Stand with Ukraine – Europa Nostra

The unlawful war of Russia against Ukraine has presented new and profound challenges for Europe and has been strongly condemned by Europa Nostra since the onset of the invasion on 24 February 2022.

In March 2022, the Board of Europa Nostra declared the rich and diverse heritage in Ukraine as THE most endangered heritage in the whole of Europe.

Giving support to heritage professionals in Ukraine has been a priority for Europa Nostra. The Heritage Solidarity Fellowship for Ukraine was launched in May 2022 by Europa Nostra and Global Heritage Fund, in partnership with ALIPH and with the collaboration of the Heritage Emergency Response Initiative (HERI). A second call was launched in April 2023. To date, 155 Ukrainian heritage defenders have received support. All donations, however big or small, are welcome and important, and can easily be made via the Europa Nostra website.

Europa Nostra has shown its solidarity and support to Ukrainian cultural heritage and heritage professionals on an ongoing basis and through several existing programmes. At the European Heritage Summit held in Prague in 2022, Europa Nostra reiterated its solidarity and full support to Ukrainian heritage defenders, who were represented by a high-level delegation composed of policy-makers – headed by Kateryna Chuyeva, Deputy Minister of Culture and Information Policy of Ukraine – and heritage professionals, including two highly deserving winners of the European Heritage Awards / Europa Nostra Awards 2022, namely the representatives of the restoration project of St. Andrew’s Cathedral in Kiev and the NGO World Vyshyvanka Day. The role of cultural heritage as a driver for peace and solidarity was also the key theme of a public panel of the European Heritage Policy Agora, also in the framework of the Summit.

Europa Nostra has also been working closely with its partners, including the EU, international governmental organisations and NGOs. Europa Nostra continues to actively support the preservation of Ukrainian identity and heritage through its engagement in advocacy efforts at conferences and working groups worldwide. In the frame of the New European Bauhaus Festival in 2022, Europa Nostra organised the event “Fostering Peace & Solidarity, Beauty & Sustainability as Core Values of the New European Bauhaus” at the Brussels Town Hall. This event was held in collaboration with the City of Brussels, the European Movement International, the European Investment Bank Institute, and the European Commission. The event featured a thought-provoking Policy Debate, which was followed by a concert dedicated to demonstrating solidarity with the people and culture of Ukraine.

Some notable events in 2023 include the ALIPH Forum 2023, the EU Ukraine Consortium known as “Cultural Heritage Recovery for Ukraine’s Benefit and Support – Building Capacities for Rescue, Protection and Resilience” (CHERUBS), and the UNESCO International Coordination Meeting for Emergency Response for Culture in Ukraine (since 2022). Through these engagements, Europa Nostra has demonstrated its unwavering commitment to fostering peace and solidarity in the region. In March 2023, Europa Nostra held its annual #Women4Heritage event in ‘Solidarity with Ukraine’, bringing together over 60 participants. The webinar featured testimonials from several Ukrainian heritage stakeholders and counted with the participation of Deputy Minister Chuyeva.

As part of a series of events that took place in Belgrade on 17-20 May to mark Europa Nostra’s 60th Anniversary and the launch of the European Heritage Hub project, Dr. Natalia Moussienko, Vice-President of Europa Nostra from Ukraine, held the lecture “Art and Cultural Heritage in Wartime Ukraine” at the EU Info Center in Belgrade. The European Heritage Summit 2023 in Venice also shed a light on art and heritage in wartime Ukraine.