Psychological support groups are currently being held at the “Emerald City” children’s camp in Orynyn for children from Ukraine’s Donetsk region who have experienced the impacts of war and forced displacement.

A total of six support groups are being conducted, bringing together 80 children from communities across the Donetsk region. The sessions are led by two pairs of trainers from our foundation: Serhii Serhieiev and Yana Serhiieva, as well as Larysa Sushko and Zhanna Tiatkova. During the sessions, they use the “Children and War: Teaching Recovery Techniques” (Teaching Recovery Techniques – TRT) program, which helps children better understand their emotions, cope with difficult experiences, reduce anxiety, and build inner resilience.

The children come from communities that continue to endure daily attacks and remain under constant threat due to the ongoing war. For many of them, living with air raid alerts and shelling has become part of everyday life. That is why spending time in a safe environment, receiving emotional support, and learning healthy ways to cope with their feelings is so important.

Throughout the sessions, the trainers create a safe and supportive space where every child feels comfortable sharing their experiences, expressing emotions, and realizing they are not alone. The children also learn practical self-help techniques that they can continue using after returning home to better manage stress and anxiety.

To encourage creativity and provide a positive reminder of their experience, each child received an art kit filled with creative supplies and small gifts to inspire joyful activities at home.

Psychological support cannot change the circumstances children face, but it can help restore their sense of safety, rebuild trust in the world around them, and strengthen their ability to move forward. That is why these support groups are such an important part of helping children grow and heal during wartime.

These groups are made possible through a project funded by generous donors from around the world who contributed via the GlobalGiving platform. We sincerely thank everyone whose support allows us to stand beside children when they need it most.

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Our Foundation’s Chief Psychologist and Head of the Helping Hand for Ukraine project, Iryna Sukhova, together with the project’s psychologist and supervisor, Nataliia Podoliak, participated in the 39th International Congress on Law and Mental Health—one of the leading international forums dedicated to mental health, human rights, and interdisciplinary collaboration. The Congress was held at the Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM), Canada, bringing together researchers, practitioners, and representatives of civil society organizations from around the world.

During the Congress, they presented our Foundation’s many years of experience in providing psychological support to children, adults, families, and communities affected by the war in Ukraine. Conference participants were introduced to research findings based on the Foundation’s practical work, as well as scientific publications prepared by our team. Special attention was given to how the organization’s long-standing practical experience has served as the foundation for developing effective psychological support programs and advancing evidence-informed research.

Participation in the Congress provided an important opportunity to share Ukraine’s experience with the international professional community, discuss contemporary approaches to supporting mental health in the context of war and humanitarian crises, and strengthen professional networks for future collaboration.

For our Foundation, participating in this prestigious international event represents significant recognition of our team’s long-term commitment to combining direct psychological support, scientific research, and the implementation of evidence-based approaches to mental health care.

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Our Foundation’s trainers, Iryna Sukhova and Yana Serhieieva, took part in a training project for professionals from multidisciplinary mobile teams who work daily with children and families in remote communities across the Sumy region.

Over the course of three days, 24 participants learned practical tools for providing psychological support to children through the “Children and War. Teaching Recovery Techniques” program. Alongside the training, participants also had an opportunity for restorative self-care, recognizing that professionals who support others every day also need time and space to replenish their own emotional resources.

The Sumy region remains one of the areas of Ukraine that continues to face regular shelling and constant security threats. Despite these difficult conditions, multidisciplinary mobile teams travel to remote communities, support children and families, organize safe spaces for children and adolescents, and help them regain a sense of care, stability, and psychological safety.

Their work is demanding, emotionally exhausting, and often carried out in dangerous circumstances, yet it is critically important for the children of the region. We are grateful for the opportunity to contribute to the training of these professionals by sharing practical knowledge and effective psychological support tools. For our Foundation, this is an important contribution to the recovery and rehabilitation of children living through war.

The training was conducted within the framework of the project “Provision of Integrated Child Protection and Social Support Services in Remote Communities of Sumy Region,” implemented by UNICEF and the NGO “Fishing Club of Ukraine” with the support of the governments of the United States, Norway, and Sweden.

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