On August 13, the foundation attended a presentation of a study by the Ukrainian Institute of the Future on 35 years of the Ukrainian economy. The biggest challenge is demographics: it makes sense to rebuild housing only in places where people will still be living in ten years. That’s why, in our reconstruction projects, we focus not on the building itself, but on whether there will be anyone to use it.
The authors examined the key processes that have shaped these years: crises and periods of growth, demographics, human development, the business environment, energy independence, investments, and public finances.
Problems that have been building up for decades
A separate category consists of systemic problems that have been building up for decades: the demographic crisis, lack of investment, the resource-based economic model, loss of productive capacity, and institutional weakness. The war did not create these problems; it merely made them more visible and costly.
Why this is a story about the denominator for us
For us, this is about the denominator. Rebuilding a community whose population has shrunk threefold over thirty years and rebuilding a community with a functioning economy are different challenges, even though the destroyed housing looks the same. That is why, in our reconstruction projects, we do not evaluate the structure itself. The question of whether anyone in the community will be able to use it ten years from now is just as important.
An opportunity to do things differently, rather than restore things to the way they were
Postwar reconstruction offers an opportunity not to restore things to the way they were, but to do things differently: infrastructure, energy, and services for people. Civil society organizations are valuable here because they work directly with communities and can translate strategic insights into concrete projects.
Source: Taisiia Kryvenko, Program Director of the Charitable Organization “INTERNATIONAL UNITY MOVEMENT” (EDRPOU 44797809). Online presentation of the study “35 Years of Ukraine’s Independence,” Ukrainian Institute of the Future, August 13, 2026. Intro slide: design by the foundation; no personal photo from the presentation is available. Focus area: “Recovery of War-Affected Communities.”
Community Recovery: A Long-Term Effort
We read these studies so that we can later carry out projects in communities.
