ВІЛЬНО/VILNO
Funding: Robert Bosch Stiftung
Partners: Robert Bosch Stiftung
Duration: September–December 2024
Budget: 35,000 euros
Coordinators: Alona Karavai, Bohdan Bunchak, Yuliia Alenina, Yuliia Nepyk
Contact: Vilno@insha-osvita.org
ВІЛЬНО/VILNO is a program of Insha Osvita aimed at supporting, recovering, and adapting to civilian life veterans of the Russian-Ukrainian war who worked in the cultural and educational sectors before their service. The mission of ВІЛЬНО/VILNO is to help veterans from the cultural and educational sectors (artists, teachers, cultural managers, and leaders of educational projects and organizations) adapt and return to their profession, as well as to create a scalable model of a reintegration program that can work for other professional groups.
Since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, many artists, performers, writers, translators, teachers, and representatives of other artistic and educational professions have joined the army. In August 2023, Insha Osvita team started thinking about a program for our colleagues from these sectors to support their professional reintegration after serving in the army. We chose to focus on these sectors because we have been working with the arts and education for over 15 years, we are part of these communities, and we (better) understand the needs and have access to professional opportunities in these areas. At the same time, reintegration programs for veterans with a narrower professional focus should also exist for other groups as well, so from the very beginning we approached ВІЛЬНО/VILNO as a scalable model that can and should be expanded and transferred to other sectors.
In June 2024, Bohdan Bunchak, an artist, volunteer, and military who was discharged from service after being wounded, joined the program’s development. He named the program and conducted preparatory research – a series of conversations (depth interviews) with veterans.
When returning to civilian life, most veterans feel confused, misunderstood by people, disoriented in the environment, and insecure about their qualifications and ability to adapt to civilian life. The state has a system of medical rehabilitation and an algorithm for one-time financial support for veterans in case of discharge for health reasons, but the possibility of receiving this assistance is very bureaucratic, and veterans face stigmatization by government officials. The public sector is launching support programs for their mental recovery. Veterans’ reintegration strategies are currently being developed and discussed, in particular by the Ministry of Veterans. However, there is currently no systematic approach to the issue of reintegration of either veterans or the general adaptation of artistic and educational work to the realities of a (re)traumatized society.
Within the first round of the ВІЛЬНО/VILNO program from October 2024 to January 2025 will be implemented:
- A fellowship for 10 veterans;
- Psychological and/or legal assistance (together with partners);
- Joint meetings for veterans with colleagues from the civilian sphere for support in reintegration.
The ВІЛЬНО/VILNO program was supported by the Robert Bosch Stiftung.
