The LUA meeting was held on September 9th. This time the meeting was dedicated to the Erasmus program and the entire meeting took place online. Svitlana Shytikova who is working as a project coordinator at the National Erasmus+ Office in Ukraine was invited to this meeting. During her presentation, Svitlana Shytikova talked about the projects that her office is actively working on, how they are progressing, what trends they see in Ukrainian education during the war time. After this presentation, there was an opportunity to ask the speaker questions. Then, the LUA group had a discussion of current Lund University news related to the work on academic support to Ukrainian partners. For example, it was discussed about the staff exchange from Ukraine to LU, future visits of LU’s academic staff to Ukrainian partners, exchange of Ukrainian students at LU, LUCE’s capacity building projects, etc.
Denys Kovalenko is a researcher in Lund University and was the coordinator of LUA in 2023-2024. He originates from Kyiv, Ukraine and was invited to come to Lund in 2022 to join neuroscience laboratory at the Medical Faculty. Now, after completion of 2 years research position he’s moving to Linköping to continue his studies. In this interview we’ve asked Denys to share some words about his work as a coordinator of LUA before he leaves Lund completely.
Why did you decide to join this LUA group?
Since I came to Lund in 2022, I had had a vague idea of organizing some kind of supporting activity within Lund University for Ukrainian academia that would help it endure during the current times of hardship. And when an invitation came to join an already existing group, which by the time was a more closed up discussion club about the Russian war in Ukraine, I could not do anything else but join.
What was the best part of your work as a coordinator of this group?
I think the best part of this one-year experience as the coordinator of LUA was seeing how our discussions and long meetings eventually got transformed into real actions that made a difference. I had just taken over the management of LUA before the first-ever summer school for Ukrainian medical students in Sweden took place in the summer 2023, to this day the greatest achievement of LUA. Later, within just one year, we were able to organize couple of online seminars for Ukrainian medical students, invite a famous Ukrainian author for a visit, establish successful cooperation between Ukrainian and Swedish researchers that received SI funding, and more. I’m proud of what we have achieved and looking forward with hope to future activities.
Did you manage to realize everything you wanted as a group leader?
Of course not. While I was managing LUA several projects were discussed, one of most important being the idea of sending equipment that is no longer in use in Lund University to Ukrainian academic partners. However, we were not able to finalize them. My hope is that newly appointed coordinator and the entire group will continue working on them, as well as bring more ideas for potential activities in the future.
Why is it necessary to support Ukrainian academia?
It is essential to continue cooperating with Ukraine. The more we collaborate to understand better consequences of the war and experiences gained in Ukraine, the more we prepared for similar challenges worldwide. Additionally, by supporting Ukraine in the ways we can we invest in that the Russian conflict will not spread. However, one should understand that it all comes with the great cost, that no one will be able to recover from in years to come.
What wishes do you have for the members of the group?
Just the ones I said during my final presentation as the coordinator of LUA in June 2024: I’d like to thank you all for everything that has been done so far, and invite you to continue doing what we can and see where we come with that.
On the 20th of March, the LUA monthly meeting was held. The meeting started with the latest updates from LUA by Denys Kovalenko. It was announced that LUA co-organize a visit of the famous Ukrainian writer, Max Kidruk, to Lund this May, and that LUA representatives would join the T.I.M.E. meeting on promoting academic cooperation with Ukraine in Europe.
Later, during the discussion, the basic course of the Ukrainian language in Lund was mentioned, with the possibilities for expansion if more students show interest. Alongside, the issue of the absence of a designated center for Ukrainian studies in Sweden was raised. We were also happy to have a newly joined member, Dr. Valentyna Savchyn, who shared information with the group about an application for Erasmus+ funding to establish an international Ukrainian language certificate, which is currently in review. With the interest in the Ukrainian language constantly growing worldwide, we hope that this application will be successful and that Mrs. Savchyn, along with other applicants, will bring the accepted Ukrainian language certificate system closer to fruition.
On the 29th of February, the LUA monthly meeting was held. The meeting commenced with a presentation by Mr. Denys Kovalenko regarding the newly established “Strategy for Sweden’s Reconstruction and Reform Cooperation with Ukraine 2023–2027” and the opportunities for collaboration it provides. This was followed by the Swedish Institute’s call for proposals and concluded with a list of supporting activities now available on the LUA webpage under the “Documents” category.
During the discussion, many issues were raised, including possible collaborative projects on improved rehabilitation for wounded soldiers and civilians in Ukraine, the informational gap between opportunities for cooperation with Ukraine and the awareness among university staff, wide Erasmus exchange possibilities, a summer school for Ukrainian medical students, and how Sweden can learn from Ukrainian expertise in drone use, among others. About a dozen participants took part in this fruitful meeting, with half being new to the LUA. We hope to continue involving more people from the university in discussions regarding academic support for Ukraine in the upcoming months, as well as finalizing other projects that are currently underway.
