Project Title: HER-UKR: Challenges and Opportunities of EU Heritage Diplomacy in Ukraine
Project Number: 101127459 - HER-UKR - ERASMUS-2023 ERASMUS-JMO-2023-NETWORKS
Project Duration: 1 December 2023 – 30 November 2026
Target Group: higher education institutions from the EU (Belgium, Germany, France, the Netherlands, Sweden, Poland, the Czech Republic, Estonia), Ukraine (Bohdan Khmelnytsky National University of Cherkasy, National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy), the USA, Canada, New Zealand, Georgia, and Hong Kong (PRC) - scholars from a global university network and members of the diplomatic corps focused on EU heritage research and the challenges of heritage diplomacy in Ukraine.
ERASMUS-JMO-2023-NETWORKS Grant Amount: €1,189,578.00
Project Coordinator and Lead Manager: Prof. Lien Verpoest, KU Leuven (Belgium), email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Project Content Manager: Dr Olena Betlii, KU Leuven (Belgium), email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Project Website: https://www.kuleuven.be/her-ukr/index.htm
Project Aim: establishing a global interdisciplinary research and educational network on EU-led heritage diplomacy.
Project Objectives:
1. Collecting information on EU external action in the field of cultural heritage and establishing a comprehensive database;
2. Stimulating research, generating new knowledge, and providing policy recommendations;
3. Fostering the enhancement of course delivery related to EU-led cultural heritage diplomacy;
4. Researching Ukraine's cultural heritage, including during wartime, and representing Ukrainian heritage within strategic communications.
Expected Deliverables and Results
REPORTS:
- "EU External Action in the Field of Cultural Heritage"
- "Studies on EU-Implemented Heritage Diplomacy"
- "Analysis of the Economics of Cultural Heritage in Ukraine"
- Final report containing verified policy recommendations
- "Learning by Doing: Insights from Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL) in Jean Monnet Policy Debates" - a report examining the application of COIL methods in Jean Monnet networks as an educational networking tool
ACADEMIC PUBLICATIONS:
- Edited volume Deconstructing Contested Heritage in the EU and EU Neighbourhood Countries, featuring chapters based on research conducted within the project
- Special issue of the European Foreign Affairs Review entitled "Challenges of EU Heritage Diplomacy", presenting research findings by project participants
- Individual project: collection From Kyivan Rus to Modern Ukraine: Virtual Conversations on History, Art, and Cultural Heritage
- Individual peer-reviewed articles
EDUCATIONAL ACTIVITIES:
- Online course "Heritage Preservation in Central and Eastern Europe: Policies, Resources, Communities (MOOC)" (in cooperation with the Centre for Urban History, Lviv)
- Training workshop for heritage professionals
EVENTS:
- Three annual round tables involving stakeholders and academia
- Conference "Challenges in EU Heritage Diplomacy Research"
VISUAL MATERIALS:
Individual project: "Cultural Heritage Sites in Ukraine"
UKROPEDIA DIGITAL PLATFORM, dedicated to Ukrainian heritage and the threats it faces during wartime.
Within the project, each of the 15 partner universities carries out tasks assigned under a specific work package. Bohdan Khmelnytsky National University of Cherkasy, together with the University of Canterbury (Christchurch, New Zealand), implements the tasks of Work Package No. 5: "Strategic Communication on Ukrainian Heritage". The core stages of this work package are:
2024: Monitoring and analysis (utilising a custom-designed methodology) of Ukrainian heritage representation across 27 leading international media outlets in Europe, the USA, and the Global South (covering coverage during the Russo-Ukrainian War). Preparation of reports, presentations at scientific conferences, reports for stakeholders, and academic publications.
2025: Recording and analysis (utilising a custom-designed methodology) of Ukrainian political discourse and expert opinion in international strategic communications and Ukrainian cultural heritage (conducting interviews with members of Ukrainian and international political elites and cultural figures). Preparation of reports, presentations at scientific conferences, reports for stakeholders, and academic publications.
2026: Development and stakeholder presentation of the UKROPEDIA digital information system, which aggregates online resources on Ukrainian heritage, particularly during wartime (technical infrastructure provided by the University of Canterbury), serving as a centralised data repository on Ukrainian heritage per se, Ukrainian heritage under attack by Russia, and EU-led heritage diplomacy.
