Dossiers

Escape and displacement in Eastern Europe due to the war in Ukraine

In view of the current situation in Ukraine, the Foundation for Siberian Cultures is particularly concerned to maintain and, as far as possible, continue to foster long-standing close ties with Eastern Europe and Siberia. These relationships will be important for the reconstruction and development of education and culture in these countries after the end of the military conflict. We see ourselves as part of a support network of partners from different countries who share similar views and humanistic commitment, including many of our colleagues between Alaska and Odessa, Berlin and Siberia, Helsinki and Mariupol.

Associates of the Foundation for Siberian Cultures are actively involved in supporting people in need who have lost their homes due to the war in Ukraine or who are exposed to persecution in Russia and must flee. The reasons for fleeing are varied. In Ukraine, the population is exposed to immediate danger to life due to the violence and destruction of war. But also, many well-informed and socially engaged people in Russia, especially those who are critically of the current developments in science and culture and do not want to be complicit in war crimes and the break of civilization, are exposed to threats and persecution. They, too, often have no choice but to leave their homeland.

With donations, the Foundation for Siberian Cultures provides medical and technical assistance to make everyday life easier for people in Ukrainian war zones. Scholarships and other professional integration initiatives have also been supporting in particular refugees from Russia recently.