Welcome to our next Voices from Ukraine event: 

From Destruction to Reconstruction: How to Preserve the Cultural Heritage After War

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Since the beginning of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine in 2014, and particularly following the full-scale invasion in 2022, Ukraine’s cultural heritage has suffered immense destruction. Museums, churches, historic buildings, libraries, monuments and cultural institutions have been destroyed and damaged, threatening not only physical landmarks but also the memory, identity and cultural continuity of communities.

What does it mean to rebuild cultural heritage after war? Can destroyed monuments be reconstructed while preserving their meaning and authenticity? And what role can cultural reconstruction play in restoring communities, strengthening reconciliation and ensuring that the consequences of war are remembered?

The experience of Bosnia and Herzegovina offers important lessons. Three decades after the end of the Bosnian War, the country provides numerous examples of cultural heritage destroyed during the conflict and subsequently reconstructed, from the Old Bridge in Mostar to Sarajevo’s City Hall and other religious and cultural landmarks across the country. Their reconstruction demonstrates both the possibilities and the complexities of restoring the country's cultural heritage.

The discussion will explore the destruction of cultural heritage in Ukraine and the challenges that will accompany its post-war reconstruction, while considering what lessons can be drawn from Bosnia and Herzegovina. It will examine how reconstruction can go beyond rebuilding physical structures to restore cultural memory, community identity and a sense of belonging.

Programme: All times are in CEST

18:00 – Welcome and Introductions

Anes Hodžić, LYMEC Events Officer

18:05 – The current state of the cultural heritage in Ukraine

Marianna Filipchuk, PhD candidate, Warsaw School of Economics

18:15 – Lessons learned from Bosnia and Herzegovina

Medina Hadžić, architect, political director of Youth Forum of Naša stranka

18:25 – The Way Forward

18:45 – Q & A and Concluding Remarks

Anes Hodžić, LYMEC Events Officer

19:00 – End of the Event

Please sign up to the event in advance using this link. A Zoom-link will be sent out to registered participants ahead of the event. 

Co-Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or European Commission. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.