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On 13 April 2025, as a result of a missile strike on the Sumy center, historical sites, in particular architectural monuments on Petropavlivska Street, suffered significant damage and destruction. These sites are of local cultural and historical value. They are part of the city’s unique historical and architectural environment.
Despite all challenges, SumDU is getting closer to recovery every day. This week is yet another proof of the unbreakable will of staff and partners who are working together to restore the damaged buildings.
The annual NAFSA-2025 academic conference took place in San Diego (USA) on 27-30 May 2025. Participants from over 100 countries gathered to present their experience of transformations in higher education systems, trends in development of private companies operating in the education market, international rating agencies, etc. SumDU and Ukraine as a whole were represented by Mykola NAZAROV (associate professor of the Department of Psychology, Political Science, and Sociocultural Technologies).
On 23-25 May 2025, the second round of the international art contest “Magical Fantasies” took place in Chernivtsi. It was organized by the All-Ukrainian National Music Union with support of the Ukrainian Ministry of Culture and Strategic Communications. The event brought together about 700 participants: musicians and vocalists from all over Ukraine and abroad.
On May 20, a special event took place at the British Academy in London to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the partnership between the United Kingdom and Ukraine in the fields of education, science, and innovation. The event brought together academics, researchers, university representatives, and government officials from both countries to strengthen scientific ties and discuss the role of research and innovation in Ukraine’s recovery.
Sumy State University (SumDU) is actively implementing the international project “Service-learning in Higher Education for Ukraine’s Recovery” (ServU, Project No. 101128922 – ServU – ERASMUS-EDU-2023-CBHE), funded by the European Union under the Erasmus+ programme.
Sumy Oblast is one of six regions that have become participants in the large-scale Ukrainian-Swiss pilot project “Clusters4Regions”. The initiative is designed to strengthen the Ukrainian regional economy by implementing the national clustering policy at the local level.
As part of the project, a working group has been created in Sumy Oblast to develop the Regional Cluster Development Program. It is headed by Taras SAVCHENKO (first deputy head of the Sumy Oblast State Administration – head of the Regional Military Administration).
The working group from SumDU includes four representatives:
- Vladyslav KONDUS – head of the Research Department, executive director of the public union “Sumy Engineering Cluster of Power Equipment” (secretary of the working group);
- Fedir ZHURAVKA – professor of the Department of International Economic Relations;
- Ihor REKUNENKO – head of the Oleh Balatskyi Department of Management;
- Mykola SOTNYK – head of the Department of Applied Hydro-Aeromechanics, chairman of the public union board “Sumy Engineering Cluster of Energy Equipment”.
During the opening session, Vladyslav KONDUS presented an analytical overview of the regional economic profile, existing clusters and cluster initiatives, as well as their relationship with smart specialization. Among sectors with confirmed cluster potential, he highlighted power engineering, agro-processing and light industry, primarily due to hemp growing.
“The analysis showed that existing and potential clusters have different levels of maturity, but a common feature for them is economic stability, readiness for cooperation and the ability to adapt to wartime challenges. It is the cluster model that allows integrating production, science, innovation and education into joint projects with high added value,” – emphasized Vladyslav KONDUS.
The participants also outlined strategic priorities for cluster development, discussed prospects and challenges, and made proposals for the future program. In particular, Mykola SOTNYK noted the importance of involving specialists from energy sector enterprises in its development, taking into account differences in the needs of different clusters regarding energy supply.
Taras SAVCHENKO emphasized the key role of scientific and educational institutions, in particular SumDU, in formation of a high-quality program for cluster development of the region.
The draft program development is planned to be completed by the end of June. After passing necessary examinations and approvals, the document should be approved by November of this year.
During the week, active recovery work continued at the Congress Center and Academic Building 2 of Sumy State University. The objects had been damaged by a missile strike on 13 April 2025.
The All-Ukrainian Educational Forum of the Alliance of Ukrainian Universities “Human Capital Development in the Context of the Labor Market: Analysis, Assistance, Adaptation” was held in Kyiv.
In 14-17 May 2025, a delegation from the Department of International Economic Relations of the BiEM Institute visited the JAMK University of Applied Sciences (Finland).