We should unite to build and not to destroy

On 20 April 2017 Ukrainian School of Political Studies opened its doors for the 12th time during the First National Seminar in Kyiv. USPS Community welcomed 35 new participants of the program who represent politics, civil society, media, arts, academia and business.

As every year before, the First Seminar aims at providing deep understanding of European values, historical, social, political and economic processes in Ukraine and in the world as well as becoming a source of inspiration and new opportunities for personal and professional development.

USPS is a workshop of inspiration for leaders

During the opening of the seminar Igor Kogut, Co-Founder and Honorary Director of the Ukrainian School of Political Studies, congratulated the participants with the start of the programme suggesting that the School is a real workshop of inspiration for leaders.

Svitlana Matviienko, Chairwoman of the Board of the Agency for Legislative Initiatives, underlined that over 12 years of successful work USPS has become a community of people for whom democracy, rule of law and human rights are not just words but values.

Mårten Ehnberg, Head of Office, Council of Europe in Ukraine, greeted the group and noted that in his 15 years in Ukraine he witnessed a great progress in reforms and, what is more important, a great potential for their future realization.

Human Development: 25 years of Independence of Ukraine

Moderator Olga Zhmurko, Director of the Roma program initiative, International Renaissance Foundation, and Ella Libanova, PhD, Director of the M.V. Ptukha Institute of Demographics and Social Research of the National Academy of Science of Ukraine, discussed transformations in the Ukrainian society in the last 25 years and how to effectively implement demographic policy.

European Integration: Diplomacy or Reforms?

Discussion with the participation of the Vice Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration of Ukraine Ivanna Klympush- Tsintsadze under moderation of Igor Kogut drew attention to issues of European integration, whether it is a goal or just a path to a better future.

Ukrainian society and political elites: is a compromise possible?

Sevgil Musayeva-Borovik, Chief Editor of “Ukrainska Pravda”, tried to answer this question. She also presented her recent book about Mustafa Dzhemilyev.

Responsible Judgements

“What is the nature of responsible judgements, what philosophical grounds do they have?”, – these questions were answered by  Yevgen Bystrytsky, PhD, Executive Director, International Renaissance Foundation.

Parliamentary and Governmental Relations

Victor Pynzenyk, Member of the Parliament of Ukraine, Member of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on economic policy, doctor of economics, professor, discussed the role of parliament in public policy making and how to make government’s initiatives more available to the parliament.

Dialectics of Revolutions

“Revolution is not only about turning the country upside down; the real revolutionary effect is related to the inversion of values”, said Artemy Magun, Dean, Department of Political Science and Sociology, Professor of Democratic Theory.

Ukrainian education today and tomorrow: what is the basis of the future of Ukraine?

“How to bring up a society that is able to think and create rather than merely consume and use?” – this was the leitmotif of the lecture by Lilia Hrynevych, PhD, Minister of Education and Science of Ukraine, moderated by Ivanna Kobernyk, Advisor to the Minister of Education and Science of Ukraine, USPS Alumna.

Values of Constitutionalism

Chairman of the Central Election Commission of Ukraine (2007-2013), PhD, professor, Member of the USPS Supervisory Board, Volodymyr Shapoval talked about constitutional values as well as constitutional guarantees of democracy.

De-communization as a prerequisite for establishing peace in Ukraine

De-communization as a prerequisite for establishing peace in Ukraine was the topic of the discussion with Volodymyr Vyatrovych, Ukrainian Institute of National Remembrance who talked about the Institute’s activity and main myths related to de-communization. The discussion was moderated by Andriy Kogut, Head of the Archive of Security Service of Ukraine, who also presented new  opportunities to access the Archive of Security Service.

Crimea as a challenge for global security and law
Moderator Yulia Tyshchenko, Director of Civil Society Programs, Ukrainian Center for Independent Political Research, USPS alumna, Refat Chubarov, Member of the Parliament of Ukraine, Head of Crimean-Tatar Mejlis, and Valentyna Samar, Director of the Centre for Investigative Journalism, talked about Crimea’s reintegration strategy, effective communication with the occupied territories, the blockade of Crimea etc.

Politics in and between the lines of Ukrainian press

Yulia Mostova, Chief Editor of the «Dzerkalo Tyzhnia» Newspaper, talked about professionalism trust, comprehensiveness and vision of reforms.

Change of the Paradigm of Ukrainian Media: Propaganda, Occupation, War
Andriy Kulykov, Head of the Board, “Hromadske Radio”, suggested his own vision of how communication with the occupied territories should be held.

Value orientations of Ukrainian society in historical perspective

What are value orientations of Ukrainian society in the past and the future? What parallels can we see between our past and our modernity? What lessons can Ukraine draw from its history? These questions were answered by Natalia Yakovenko, PhD, Head of the Department of History, National University “Kyiv-Mohyla Academy”.

Human Rights Protection, Solidarity and Humanness

“You do not have to be a doctor in order to be healthy. Similarly, in order to consider human rights a value and act accordingly you do not have to be a human rights activist”, said Larysa Denysenko, Human rights activist, lawyer, journalist, writer.

Media gallery here

Photographer Oksana Sushko