Recovery Support Unit: restoring cultural heritage and supporting the cultural sector in times of war.
Culture is the key to a nation's resilience and will play a fundamental role in the country's recovery. The number of destroyed or damaged monuments is growing almost daily. To prevent irreparable losses, it is important to provide professional support for the restoration process based on international practice. Moreover, Ukrainian culture, as part of European culture, should be represented on the world's leading platforms.
In order to develop and support the cultural sector, as well as integrate it into the country's reconstruction plans, UNESCO Ukraine has established a Recovery Support Unit at the Ministry of Culture and Strategic Communications of Ukraine, which is being implemented by the NGU "Foundation for Support of Reforms in Ukraine".
The main goal of the Unit is to strengthen the work of the ICRC in one of the country's priority areas of restoration of cultural heritage and infrastructure destroyed as a result of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine by the Russian Federation.
The Unit’s team of experts will provide legal and technical advice, proposals for capacity building of cultural institutions and educational institutions in the field of culture, human capital and the restoration of cultural services, as well as promote digital transformation in heritage management, among other tasks within the project.
Results
On 28 October, the forum ‘Cultural Decentralisation: Challenges and Prospects for Reform. Restoring communities through culture’. The event was organised in cooperation with the Ministry of Culture and Strategic Communications and the Recovery Support Unit of the International Crisis Group.
The forum discussed issues of decentralisation, development of cultural infrastructure and promotion of Ukrainian creative products with the participation of representatives of state authorities, regional governments and community representatives.
Stefanie Grüssinger, UNESCO Cultural Representative in Ukraine, noted that a special unit (the Recovery Support Unit), has been set up at the ICBC with the support of UNESCO to strengthen planning for the recovery of the cultural sector. Its purpose is to integrate cultural heritage into the reconstruction of Ukraine.
In addition, the Recovery Support Unit at the ICRC initiated a roundtable discussion on ‘Quality Cultural Services in Communities’, which was held on 17 October. The discussion was attended by representatives of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Humanitarian and Information Policy, the Ministry of Culture and Strategic Communications, the State Agency for Arts, the State Agency for Tourism, the Yaroslav the Wise National Library of Ukraine, the National Library of Ukraine for Children, as well as regional state administrations, municipal cultural institutions, publishing houses and the public.
Diana Trima, Director of the Department of Restoration and Cultural Reintegration of the De-occupied Territories of the International Crisis Group, presented the results of the all-Ukrainian survey ‘Challenges of Cultural Development in Communities’, which involved 855 communities. According to the survey, despite the full-scale war, the demand for new forms of cultural services in communities has increased. The majority of respondents consider it appropriate to empower local councils to independently form a network of cultural institutions, approve the quantitative and functional model, regulations on cultural institutions, staffing and salaries.
The survey, conducted by experts from the Recovery Support Unit, highlighted the importance of joint efforts between communities and ministries to overcome cultural challenges in wartime.
Brand book
‘The diamond is a sign of prosperity and well-being. The corporate identity of the Recovery Support Unit, inspired by the symbolism of Ukrainian ‘embroidered amulets’, reflects the current needs of the cultural sector. From time immemorial, culture has been the key to the well-being and prosperity of Ukrainians, and traditions have continued and preserved our family. Today, when the enemy is once again trying to deprive us of our Ukrainian identity, we have the power to defend it.
The global goal of the project is to integrate cultural heritage and infrastructure into the process of rebuilding Ukraine. After all, culture is what shapes us as a nation. And cultural heritage is what future generations will identify themselves as Ukrainians.
Stay in touch! Together to victory!
The Recovery Support Unit under the Ministry of Culture and Strategic Communications of Ukraine is established in partnership with UNESCO Ukraine and financially supported by Japan, is implemented by the Foundation for Support of Reforms in Ukraine.