Heiko Herwald is a professor, research group leader and former vice-dean (2018-2023) of the Faculty of Medicine, Lund University. Back in Spring 2022, after Russia had started the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, he took the initiative and established a platform in Lund where possible support to those affected by the conflict could be discussed. Since then the initiative has grown extensively and has taken part in several projects, including the first in Sweden summer school for the Ukrainian medical students. Thanks to Heiko Herwald all this exciting work in LUA was able to be done and now, after almost 2 years have passed, we’d like to look behind, to talk with Mr. Heiko about how it all began, but also touch upon what awaits the initiative in the future.
What it was like for you when you discovered that the war had started?
I was not too surprised, as the movement of troops toward the borders indicated that it was only a matter of time before the first steps would be taken.
How the idea of creating the group was born?
The idea originated during a lunch with Morten Kjaerum, the Director of the Raoul Wallenberg Institute of Human Rights and Humanitarian Law, a few days after the invasion. We discussed the significance of democratic values at Lund University and saw an opportunity for the university to send a strong signal by providing a platform where researchers from all three conflict parties could peacefully discuss their fears and sorrows. It should be mentioned that the fundamental principles in natural sciences and medicine follow laws that obey the inherent order of the natural world and are not made by humans. Therefore they cannot be influenced by political, ethnic, cultural or religious currents. This is a great chance because natural sciences and medicine offer a potential to unite researchers from enemy countries. There are many positive examples in human history where collaborative scientific endeavors have transcended geopolitical conflicts, fostering cooperation and understanding. While Lund University cannot resolve the conflict, it can showcase constructive and respectful interaction between scientists from all over the world.
Where did you start from?
We start by asking our colleagues who have their origins from one of the three countries whether they would be interested to meet. Most people we contacted were positive.
Who were the people behind?
Before starting this platform I had a discussion with our dean and she thought that it would be a good gesture from our faculty. Morten and I then contacted colleagues from the three conflict parties who we know support the values of democracy and academic freedom. Over time, we also garnered support from colleagues working for instance at the departments of international relations and communication and collaboration, as well as at the developmental office and scholars at risk. Together, this formed a robust team with diverse competencies needed for upcoming projects.
Where do you see LUA in the future?
The original concept aimed to create a self-sustaining platform for individuals concerned about the situation in Ukraine to convene and organize support activities. This objective has now been successfully achieved. Under the guidance of Denys Kovalenko, LUA has undertaken commendable initiatives, such as organizing a summer school and delivering online lectures for Ukrainian students. Numerous additional projects are in the pipeline, and I am optimistic that this thriving initiative will attain numerous milestones in the times ahead.
Why is this important to support Ukrainian academia?
In times of war, it is crucial to plan for the future, and education is one of the most fundamental values that must be safeguarded. Without an education it is not possible to maintain ethical principles which are crucial to rebuild a destroyed society.
Anything else you’d like to mention to our readers?
It is essential to emphasize that LUA is a platform for everyone. The more people involved using their existing networks, the more successful it will be in aiding academic institutions in Ukraine. Anyone with an interest or ideas on how to contribute can contact LUA via Lund University’s homepage (https://www.staff.lu.se/ukraine) or by reaching out to Denys Kovalenko (denys.kovalenko@med.lu.se).
On January 22nd, the first regular monthly meeting of LUA in 2024 was held. Firstly, Mr. Denys Kovalenko, the head of the LUA, presented the latest updates to the group. The main highlights of the presentation are the start of the official webpage and the application for the Swedish Institute grant, to establish collaboration between LU and Kyiv Polytechnic University (KPI). Then, the discussion followed. Several issues were raised, including: The needs for rehabilitation equipment in Ukraine, the possibility of collaboration in the biomedical theme between LU and KPI, the bottom-up perspective on cooperation development, etc. Several members of LUA and one guest, Professor Anatolii Orlov from KPI, were present. We’ll be moving forward with everything mentioned in the meeting and meet again in the next month.
We’re thrilled to kick-off this year with our blog page being finalized. From now on, here we’ll publish the latest updates in LUA, in connection to overall Lund University (LU) academic support directed to Ukraine. This webpage is also meant to be a platform where you can find all the valuable information regarding the means of supporting Ukrainian academia in the time of the war. Don’t hesitate to contact us if you have any questions regarding academic support, or wish to join LUA.
We wish you new victories and achievements during this year!
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