - Fulbright Finland alumni contribute to every aspect of the Foundation’s work. Hundreds of alumni on both sides of the Atlantic volunteer in diverse roles as application reviewers, advocacy experts, mentors, donors, advisors, and as members of the Fulbright Finland Foundation Board of Directors.   Nelson Totah is Associate Professor at the University of Helsinki and Vice-Chair of the Foundation's Board. In 2020, he was awarded a Fulbright Finland Travel Grant for Research Collaboration to Rice University in Texas, where he collaborated with Dr. Chong Xie’s lab to develop flexible neural probes. This work led to the first successful recordings activity from many neurons simultaneously in the brainstem of an awake, behaving animal, which significantly advanced his field, neuroscience.   Read an interview with Nelson, where he shares his experiences with Fulbright Finland, from a grantee with his own lab at the University of Helsinki, to a board member taking on science diplomacy between Finland and the U.S.: https://lnkd.in/dy69kf-g   #FulbrightFinland75

We are seeing more foundations and philanthropic entities accelerate their actions in #diasporaengagement across different terrains, particularly in the US. Why? Many reasons for this but one critical one is that they know that #diaspora is a powerful ally in bringing systemic change in the communities they operate in locally and globally. This is a new form of diaspora diplomacy when you unpack the role of philanthropy as diplomacy. This will be an important driver of scale in diaspora engagement. Onwards. https://lnkd.in/eYD4mmeB