Fellowship Programme
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| Country | Armenia |
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To save. To support. To promote. With these three ideas in mind Oleksii Marushchak, a junior researcher at the Schmalhausen Institute of Zoology of National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine and a co-founder of the Ukrainian Nature Conservation Group, applied for the EaP Civil Society Fellowship in spring 2023.
“My main motivation is to help Ukrainian biologists that suffered from the war to save and publish as much data collected by them during their scientific career as possible… In most cases such information remains not published and may be lost forever due to physical destruction… If we teach scientists to work through the Global Biodiversity Information Facility this will be a great contribution to nature conservation in our country”, said Oleksii in his fellowship application.
Oleksii’s application, as well as his profile, stood out from almost 200 concept notes the EaP Civil Society Facility received within that call. Only 28 at that time, he already had been hands-on engaged in protection of nature and biodiversity of Ukraine for good 10 years, both as a scientist authoring more than 170 scientific works, and as an activist, working on the projects to develop Emerald Network and to promote open biodiversity data in Ukraine.
“Biologists become civil society activists when they want to see the results of their knowledge here and now”, explains Oleksii. His journey began at the end of 2014, when he, a bachelor student at the ESC “Institute of Biology” of Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, joined his first project organised by the Nature Conservation Unit as a volunteer. Together with his fellow students, Oleksii traveled to the national parks to help the park managers with daily tasks – and to collect some first-hand data. He remembers that at the end of one of his trips he was approached by a park officer with a request to share his observations of the local amphibians. “I met some amazing professionals in those trips, and communicating with them was very interesting to me as a student; and then you see that your small report did help a national park in its works”, says Oleksii.
Within another volunteer project in 2016 Oleksii found his niche in science and activism – biodiversity data and GIS (Geoinformation System) modelling. “I was given a huge dataset in an excel sheet, some dozens of thousands of records of rare plants and position data,” remembers Oleksii. “I spent a month matching descriptions with finds locations in Donetsk oblast. A couple of years later an atlas of rare plants of Donetsk Oblast was published, with my name as its co-author.” Today he uses biodiversity data to develop scenarios for preserving and managing wildlife.
In 2018 Oleksii co-founded the Ukrainian Nature Conservation Group (UNCG) that now unites more than 50 nature conservation professionals and activists from all over Ukraine. The organisation is a leader in the field of protected areas and contributed to the establishment of 75% of the protected areas created in Ukraine over the past 10 years.
At UNCG Oleksii mostly works on biodiversity data managing and ecological education projects, such as promoting iNaturalist, an app that helps users to identify found animals and plants, and to record the finds into the international biodiversity database. However, he and his colleagues are happy to help those interested in implementing their own projects, from collecting data, evaluating environmental impact, researching a territory and identifying rare species, to training in any nature conservation aspect. Thus, in 2023 the UNCG experts helped Studenukivska hromada create one of regional landscape parks in Kyiv oblast. The CSO also closely worked with the Environment. People. Law organisation to prevent the construction of a wind farm in Polonyna Borzhava, a montane meadow in the Northeastern Carpathians.
Since the beginning of the full-scale war in Ukraine, Oleksii has been helping other scientists, environmentalists and other enthusiasts to save the data on registrations of biodiversity, which can be destroyed by the war. Thanks to him and his colleagues, more than 350,000 of such records were saved, digitalized and published, therefore becoming available for use of scientific community worldwide, and his Fellowship project, ‘Saving Biodiversity Data in Wartime’, has significantly contributed to the process.
Oleksii is modest when he sums up his achievements, “We managed to save some important biodiversity data. We supported the scientists and motivated them to keep their work. And we draw people’s attention to the problems of preserving biodiversity in Ukraine.” However, numbers do not lie. 10+ scientists trained within his project prepared and published 12 datasets on the GBIF platform, having saved more than 20,000 primary biodiversity records for international science, with 20% of the data coming from the occupied or de-occupied territories that suffered from military operations the most. Data from the datasets published within the fellowship project have already been used in 3 international scientific articles. Awareness raising and how-to materials created within the project reached almost 268,000 persons motivating new people to contribute their finds to the GBIF, iNaturalist and other open databases, thus expanding the public knowledge on the state of biodiversity and helping scientists and environmentalists to do their job more effectively and cover much bigger areas that are less accessible in wartimes.
