Supporting Ukraine

A new agreement designed to help build new research and learning opportunities with one of Ukraine’s leading educational providers has been officially signed.

First developed in July as part of wider efforts to support staff and students affected by the conflict in Ukraine, Cardiff University and Zaporizhzhya Polytechnic have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) designed to develop new opportunities.

It is hoped that the agreement will lead to joint research collaborations, collaborative programmes of study, student and staff exchanges as well as joint conferences and workshops.

Signing the agreement on behalf of Cardiff University, Professor Omer Rana, Dean of International for the College of Physical Sciences & Engineering said: “I was absolutely delighted to sign this MOU.

“It’s hard to imagine just how difficult life must be for academic colleagues and students in Ukraine. Despite the immense challenges they face, this provides a symbol of hope and a real opportunity for us to reach out and build new research and student partnerships.”

The MOU was signed during an online event which brought a host of academics from across the University and beyond together to deliver a series of interactive and fun sessions for Ukranian children and youngsters.

Sessions covered a variety of topics including space exploration, superbugs, viruses and computer coding.

Despite the challenges of instant translation, periodic air raid signals and interruptions in the internet connection, The Night of Science event saw some 200 Ukrainian children and youngsters take part.

Dr Chris North from the School of Physics and Astronomy, who delivered a session on the mysteries of the solar system, said: “The partnership presents a wonderful opportunity to be able to share the activities that we deliver here in the UK with children and young people in Ukraine.

“The session was incredibly vibrant, with a number of excellent activities, presentations and workshops from an incredibly broad range of science fields. It was the first time many of us (or likely any of us) had delivered to a Ukranian audience.

“The engagement from the young people in the audience was fantastic to see.”