From Idea to Foundation: How ZMINA Helps Build Know-How

Many of the projects supported by the ZMINA:Resilience programme are still in the development phase. By providing seed funding and mentorship from experienced professionals, and specialised workshops, participating organisations gain the knowledge and skills needed to bring ambitious initiatives to life — these are projects that some organisations would not implement otherwise.

In the following article, we have selected three of them to analyse them in detail. The supported projects are diverse, both thematically and in terms of their fields. This is one of the reasons why these particular examples were chosen. The first concerns an international theatrical co-production of The Trojan Women. The second focuses on a project whose aim is the development of critical thinking. The third explores philanthropy in wartime and the support it provides.

The following article introduces each of these projects, exploring their original idea, the ways in which they were prepared and implemented, as well as the individual organisations’ plans for the future.

The Trojan Women in a Modern Era

The NASHi Experimental Theatre Club  is an independent platform focused on the development of contemporary theatre, informal art education, and community building. NASHi organises workshops, creative laboratories, public discussions and open performances. The club also maintains long-term international partnerships with the American theatre - La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club in New York, the CultureHub platform, and other European organisations. The project The Trojan Women: Co-Creating Resilience Lab (Ukraine–Europe) is led by a director and producer Romana Izabella Soustus.

NASHi joined the ZMINA programme with a clear vision and its first international partners. Instead of developing a new project from scratch, the organisation primarily sought practical experience in building international partnerships, know-how on establishing consortia, and a deeper understanding of funding schemes such as Creative Europe, which could further support its long-term development.

The project's ultimate goal is an international co-production of The Trojan Women, created in collaboration with The Trojan Women Project initiative and several European theatres. The production explores war experience and the resilience of women whose lives have been profoundly shaped by armed conflict. Through the ZMINA:Resilience programme, the team was able to establish an international consortium, develop a shared artistic concept, and prepare the materials required for future grant applications.

According to Romana Izabella Soustus, Ukraine's independent theatre sector lacks not only financial resources but also a strong sense of community.

“NASHi was founded with a clear mission: to decentralise the role of the 'leading' artist and instead focus on supporting emerging creators who want to experiment.”

The organisation combines theatrical productions with practical workshops, encourages the creation of new artistic projects, and works with both professional and amateur artists. Its ambition is to function first and foremost as a community theatre.

The reinterpretation of Euripides' The Trojan Women through the lens of the contemporary experience of war in Ukraine is one of NASHi's most notable projects.

"Our version of The Trojan Women is fundamentally different because it redefines the very tragedy at the heart of the original story," Soustus explains the modifications brought by the new adaptation.

She adds that the production does not portray war as a defeat. Instead, it explores the shared experience of pain, grief, and social transformations caused by conflict.

The organisation's close collaboration with La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club in New York has been crucial for the project´s establishment. This teamwork has also contributed to cooperation with other international partners.

"We've been in contact with La MaMa since NASHi was founded. I actually began my career there, and wanted to bring back the perspective that became part of my artistic DNA," says Soustus.

The ZMINA:Resilience programme also transformed the organisation's view on cultural funding. The mentorship demonstrated that relationships between artists and donors can be built on partnership and shared values not merely on financial support.

Looking in the future, NASHi, an experimental theatre club, plans to continue staging The Trojan Women in Kyiv during autumn 2026 and winter 2027, along with community workshops. At the same time, the organisation is negotiating guest performances with European partners and further develops the project Choir Migration: Co-creation Lab for a Shared Vocal Language, with focus on decolonisation and multiculturalism using multilingual theatre methodologies.

Kunsht: Critical Thinking Must Be Our Future

War is fought not only on the battlefield but also in the information space. This is something the Ukrainian non-governmental organisation Kunsht knows well. That is why it has made the promotion and development of media literacy one of its core missions — a crucial prerequisite for building long-term societal resilience.

Kunsht has been dedicated to popularising science, education and critical thinking for years. Using a science-popularisation style, it interconnects science and art, and produces podcasts on topics such as artificial intelligence, media literacy, and critical thinking. Additionally, it organises educational programmes.

Over the past decade, Kunsht has developed numerous projects in Ukraine and abroad, collaborating with international partners including UNICEF, IREX, the Goethe-Institut, and the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.

One of the organisation's co-founders is Kyrylo Beskorovainyi, who deals with science communication, strategic communication, and the creation of educational content. Although Kunsht already had extensive experience with international projects, it realised that programmes such as Horizon Europe and Creative Europe require a different approach to project development and submission. Therefore, the organisation joined the ZMINA:Resiliece programme.

"Our primary objective was to formulate and submit a persuasive, high-quality proposal to the Creative Europe programme, specifically under the call focused on media literacy," explains Beskorovainyi.

The project aims to support media literacy and digital resilience in towns and rural communities across Ukraine, Greece, Bulgaria, and Serbia. Its intention is to establish a network of media literacy ambassadors who, after completing specialised training, will start local Media Literacy Clubs, organise educational activities, and promote critical thinking. At the same time, Kunsht will develop methodological resources and practical tools to support the work of these clubs.

