On October 13–14, 2025, a two-day meeting of directors and managers of youth centers and spaces from across Ukraine took place at the National Hotel in Kyiv. The event brought together professionals to discuss the future of youth policy and co-create solutions.
What Happened
During the event, the results of a study on the needs and challenges of youth centers and spaces were presented, based on a survey conducted in September 2025.
The participants were welcomed by the Minister of Youth and Sports of Ukraine, Matvii Bidnyi, who emphasized that today the common task of the state and young people is to build a country to which those forced to leave during the full-scale invasion will want to return.
Participants had an open conversation about the new state youth policy and opportunities for partnership and development with Uliana Tokarieva, Deputy Minister of Youth and Sports, Nataliia Rudnytska, Deputy Head of the Youth Policy Department of the Ministry of Youth and Sports, Denys Minin, Director of the All-Ukrainian Youth Center, and Mykola Kobysia, Director of the Ukrainian Youth Foundation.
“How long will we have to wait for change?” participants asked. “A long time — if you just wait!” replied Uliana.
We decided not to wait, but to act — and invited the participants to join a process of community co-creation. On the second day, the content of the MIST program’s basic training, the framework of the new Youth of Ukraine: Generation of Resilience – 2030 State Targeted Social Program, and new grant competitions from the Ukrainian Youth Foundation were presented.
Based on the results of the meeting, we collected participants’ feedback, ideas, and suggestions, which were passed on to the Ministry of Youth and Sports, the All-Ukrainian Youth Center, and the Ukrainian Youth Foundation for consideration in their work to improve existing programs and support tools, and to develop new ones tailored to community needs.
We thank our partners for their trust and for the opportunity to help youth centers and spaces articulate their requests to the state and turn ideas into concrete solutions. We are also sincerely grateful to the representatives of youth centers and spaces for their engagement and active civic stance.
“The most valuable aspect of this meeting is honesty. Youth centers spoke openly about their challenges, and the state — about its opportunities and limitations. The co-creation format made every voice heard. More than 90 representatives of youth centers from all regions of Ukraine took part. The event revealed the incredible energy of participants who did not just come to listen, but became co-authors of change. This is the format that should become a standard — when young people create their own future rather than receive it ready-made,” said Iryna Bieliaieva, Partnership Development Coordinator at ISAR Ednannia.
Partnership for the Future
The meeting became a platform for experience sharing, new partnerships, and forming a common vision for developing youth work in Ukraine.
The event was held within the framework of the Unlock Youth: Systemic Strengthening of Youth Services in Preparation for the EU Youth Guarantee in Ukraine Project, implemented by ISAR Ednannia in partnership with the Ministry of Youth and Sports of Ukraine and the All-Ukrainian Youth Center, with the support of UNICEF Ukraine and financial support from the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development of Germany (BMZ) through the German Development Bank (KfW).
