Summer has only recently ended, but the memories of it are still lingering. So, we would like to recall how students of Sumy National Agrarian University joined as many as four waves of the VidNOVA:UA project in different parts of Ukraine this year and helped create new youth hubs.
For the second year in a row, students of Sumy NAU have been participating in the project with initiative and enthusiasm. We are proud that the number of participants and programs covered is growing, and those who have already been to the retreat take their friends with them on new trips.
The summer of 2025 was productive: eight students of different courses and specialties took part in four VidNOVA:UA events, compared to two last year’s events and six participants.
Veronika Sheludchenko, a student of the Faculty of Engineering and Technology, attended the first exchange this year, which took place from July 6 to 10 in Reshetylivka, Poltava Oblast. During the five days, the young people had time to show their creativity in designing furniture for the hub and attend excursions. Veronika shared her impressions of the trip with us:
“I was inspired by the unity of all the participants: even though we didn’t know each other at first, our common goals and efforts paid off and together we created a new youth space where local youth can develop. A special pleasure was the people with whom I was side by side at the restoration. So many cool and inspiring people who turned from strangers into good friends. And now I believe even more that our future depends on ourselves, on our activity and desire to act.“
From July 31 to August 4, the second wave of exchanges included Andrii Kolodnenko, a student of the Faculty of Law, Diana Derevianchenko, a student of the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, and Bohdan Hubka, a student of the Faculty of Engineering and Technology. The team from SNAU attended an event organized by the NGO “Dyadkovytskyi Youth Center” in the village of Mylostiv. This is Diana’s second year of participation in the program.
This summer’s third VidNOVA:UA project took place from August 10 to 14 in Bashtanka, and was joined by Roman Holikov, a student of the Faculty of Engineering and Technology. The applicant’s impressions were positive:
“Being back in Bashtanka was an important experience for me. It was a time when I was able to rethink some things, hear different opinions and share my own. The event helped me open up to new acquaintances and look at certain situations from a different perspective. Such meetings really motivate you to move on and work on yourself.”
The last project visited was an exchange that took place from August 15 to 19 in Khatske, Cherkasy region. Law students Yelyzaveta Volkova and Matvii Muzykin, together with Volodymyr Romanenko, a student of the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, joined the renovation of the old premises of the House of Culture. This is not the first VidNOVA for Yelyzaveta, and as she shares, she is not the first to participate:
“It’s always cool to not only watch the development of our country and interested youth, but also to be a part of it.”
We are sincerely proud of such diverse experiences of Sumy NAU students. We believe that by participating in such programs, you inspire not only your friends and us, but also yourself to change.
