Entitled "The Untold Stories from Ukraine," this printed newspaper was created to illustrate, through the stories of Ukrainians in the heart of the war, that despite everything, we remain unbroken, resilient, and collectively shaping our future.
"Our goal is to strengthen the belief that together with other democratic nations, we can win this war. We thank you for all the assistance you have provided, but it is still not enough. Ukraine is part of the European community, so we assure you that our victory will strengthen the entire civilized and democratic world," the "Your City" team addressed the forum participants and all those who continue to support and root for our victory.
Among those who shared their Untold Stories with "Your City" are:
Ukrainian soldier Oleksiy Anulya, who spent 10 months in Russian captivity, enduring inhuman torture but persevering and now helping to save other captives. It is believed that the world should know how Russia violates the Geneva Convention concerning the treatment of prisoners of war.
Another story was shared by Anna Hin, a writer and volunteer from Kharkiv, who continues to stay in the city despite Russian attempts to erase it from the face of the earth: "Russia will never take Kharkiv. If necessary, we will defend it with our bare hands."
"Russians will not wait for us to surrender," says Natalia Kalinichenko, editor of the local newspaper and online publication in the town of Bilopillia, Sumy Oblast, which borders Russia. This is yet another story of the resilience of Ukrainian people who, despite hundreds of shelling incidents per month, continue to work and publish newspapers.
The newspaper also tells about the resilience of our businesses. In particular, it highlights one of Ukraine's largest ІТ companies, SoftServe, which is working on over 900 active projects for clients in North America, the EU, and Asia. In the first months of the war, the company relocated 5,000 specialists to the western part of Ukraine and abroad. Despite this, they met all deadlines and kept their promises to clients.
Additionally, Vyacheslav Klimov, co-owner of "Nova Post", shared with this newspaper how the company delivers parcels to the front line and Europe. Despite several targeted attacks on their sorting centers and damaged roads due to Russian attacks, the logistics company still ensures express delivery.
Moreover, in this special edition of the newspaper, Nobel laureate Olexandra Matviychuk explains that we cannot afford pessimism right now, while journalist Joe Lindsley and disinformation expert Yegor Braylyan explain how Russian propaganda operates in European countries and around the world.
"After reading this newspaper, I realized that we (Editor's note - the West) need to provide Ukraine with as much weaponry as possible so that it can defeat Russia faster," said one of the festival speakers and the editor of a national publication in Poland.
The International Journalism Festival is the largest annual media forum in Europe, held in the city of Perugia since 2006. Thousands of experts, journalists, editors, photographers, and media managers from around the world participate in the festival. Over the course of several days, participants share experiences, learn, and discuss important issues.
"Your City" expresses gratitude to the festival organizers and SoftServe company for supporting this initiative.