Youngsters from western Ukraine sign up to UPSHIFT innovation scheme

This autumn, young people from the Volynska, Ternopiskal, Ivano-Frankivska, Rivnenska, Zakarpatska, and Chernivetska regions of Ukraine joined global youth innovation programme UPSHIFT for the first time.

Sixty teams received training to develop their own initiatives as part of the programme run by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF). Now, over the next three months, they will work on implementing them.

Ideas include spaces for youth development, a career guidance camp, environmental projects, an anti-bullying initiative, a platform for the development of non-formal education and training on mental healthcare.

Bohdan, 17, and his team want to improve mental health resources for young people in their hometown in the Volynska region.

“The problem of the lack of opportunities to take care of mental health resonates with every member of our team, based on our experience”

“For me, it was a full-scale war that came to my hometown, which forced me to leave and then look for opportunities to take care of my mental health. As part of our project, we want to organize a two-month training on mental health for local young people. Among those who complete the training, we will select ambassadors who will promote a culture of mental health among their peers. We believe that this is important for the future development of our community. We shouldn’t forget the spiritual, as otherwise the physical will decline," - says the teenager.

Svitlana, 14, from the town of Varash, in the Rivnenska region, enrolled in the UPSHIFT programme in the hope of improving intergenerational interaction.

“We chose this problem because it’s urgent. Due to the lack of communication between young people and the older generation, their perceptions of each other differ from reality, which causes conflicts and affects the lives of both generations. While doing research, we realized that one of the biggest obstacles to this communication is the fear of being misunderstood”

“As part of our project, we want to minimize this feeling through some fascinating group activities. During the UPSHIFT training, we found our project. It was an unforgettable, productive, interesting, useful and intense experience. Now, using the knowledge we received, we can create a comfortable space to unite different generations around common interests,” she says.

As part of the project, mentors are on hand to help the diverse teams to change their communities for the better. Teams are highly motivated and eager to proceed with project implementation.

The second round of applications for the programme has already been opened in the Ternopilska, Ivano-Frankivska, Zakarpatska and Volynska regions. Soon, enrollment also will begin in the Rivnenska and Chernivetska regions, helping more young people to find solutions to the problems that concern them.

The UPSHIFT programme in the Volynska, Ternopilska, Ivano-Frankivska, Rivnenska, Zakarpatska, and Chernivetska regions is implemented with the support of UNICEF and the Government of Norway.

UPSHIFT is a global programme that is  implemented in more than 40 countries. The programme provides young people with training in Human Centered Design methodology, mentoring support and the resources needed to create socially important projects.

You can find more information about the programme and upcoming enrollment on the UPSHIFT website: https://upshiftukraine.org/.