A building with a history spanning more than 100 years is nothing unusual in Sosnytsia, a settlement in Ukraine’s Chernihiv region. Today, Sosnytsia has a population of around 7,000, but it was once a town and an administrative centre of a district. Its first recorded mention dates back to 1234. Moreover, the quality of its pre-revolutionary masonry, thick walls and spacious basement have become significant advantages during the full-scale war Russia launched against Ukraine in 2022. The building in question now houses an educational and rehabilitation centre.
Approximately 90 children and 40 adults who provide educational, daily care and medical support for pupils with special educational needs are regularly present at the Centre. Life in this border area near Russia has become particularly challenging: air raid alerts now last for half or even more of each day. As a result, both children and adults must spend much of their time in a shelter — eating, sleeping and studying there. And, of course, continuing to breathe so they can live.
According to Yuliia Bokovenko, Director of the Sosnytsia Educational and Rehabilitation Centre (ERC), the basement had to be converted into a shelter during the first year of the full-scale war. Although the premises had been renovated, had electricity and offered a sense of security, having dozens of people stay there for extended periods was extremely difficult.
“The air felt stuffy, especially when a large number of children and staff were in the shelter at the same time. This was even more noticeable during the warmer months. It was clear to us that these conditions were not comfortable,” Ms Bokovenko explains. She adds: “This was particularly concerning for our institution because we work with children with special educational needs, including children with disabilities and intellectual developmental disabilities.”
A Shelter That Breathes
“Until recently, the shelter had no ventilation or exhaust system, and fresh air could only enter through open doors,” explains the Chernihiv Women’s Union, one of the first women’s organisations established in independent Ukraine. Since the beginning of the full-scale war, the organisation has expanded its priorities to include the safety and well-being of residents in communities along the border of the Chernihiv region.
When ISAR Ednannia announced the GROW: Grassroots Recovery & Opportunities for Wellbeing competition, supported by the European Union and the Minderoo Foundation, the organisation saw an opportunity to improve conditions at the Sosnytsia ERC. This led to the development of the project Inclusive Safety: Shelter Improvements and Innovative Safety Education for Schoolchildren in the Sosnytsia Community.
The project proposal was approved, and work began in the second half of February 2026. Almost immediately, the team discovered that installing a fresh-air supply system would require digging a trench beneath the building’s foundation to lay an external air duct. This additional challenge, which had not been included in the original budget, was overcome thanks to the ERC’s technical staff. Despite the poor weather and physically demanding work, they dug the trench themselves, enabling the contractor to begin installing the equipment on schedule.
“This not only demonstrates how united the institution’s team is, but also reflects their personal commitment to achieving the project’s goals,” the Chernihiv Women’s Union emphasises.
By the end of March, the first stage of modernisation had been completed. A modern, multifunctional ventilation system was installed and commissioned in the Sosnytsia ERC shelter, ensuring a continuous supply of fresh air and temperature regulation according to the season and the needs of those using the space.
“Because of their individual needs, not every child can recognise when their condition is deteriorating, explain to an adult that they are having difficulty breathing, feel too hot or are unwell, or leave the premises independently. During an air raid alert, taking a child outside is further restricted by safety requirements,” explains Tetiana Roieva, Head of the Chernihiv Women’s Union.
“That is why proper ventilation in a shelter like this is an essential element of inclusive safety. It is not only about protecting children from external threats, but also about ensuring that being in the shelter itself does not expose the most vulnerable children to additional risks.”
Tamara Stupa, Deputy Director of the Sosnytsia ERC, shares this view: “Previously, children would begin to feel unwell because of the stuffy air after just an hour in the shelter. Now, we can remain there comfortably, even during prolonged air raid alerts.”
According to Tetiana Roieva, the organisation’s team closely monitored the modernisation process, and the results made all the effort worthwhile.
“The Centre’s medical staff did not record typical symptoms of oxygen deprivation among the children, even during record-breaking air raid alerts lasting more than 16 hours. We received heartfelt feedback from the Centre’s staff, including teachers, caregivers and speech therapists. These are the people who are with the children every day and every night, continuing lessons even in the basement. Imagine how much easier and safer their already incredibly demanding work has become!”
Knowledge That Protects
From the very beginning, while planning activities and preparing the grant application, the Chernihiv Women’s Union team recognised that physical improvements alone — the walls and infrastructure — would not be enough.
“Children’s safety is about much more than having protected walls,” Tetiana Roieva emphasises. “It is also about creating an environment where children can stay without additional health risks, as well as providing them with the knowledge and practical skills they need to respond appropriately in dangerous situations.”
That is why the project included an educational component focused on safety training relevant to wartime conditions.
In May, nearly 40 Centre employees, including teachers, caregivers and technical staff, completed a first aid training session led by Oleh Mladenov, a certified tactical medicine instructor.
“I used to be afraid even to think about what I would do if one of the children became unwell during an air raid alert,” one of the ERC caregivers shares. “Now, I have a clear sequence of steps in mind. It does not eliminate the fear completely, but it gives me confidence that I know what to do in those crucial first minutes.”
Another important step followed at the end of May: a seminar for teachers in the community who use the Safety digital educational resource.
The resource is an interactive multimedia safety classroom hosted on KM MEDIA, a platform developed by the Kraina Mriy publishing house. It offers interactive lessons on mine safety, fire safety, civil protection and procedures for responding to emergencies. The materials are adapted to pupils’ ages and the New Ukrainian School (NUS) curriculum.
The resource does not require any specialised equipment. Teachers can simply launch a module during a lesson or extracurricular activity, allowing children to learn how to recognise potential dangers through engaging, easy-to-understand scenarios rather than dry instructions.
The project funded 12 licences for the course, which were provided to teachers at rural educational institutions across the community.
“The licences are perpetual, and the provider offers technical support and consultations for teachers on how to use the platform effectively and apply its educational content,” Tetiana Roieva explains. “In this way, we have created opportunities for today’s schoolchildren to strengthen their safety skills, while teachers have gained a modern tool they can use systematically with future generations of pupils.”
A Future That Inspires
The project deliberately combined physical safety improvements with modern safety education.
“Thanks to this approach, we can see the project’s long-term impact on the Sosnytsia community,” Ms Roieva says. “At one institution, we transformed the safety environment itself, while at three institutions we created opportunities for systematic safety education for children.
“We are leaving the community with tools, knowledge and the capacity to continue improving safety and the quality of education independently. In my view, this is precisely how genuine community resilience is built.”
According to the head of the Chernihiv Women’s Union, new requests from communities across the Chernihiv region began arriving after the project was completed.
The Menska and Bereznianska communities need ventilation systems installed in shelters at their educational institutions. Meanwhile, the Mykhailo-Kotsiubynske, Sosnytsia, Bereznianska and Kulikivka communities are interested in introducing digital educational resources to ensure high-quality learning for children, particularly during remote and blended learning.
In response, the Union’s team prepared a new project proposal entitled Educational Resilience of Border Communities in the Chernihiv Region: Digital Solutions for Inclusive and Barrier-Free Education, which is currently under consideration.
If approved, the project will reach nearly 2,000 pupils across four general and special education institutions in the border areas of the Chernihiv region.
“This is how we understand sustainable change: identify a specific problem, find a solution, test it in practice, achieve results and then scale up what works,” Tetiana Roieva explains.
This story was produced as part of the EU Unity4Community project, co-funded by the European Union and the Minderoo Foundation.
