Author(s)
Iryna Pidkurkova and François Grünewald, with the collaboration of Daniil Bilous, Ilona Hetman, Valeriia Nahorna and Illia Storozh.
‘Mutual aid in times of crisis’ collection: case study Ukraine, April 2025
09/06/2025
"Survival in a war zone: mutual aid, local solidarity and beyond": The large-scale invasion of Ukraine by the Russian Federation in February 2022 transformed Ukrainian society. The moral shock of aggression by a neighbouring state awoke emotions in Ukrainians that have been instrumental in building collective identity and cohesion. Traditional top-down models of humanitarian response are being replaced by strong horizontal relationships based on social solidarity and mutual aid. This report examines mutual aid mechanisms and proposes a series of recommendations to address certain challenges.