Kharkiv, Ukraine
Emergency Response and Documentation for a Culture Under Fire
A land of golden dome-topped churches, wax-painted eggs, and fascinating architecture, Ukraine is the land of a richly unique cultural heritage and home to seven UNESCO World Heritage sites. Significant sites reflective of Ukraine’s rich culture criss-cross the vast and varied landscape. They comprise neoclassical monuments on the coast of the Black Sea, preserved medieval city centers along the Desna River, and ancient ‘megacities’ within the forest-steppe. All of this beauty and history was put at risk on February 24th, 2022, when Ukraine was invaded by Russia.
UNESCO reports over 170 Ukrainian heritage sites as damaged as of August 2022. Facing unprecedented damages and a long journey to restoration, Ukraine’s heritage is in a precarious position. The need for documentation and safeguarding of Ukraine’s independent heritage has become a global effort, with Global Heritage Fund working on the ground to protect not only Ukraine’s irreplaceable history, but its identity.
In March 2022, Global Heritage Fund partnered with University College London to document, scan, and record the damaged sites around Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city behind the capital of Kyiv. Utilizing mapping technology developed by Planet Labs, Global Heritage Fund and UCL are able to inventory the damaged sites around the city and make them readily available for outside organizations and individuals. This is a pertinent part of the restoration process, especially once post-war reconstruction begins.
Global Heritage Fund has also launched a joint crowdfunding campaign with Europa Nostra to support Ukraine’s cultural defenders – those risking their lives to protect the country’s precious heritage. Together, Global Heritage Fund and Europa Nostra launched the Heritage Solidarity Fellowship for Ukraine to provide salary replacements for those who have lost their earnings over the course of the war in their efforts to protect Ukrainian heritage. The Heritage Solidarity Fellowship for Ukraine provides a one-time salary replacement per eligible recipient equivalent to one month’s salary of €500. This effort was developed with funding from ALIPH.