A crucial stage of the preparation process was the creation of an international consortium, built on the organisation's existing partnerships.

"The final consortium consists of the Goethe-Institut, Kunsht, the Centre for the Promotion of Science in Serbia, and Ideas Factory in Bulgaria."

At the time of the interview we have been conducting with Kyryl, the project was in the process of evaluation within the Creative Europe programme. The organisation had already prepared a complete project application, including the project methodology, a two-year implementation plan, the operational model for the Media Literacy Clubs, and a strategy to ensure the project's progress after the grant period ends. Another important outcome was also achieved: the establishment of an international partnership for future joint initiatives, which holds great promise.

The Media Literacy Clubs, based in rural and underserved communities, lie at the heart of the project. Rather than a traditional model where experts transfer knowledge, this initiative is designed to actively engage local residents through discussions, workshops, film screenings, board games, and intergenerational meetings.

The project plans to train 24 media literacy ambassadors, who will complete three-month residential stay and establish at least 20 Media Literacy Clubs in Greece, Ukraine, Bulgaria, and Serbia in cooperation with libraries, cultural centres, and non-governmental organisations.

In conclusion, Kyrylo Beskorovainyi adds that, for Kunsht, media literacy is about much more than protecting people from disinformation. The organisation views it as a means of fostering trust, promoting civic engagement, and cultivating problem-solving abilities within communities. 

"This project is built on respect for local communities and on the belief that resilience comes from those communities themselves. That is why it prioritises peer learning, local ownership, intergenerational dialogue, and long-term sustainability over short-term campaigns," he concludes.

Philanthropy at the highest level

Russia's full-scale invasion has caused a transformation in the role of community organisations in Ukraine. Before February 2022, their primary focus was on local community development. Today, they also play a crucial role in strengthening community resilience. The National Network of Local Philanthropy Development (NNLPD) supports these efforts by unifying Ukrainian community foundations and fostering the development of local philanthropy, volunteerism and civic initiatives.

Community foundations identify the needs of local residents, raise financial resources, and reinvest them into their communities through grant programmes as well as their own projects. The National Network of Local Philanthropy Development supports these organisations in their work, strengthens the sector as a whole, and raises awareness of local philanthropy both in Ukraine and internationally.

One of the organisation’s most important figures is its project manager, Viktoriia Zablocka. She has been involved in fundraising, partnership development and community philanthropy for a long time.

Their project supported by the ZMINA:Resilience programme focuses on developing a model of strategic cooperation that will help transfer the experience of Ukrainian community foundations to the wider European context.

The project involves building partnerships with European networks of community foundations, preparing a joint cultural project for 2026 and presenting Ukraine’s experiences at international forums. It also involves encouraging community foundations to share their experiences of building resilience during the war.

The project also seeks to reshape the way European audiences perceive Ukrainian civil society. According to Viktoria Zablocka, Ukraine is still often viewed primarily as a country dependent on international assistance. However, the experience of community foundations demonstrates a society capable of mobilising its own resources and creating effective mechanisms of solidarity.

"Our main goal is to present Ukraine and its society not as victims, but as people who are actively shaping their own future," says the Project Manager.

The project was inspired by the organisation's experience in 2022, when only a small proportion of international aid reached Ukrainian organisations directly. As a result, the Network intensified its efforts to promote the idea that those who experience the country's challenges every day should also be the ones to speak about its needs.

At the same time, Viktoria wanted to showcase Ukraine's culture of philanthropy as an example of a society in which charitable giving, volunteering, and civic engagement have become even stronger during the full-scale war.

Participation in international forums became one of the project's crucial activities. "We took part in three international events, and at two of them we participated as speakers. Through particular examples, we demonstrated how the culture of philanthropy continues to function in Ukraine even under the conditions of a full-scale war," says Zablocka.

The organisation also published several articles on Ukrainian philanthropy and established new international partnerships. "As a direct outcome of these collaborations, we developed a collective project with the German Comics Association and the German Association of Community Foundations," she explains.

The project explores and promotes the culture of philanthropy in both Ukraine and Germany through the stories of local communities. Rather than viewing the relationship as one-sided help, the organisation sees it as a partnership based on mutual learning.

A significant element of the initiative was the collaboration with external consultants. "Working with external consultants gave us something that is extremely difficult to achieve from within an organisation — a fresh outside perspective, free from the assumptions and blind spots that every organisation naturally develops."

Their expertise helped refine the project's communication towards the international audiences and review its strategic ideas.

According to Viktoria Zablocka, the greatest challenge was reconciling the different working paces of Ukrainian and European partners. While Ukrainian organisations are used to making quick decisions during wartime, European institutions operate through more formal processes.

"For me — and for all of us — speed is not a personality trait or a cultural preference. It is a survival skill. We make decisions quickly because that is what the environment we live in demands," concludes Zablocka.

Author: Ján Janočko