UNESCO in Sumy: Two Days of Strategic Partnership and Joint Decisions

In early June, a UNESCO delegation visited the city of Sumy to support the development of a Lifelong Learning Strategy for the local community. This visit was part of an ambitious effort to create a comprehensive, inclusive lifelong learning system in the city—one that meets the urgent challenges of today.

Over two intensive days — June 2 and 3 — UNESCO representatives, local government officials, civil society organizations, and partners from the Lifelong Learning Centre worked together to coordinate the next steps in developing the Strategy, which is envisioned as a guiding document for the future of education in the community.

The visit began on the morning of June 2 with a meeting at the Sumy City Council’s Department of Strategic Planning, led by Oksana Kubrak. Discussions focused on integrating the Lifelong Learning Strategy into broader municipal policies and aligning it with existing local programs. The delegation also visited the Veteran Hub “Veteran PRO: Sumshchyna,” where Acting Director Mykola Zarytskyi presented practices in non-formal education, psychological support, and veteran reintegration.

Special attention was also given to public libraries, university spaces, and youth initiatives, which offer modern formats for civic education and cultural engagement.

On June 3, a strategic working session took place in a room of the Congress Center, which also serves as a shelter. The session was dedicated to designing the key components of the Strategy:

• Identifying stakeholder roles, from municipal authorities to youth and veteran organizations
• Discussing formats for program delivery, including educational hubs, digital modules, and mobile teams
• Exploring communication tools to promote the value of lifelong learning

Participants included representatives of the Department of Strategic Development of Sumy City Council, the Youth Council, youth NGOs, healthcare and educational institutions, and, of course, the Lifelong Learning Centre NGO team.

The participants agreed to continue coordinating their efforts and to combine resources for the effective implementation of ideas in the future.
The national-level consultant on lifelong learning from the UNESCO Antenna in Ukraine was Mykyta Andreev.
Sincere thanks to all the education stakeholders, colleagues, and friends from various learning spaces: Bohdan Mosunov, Larysa Onyksymova, Maksym Bondarenko, Maryna Troitska, Mykola Zarytskyi, Oleksandr Dmytrenko, Oksana Ivantsova, Serhiy Khvostov, Stanislav Kotenko, Valentyna Kalchenko, Vita Hordiienko, Yehor Hanzha, Yulia Zahovora.

More about the project – youtube