Ukrainian researchers undertake visiting fellowship at UTS

The Social Impact Technology and Ukraine Democracy Research Hub (SITADHub) has completed its first fellowship at UTS, despite delays due to COVID and Russia’s war in Ukraine.

Daryna Zhyvohliadova, a PhD candidate in Cultural Studies at Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, continued her research project ‘Think globally – act locally: socio-cultural issues of international cooperation’. Daryna’s work focuses on strategies to save Ukrainian cultural heritage since Russian invasion, and providing public seminars, lectures and visits. 

Daryna is a policy researcher, cultural program manager, and non-formal education trainer, currently holding the position of Deputy Head of the International Cooperation Department at the Ukrainian Cultural Foundation – the key institution reporting to the Ministry of Culture and Informational Policy of Ukraine.

The SITADHub Ukraine Fellowship would not be possible without support from the Ukrainian Studies Foundation of Australia (USFA). USFA promotes the education of the public in the Ukrainian civilisation and makes educational and charitable endowments. USFA has been an active supporter of Ukraine research projects and other Ukraine-focused initiative at UTS since 2018.

Hosted at the UTS School of Communication, the two-month program enables research students at MA or PhD levels, or early career researchers, from any Ukrainian university to travel to Sydney, and collaborate on projects of mutual interest between SITAD and UTS academics. 

The program was founded in 2020 by SITADHub (formerly Ukraine Democracy Initiative) at UTS and Dr Olga Oleinikova (Senior Lecturer in Social and Political Science) to support Ukrainian academia and address democratic challenges in Ukraine and across the broader European region.

The fellowship is a partnership for positive change, the first modern research cluster in Australia with a focus on the political and social situation in Ukraine. Since its creation, it has facilitated cultural and academic engagement in Ukrainian and Australian communities. The initiative raises understanding of Ukraine’s culture and its democratic development.

Ukraine, the second-largest nation in Eastern Europe, gained independence in 1991 during the dissolution of the Soviet Union. Mass demonstrations during the Revolution of Dignity saw the removal President Viktor Yanukovych in 2014, who was seen as pro-Russian and anti-EU, and whose tenure saw a democratic backslide and limits to press freedom.  

Russia’s annexation of the Crimean Peninsula in 2014 and the backing of separatists in the Donbas region saw the outbreak of war in Ukraine’s east. In 2022, Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine, which has led to a refugee crisis and tens of thousands of deaths.

Other fellows selected for the program include Tetiana Gorokhova (who has also already completed the fellowship), and Anastasiia Syzenko, Maryna Rabinovych and Iryna Fyshchuk, who will come to UTS later in 2024. Three male candidates, Ostap Salovskyi, Sergii Geraskov and Artemiy Deineka are unable to commence due to travel restrictions.