“Bridges for the Future: Polish and Ukrainian Science for Democracy and Development” is the title of a conference that will present the results of Polish–Ukrainian scientific projects supported by the Foundation for Polish Science (FNP) as part of the #ForUkraine programme. The event is scheduled for April 8, 2025. It will provide an opportunity to show and discuss the challenges ahead of Polish–Ukrainian research cooperation and the directions for applying the results of this cooperation in practice.
The #ForUkraine programme aims to support the implementation of joint scientific projects by scholars from Ukraine and Poland, which are of key importance to both countries as regards issues related to the development of civil society, democracy, economy, European integration, or security. During the “Bridges for the Future: Polish and Ukrainian Science for Democracy and Development” conference, the audience will learn about the results of projects implemented under the programme, get to know the details of Polish–Ukrainian scientific cooperation, and listen to a discussion about the future of Ukrainian science. The conference will hold debates in four thematic panels: “Polish-Ukrainian Research Collaboration: Addressing Challenges in Times of War and Exploring Future Directions,” “The Role of Communication Policy on the Formation of a Democratic State’s Image,” “Building Democratic Societies: Challenges and Perspectives for Ukraine and Poland” and “Valorization in Practice: Applying the Results of Bilateral Projects in Poland and Ukraine.”
Polish–Ukrainian Research Cooperation: Challenges During the War and Directions for Future Development
What are the prospects for Ukrainian science? What is and will be the role of scientific bilateral cooperation between Poland and Ukraine? What have the countries achieved thus far? In the first panel discussion, representatives of the scientific community and non-governmental organizations that conduct science-supporting activities will talk about the challenges faced by Polish and Ukrainian researchers and their research cooperation during the ongoing war across our eastern border. The panelists will also attempt to map directions for the development of such cooperation to benefit both countries.
The Role of Communication Policy in Shaping the Image of a Democratic State
Did the central banks of Poland and Ukraine adapt their strategies to the extraordinary circumstances of the war in Ukraine? If so, how? And how did they communicate this to other entities and the public? What can we learn about the new Ukrainian society by following social media, especially in the visual layer? What is the catalog of values for the projected image of Ukrainian society, and to what extent does it coincide with the values and culture of Western European societies? How does the subject of the Second World War and the Holocaust rank in the current Ukrainian discourse on the ongoing Russo–Ukrainian war? Researchers participating in the panel will discuss these issues and present their research results. Dr. hab. Magdalena Szyszko, laureate of FNP’s #ForUkraine programme who studies communication policies of the central banks in Ukraine and Poland, comments: “Although these two entities do not play a major role in managing the crisis directly related to the outbreak of war, they play a key role in ensuring the proper functioning of economies, taking care of price stability, and supporting state economic policy. The role in mitigating the economic crisis created by the war proves particularly important because it guarantees stability. Some scientific works show that central bank support during wartime can have a decisive impact on the course of history.”
Building Democratic Societies: Challenges and Prospects for Ukraine and Poland
The panelists will address democracy-building in terms of legislation and the judiciary, as well as educational practices and reflections on human testimonies of war. Moreover, the panel will be devoted to the rule of law and the judiciary in Poland and Ukraine. It will involve an analysis of the challenges faced by these countries in the context of integration with the European Union, conclusions from this analysis, and recommendations for change. The panelists will talk about democratic values in educational practice, examining the experience of the expanded presence of Ukrainian children and youth in Polish schools after February 24, 2022. They will also discuss people’s testimonies of war – the human dimension of Russian aggression in 2022, documented in 150 collected and archived personal stories of Ukrainian war victims.
Valorization in Practice: Applying the Results of Bilateral Projects in Poland and Ukraine
The activity of highly skilled forced migrants from Ukraine in the Polish labor market constitutes another issue that scholars studied under the #ForUkraine programme. The programme has developed an experimental project that proposes interventions to utilize the monitored workers’ potential better and examines the effects of these interventions. The project “Determinants of Labor Market Functioning and Well-Being of Highly Skilled Ukrainian Refugees in Poland” aims to develop recommendations that are beneficial from the perspective of the economy of Poland, other countries hosting forced migrants from Ukraine, and, in the long term, Ukraine itself. As Dr. Hab. Piotr Stanek notes, “We hope that when the war is over, some of these people will return to Ukraine and rebuild their country using their high qualifications and new skills, for example, those acquired during our training.” Dr. Stanek is responsible for implementing the abovementioned project with Prof. Maksym Obrizan. In this part of the conference, we will discuss the social and psychological motivations of volunteers engaged in activities for Ukrainian refugees, as well as solutions to strengthen this type of engagement. We will also explore conclusions from the analysis of the integration of young Poles and Ukrainians after February 24, 2022, in terms of supporting the adaptation of Ukrainian students in Poland.
Broadcast Invitation
The conference “Bridges of the Future: Polish and Ukrainian Science for Democracy and Development” will begin on April 8 at 10:00 AM. The Foundation’s YouTube channel will broadcast the event. We invite you to watch it! www.fnp.org.pl/en Fundacja na rzecz Nauki Polskiej – YouTube
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Press contact
Urszula Hajn, Foundation for Polish Science: 691 761 790, hajn@fnp.org.pl
Downloads
Press release and schedule_Bridges For The Future Conference_FNP_03.2025
