Collaboration with Ukraine
The University of Gothenburg collaborates with Ukrainian higher education institutions to strengthen education, research, and academic freedom in a time marked by war. Through joint projects, research exchange, and knowledge development, we contribute to long-term, sustainable academic relationships and to strengthening democracy.
Building Remote Work Capabilities in Ukrainian Higher Education Institutions (2023–2025)
Funded by the Swedish Institute, this project was implemented by the University of Gothenburg in partnership with Simon Kuznets Kharkiv National University of Economics and Ivan Kozhedub Kharkiv National Air Force University. The project was led by Assoc. Prof. Nataliya Berbyuk Lindström (project leader), with Assoc. Prof. Aleksandre Asatiani as a key project member. It was grounded in prior research based on 31 interviews across 11 Ukrainian HEIs, identifying gaps in digital skills, remote leadership, and sustainable academic work under COVID-19 and wartime conditions.
The project developed a hybrid course “Remote Work in a Crisis Environment” in Ukrainian and English, produced bilingual video lectures, and published an Academic Remote Work Manual. An open-access digital platform (LMS and online channels) was created to ensure broad and lasting access. The course addresses legal frameworks, digital tools, crisis communication, psychological resilience, and sustainable remote work practices.
Beyond the original plan, the project co-organized an international conference in Germany, produced seven peer-reviewed publications, and initiated an interdisciplinary monograph on higher education transformation in Ukraine.
The initiative strengthened digital competencies, improved remote leadership practices, enhanced Sweden–Ukraine academic cooperation, and contributed to the resilience of Ukrainian higher education during full-scale war.
Digital Technology for Advancing Awareness and Knowledge of Human Rights in the Ukrainian Military (2023–2026)
This project, led by the University of Gothenburg (Sweden), led by Berbyuk Lindström, in partnership with Ivan Kozhedub Kharkiv National Air Force University (Ukraine) and the Kharkiv Regional Foundation “Public Alternative,” aims to strengthen human rights awareness and knowledge within the Ukrainian military during wartime. The initiative addresses the urgent need for structured human rights and international humanitarian law education among military personnel, including both professional officers and volunteers who joined the armed forces after the full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Armed conflict creates heightened risks of human rights violations, which can undermine public trust, democratic governance, and adherence to the rule of law. The project responds to identified gaps in human rights education within Ukrainian military universities and among active military staff. Its overall objective is to increase awareness, knowledge, and practical skills related to human rights and humanitarian law, thereby supporting accountable institutional development and strengthening democratic resilience in Ukraine.
The project has three core components. First, it develops a comprehensive course curriculum on human rights and humanitarian law tailored to military education. The curriculum integrates international legal standards with practical, context-specific applications relevant to Ukraine’s wartime conditions. Second, it conducts a Training-of-Trainers (ToT) programme for university management and teaching staff at the Kharkiv National Air Force University. This ensures sustainable knowledge transfer and builds local capacity to deliver high-quality human rights education independently. Third, the project designs and launches a mobile-adapted asynchronous online course, making human rights education accessible to military personnel across Ukraine, including those in active service.
The partnership combines expertise in digital technologies, human rights research, military professionalism, and civil society advocacy. Swedish researchers and experts collaborate closely with Ukrainian university staff and human rights organizations to ensure both academic rigor and practical relevance. The project also builds a long-term Swedish–Ukrainian network that supports future cooperation in human rights education and digital innovation.
Expected results include integration of the human rights curriculum into military study programmes, training of educators and managers, and broad dissemination of the mobile course to military personnel and partner institutions. In the long term, the initiative contributes to strengthening respect for fundamental rights, reducing risks of violations during armed conflict, and fostering a culture of accountability within Ukraine’s military and higher education system.
By combining education, digital innovation, and international collaboration, the project supports democratic governance and the protection of human rights in times of war and crisis.
Upcoming project
WAR as a dimensioning condition for higher Education
This project examines how Ukrainian universities sustain academic freedom, institutional continuity, and innovation capacity under conditions shaped by armed conflict. It analyses how governance structures, pedagogical models, and digital infrastructures are adapted to prolonged disruption.
Through collaboration between Ukrainian and Swedish partners, the project develops a policy-oriented governance model for academic resilience. It designs flexible pedagogical approaches for hybrid and unstable conditions. It also formulates recommendations for active infrastructuring that align digital, organisational, and physical systems.
The project generates knowledge that is directly relevant for Sweden. It strengthens Swedish capacity to manage crises, safeguard academic values, and develop resilient higher education systems under conditions of uncertainty. It contributes to long-term cooperation, mutual learning, and sustainable reconstruction.
Partners: Lviv Polytechnic National University, Odesa Polytechnic National University, Kharkiv National University of Radio Electronics (NURE)