When asked if he had any doubts about saving biodiversity in the middle of the war, Oleksii shrugs his shoulders. As an environmental activist with 10+ years of experience, he knows there is “never the right time when it comes to nature conservation projects”. And as a scientist, he knows that in the next years, these data will be used to assess and mitigate the environmental impact of the war in Ukraine. “The sooner the world will help us to oust the [Russian] invaders, the sooner we will be able to help our nature.”
| Country | Ukraine |
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Updates coming soon!
| Country | Ukraine |
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Myroslava project, Chronicles of Recovery, brought together an inspiring community of artists, ecologists, psychologists, urbanists, and communicators who explore how working with plants can support emotional and social recovery in times of war. The initiative emerged from the idea that interaction with nature – planting, growing, observing – can help people process trauma and reconnect with life amidst destruction.
Building on the experience of ArtPole Agency’s earlier work in de-occupied Irpin supported within our #StandWithUkraine Call in 2022, the project evolved into a collaborative network spanning de-occupied Irpin and Bucha, Kherson, Kyiv, and beyond. Experts from diverse fields came together through meetings, research trips, and joint discussions to share practices of ecological restoration and community care.
A key result of the project is the bilingual online platform Chronicles of Recovery – a living archive of stories, practical advice, and connections. It documents experiences collected during expert meetings and field visits, showcasing how communities are rebuilding not only physical spaces but also emotional resilience.
“The materials we collected aim to give something practical,” says Myroslava. “But also something that helps to pause, find like-minded people, and look at things from another perspective – something that makes it easier to move forward.”
The community formed during the Fellowship continues to grow. Its members are developing new collaborations, from eco-construction initiatives to rehabilitation projects for veterans, and contributing to international discussions on soil regeneration and biochar technology. Through Chronicles of Recovery, Myroslava’s project plants not only seeds in the ground but also seeds of healing, solidarity, and hope.
“It’s difficult to go to a de-occupied city and just document how people live there. I want to help.” Interview with Myroslava Ganyushkina in ELLE (in Ukrainian)
| Country | Ukraine |
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| The budget development decisions | 0 |
Updates coming soon!
| Country | Ukraine |
| The scope of | |
| Type of solution | |
| The technology used | |
| The budget development decisions | 0 |
Updates coming soon!
| Country | Ukraine |
| The scope of | |
| Type of solution | |
| The technology used | |
| The budget development decisions | 0 |
| Country | Ukraine |
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| The budget development decisions | 0 |
Fellowship Summary: Mobilising community and local authorities to make a collective response to the war through environmental activism – public flower garden and vegetable growing.
In spring 2022, as uncertainty loomed across Ukraine, Olena and her team at the Charity Fund Radomyshl is our Home launched a powerful community initiative – Victory Gardens of Radomyshl Hromada. Implemented from May to October 2022, the project aimed to help residents and displaced individuals turn every available plot of land into a source of food, stability, and solidarity. “The idea was simple but powerful,” said Olena. “If each family could grow even a small garden, it would not only bring food to the table but also hope and a sense of agency during a time of crisis.”
The project reached 490 internally displaced people and low-income families – providing them with seed kits and access to land for cultivation. Residents quickly rallied behind the effort, transforming the initiative into a symbol of collective strength. To bring the community closer together, a large flower-planting event was organized at the heart of the town. Over 200 local residents – including children, teachers, community group members, and employees of local enterprises – gathered to plant 1,100 flowers in Cathedral Square and at the Glory Memorial. Children were also actively involved through a series of environmental master classes, where nearly 100 young participants between the ages of 6 and 14 learned about sustainable practices, nature, and gardening. These workshops gave children hands-on experiences while encouraging curiosity and connection to the environment.
Olena emphasized that the true success of the project lay in the community spirit it sparked: “People liked the project activities so much that they’re already asking if we’ll continue next year. I think what worked best was bringing people together around a common goal. We had a strong team of like-minded individuals and clear planning—right down to the packaging of seed kits and organizing the award ceremony.”
Beyond the immediate impact, the project also laid the foundation for future initiatives. New connections were formed with environmental organisations and local producers – at least five local manufacturers offered their support, helping streamline implementation.
Looking ahead, Olena is planning a School Garden project to involve children in agricultural activities and meaningful leisure time. She’s also committed to helping others access similar opportunities: “I’m currently organising informal meetings and trainings to help more active residents of my hometown take part in European programs. International support is more important than ever—for our communities and for every person in Ukraine.”
