Vidnova Fellowship

Many civil society actors in Ukraine have lost their local context as well as their integrality as teams and organizations, and have been disconnected from their beneficiaries because of Russian military aggression. Moreover, opportunities for civic engagement have been constrained by the economic hardship that has resulted from the displacement of refugees.

Vidnova Fellowship is an individually designed support program for civil society actors from Ukraine who have been forced to leave their local context due to the full-scale Russian invasion. We are collaborating with activists and professionals involved in civil society who had to seek refuge in Europe (Vidnova Europe) or returned back to Ukraine (Vidnova Ukraine). The program aims to support the continuation of work of Ukrainian civil society actors in connection to diverse Ukrainian and European partners.

We address activists and professionals who are involved in the following spheres of civil society:

  • Human rights protection (LGBTIQ+ activists, Roma-activists, etc.)
  • Support for vulnerable groups (survivors of the Nazi Regime, people with disabilities, etc.)
  • Non-formal education (including history & remembrance activists)
  • Media literacy (independent media)
  • Social innovation and social entrepreneurship
  • Environmental protection
  • and others.

Fellows’ profile

  • An activist and/or a leader/founder/manager of an NGO, charity organization, or volunteer group who relocated to a European country or Ukraine because of the war.
  • Searches for support in finding ways and new senses for activities of their expertise.
  • Intends to stay in the sector, maintain current skills, develop further, and cultivate experience and their organization’s impact in Ukraine.
  • Needs support adapting their activities to the new context.

Calls for applications

Fellowship from 3 to 12 months

Vidnova Europe
Connection with a host organization
Vidnova Europe
Coaching
Vidnova Europe
Training opportunities

Funding for project activities

Vidnova Europe
Networking meetings

Calls for applications

Vidnova Fellowship Ukraine

For fellows in Ukraine.
Applications for Vidnova Fellowship Ukraine are currently closed.
This call for application is hosted by our partner organisation Insha Osvita. Please apply until April 14, 2024.
Vidnova Fellowship Europe
For fellows in other European countries.
Applications for Vidnova Fellowship Europe are currently closed.

Meet the fellows

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UA

Daryna Antonenko

Daryna Antonenko lived in Kyiv before the full-scale invasion and moved to Astana, Kazakhstan. She founded Re:ban, an upcycling agency that gives a second life to used advertising banners, turning them into unique, custom-crafted products. Within the Vidnova Fellowship Ukraine program, she plans to restart the company and continue to develop it, trying to adapt to the new realities of existence.
UA

Kira Okhriemenko

Public activist Kira was born in the Sumy region and now lives in Brovary, Kyiv region. She created a working environment for elderly women from the villages of Sumy Oblast within the “My.Relatives” project. Kira also became a speaker at the event dedicated to the anniversary of the full-scale invasion, “Cafe Kyiv – We Choose Freedom” on February 27, 2023, in Berlin.
UA

Natalia Ukraynets

Natalia was born in the Shchaslyve, Kyiv region. She has directed her efforts toward developing children with autism and developmental delays. With the support of Vidnova Ukraine Fellowship, Natalia opened the Early Development Center “PrEkRASni” to increase the number of early development professionals in Ukraine during the war.
EU

Petro Rusanienko

Vitsche e.V.
Petro comes from Donetsk and lives in Berlin. In frames of Vidnova Europe, he produced high-quality infotainment on YouTube channels to popularize quality Ukrainian content. The first block of the series “Nevihlasy” concerns sexual education, aiming to develop a public discussion about questions about sex. Petro’s host organization is Vitsche e.V.
sex education
videomaking
UA

Liudmyla Mishchenko

Liudmyla moved from Kyiv to Varna, Bulgaria. She is a psychologist who plans to create a space in Zaporizhzhia or Dnipro where she will hold master classes on paper casting. Also, wants to organize women’s circles and movie screenings once a week.
EU

Olena Chuprina

Stowarzyszenie Patchwork
Olena comes from Mykolaiv and moved to Kraków. Thanks to her idea and project, the space of “Patchwork” was equipped with toys, books, and recreation areas to provide a proper summer rest for parents and children. Animators and babysitters organized events and workshops so that during this time, parents could rest and step out of the care of children and focus on doing their errands.
disability
disabled children
UA

Ganna Bogachuk

Ganna moved from Brovary to Vilnius, Lithuania. She plans to work on the project “Identity”, which investigates the factors that influenced identity formation through the prism of personal memories of women from the eastern, southern, and central regions of Ukraine. Plans to conduct 15 more interviews.
UA

Olena Brychenko

Olena Brychenko moved from Kyiv to London, Great Britain. During the past years, she initiated the organization and holding of the scientific conference “Food in History”. Currently, she is working on creating and publishing materials about the changes in food culture caused by the war. She developed a questionnaire based on the testimonies of residents of the de-occupied territories: Kyiv and Chernihiv regions. Now, she is analyzing the food practices of Ukrainians under occupation.
UA

Oleksandra Kyryushyna

Oleksandra was born in Chernihiv and now lives in Kyiv. During the Vidnova Ukraine Fellowship, cultural manager Oleksandra supported artists in finding funding for their initiatives. Oleksandra helped more than 15 projects apply for funding. More than 6 projects are currently in the works. The exhibition “Burn” was held in Kyiv. Another project, “Ukrainians’ Gratitude to Europe and the World”, is under development.
UA

Julia Koval

Julia Koval from Lviv was forced to move to Rzeszów, Poland, because of the war. She is an activist and a volunteer. Julia plans to organize a shelter for IDPs and a warehouse for humanitarian aid, which will go to the east of Ukraine.
UA

Evgeniya Melkonyan

Evgeniya Melkonyan lived in Irpin and moved to Tarragona, Spain. She plans to work as a facilitator on a creative, restorative movement and voice laboratories project that will help people cope with anxiety, find support again, and recover. She wants to hold about three events in different cities of Ukraine.
UA

Khrystyna Semeryn

Khrystyna Semeryn from Ostroh moved to Germany, where she worked at a university. She plans to create essays with intellectual reflection on war and society (“Memory Landscapes, War & Resistance Ecologies of Ukraine”, “Language of Love and Freedom”) and a series of reports on war and memory.

Partners & Supporters

This program is created by Commit by MitOst gGmbH and EVZ Foundation with kind financial support of EVZ Foundation, Robert Bosch Stiftung, Gerda Henkel Stiftung and Stiftung Mercator. The coordination of Vidnova Fellowship Ukraine is performed in partnership with NGO Insha Osvita.