The Victory Gardens of Radomyshl Hromada became more than just a gardening effort—it was a movement rooted in resilience, cooperation, and a shared vision of recovery.
| Country | Ukraine |
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Fellowship Summary: Enhance the awareness of the war impact on the environment among Ukrainian students by implementing the information campaign “enWAR_mental”.
Nataliia Yaroshenko has been active in civil society since 2015. Her early years of activism were mostly focused on supporting cultural events, such as the Sumy Rock Fest, but then she experienced the ‘Active Citizen’ programme of the British Council in Ukraine and turned her attention to mobilizing youngsters to collaborate on community development projects.
As a result of this activism Nataliia became the Coordinator of the ‘School of City Ambassadors’ in her home city of Sumy in Ukraine. But this isn’t her only ambassadorial connection as in 2021 she also joined the ranks of the Young European Ambassadors programme.
“As I’m a biologist the next obvious step for me was to unite my civic activism with my passion for the environment. So, with a team of like-minded colleagues, I ran a campaign to promote the concept of the Green Office. This was a great way to help people in Sumy to make the connection between taking local actions and the global movement to protect the environment”
In being awarded a 2021 Civil Society Fellowship, Nataliia was ready to further her journey of finding creative methods for having young people engage in environmental issue, when the Russians invaded Ukraine and her world turned upside down. But Nataliia was not perturbed. She recognized the need to stimulate a dialogue about the impact of war on the environment and her Fellowship shifted its emphasis to become the ‘enWAR_mental’ initiative.
“‘enWAR_mental is all about helping the younger generation understand that the damage to our environment by war will not only have long-lasting effects but that the damage is wide-reaching. Bombs falling on fields and forests in Ukraine will eventually also impact on ecosystems outside of Ukraine. We need to help students and youth understand the issues and the long term consequences, and to build their capacities to advocate for this understanding within their communities.”
Nataliia’s Fellowship has had a strong focus on combining creative talents with scientific evidence and documentation. She has mobilized a team to research, design, and create comic strips that raise awareness to the environmental damage of war. “Such graphics are not only a great way to engage with young people, but they also help to make the difficult topic more digestible”.
She also produced short videos featuring young activists from other countries previously impacted by war, such as Kosovo and Georgia, and other posts on the enWAR_mental Instagram pages. A competition for younger students across Ukraine resulted in more than 50 posters being created and submitted to enWAR_mental, demonstrating a range of perspectives of how young people see the war impacting on their local environment. All the visuals on Instagram have helped to grow enWAR_mental’s followers. “Just last week we saw that we attracted views from about 1,500 new visitors and we see the rise in searches around #environment#war.”
Nataliia also reflected on the personal impact of her Fellowship: “it has helped me through a very traumatic time and the volunteers who have helped me have grown in confidence. Together we are going to continue the work of enWAR_mental”
| Country | Ukraine |
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The project aimed to develop a culture of waste management in Armenia through training and environmental campaigns. To achieve the latter objectives, Vahan organized a number of educational, community outreach and dialogue-building activities. First, he held intensive one-day training in four Armenian regions of Shirak, Tavush, Gegharkunik, and Kotayk. Then, to promote zero waste principles, Vahan engaged partner organizations from Gyumri (Youth Initiative Center), Dilijan (Youth Cooperation Center), Gegharkunik (Ajdahak Environmental Center), and Yerevan (Armenian Progressive Youth) and installed zero-waste stations in their offices under the guaranteed control. Following this, the project team organized a massive cleanup and recycling campaign in Yerevan and other municipalities. Last but not least, to highlight the project deliverables, Vahan held the final conference in Yerevan involving local and international experts, local youth, civil society and municipality representatives to discuss the ecological challenges and their mitigation measures.
The project enhanced the mindset of 150 young people from the Armenian regions and up to 100 youngsters in Yerevan on waste management and engaged the local NGOs. Also, through installing four waste sorting bins, the action encouraged the local communities to separate waste and recycle it on a regular basis. As a result of the cleanup campaigns, 5 tons of sorted waste were accumulated from landfills and sent to recycling within 3 months. Besides, the project served as a bridge for the civil society organizations, local municipalities and small recycling enterprises and urged them to collaborate in terms of waste management.
| Country | Armenia |
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| The budget development decisions | 0 |