The Nanovic Institute for European Studies, part of the Keough School of Global Affairs at the University of Notre Dame, will host a Ukrainian Studies Conference March 6 (Thursday) through March 8 (Saturday). This international and interdisciplinary conference, titled “Revolutions of Hope: Resilience and Recovery in Ukraine,” is presented in collaboration with the Ukrainian Catholic University (UCU) and is dedicated to the ethics and politics of hope in contemporary Ukraine.

The keynote event for the conference will welcome Archbishop Borys Gudziak, president of Ukrainian Catholic University and Metropolitan-Archbishop of the Ukrainian Catholic Archeparchy of Philadelphia, who spoke at Notre Dame’s 2022 Commencement. He will return to the University to present “A Conversation on Cultivating Hope in Ukraine” along with Rory Finnin, professor of Ukrainian Studies at the University of Cambridge and recipient of the 2024 Laura Shannon Prize in Contemporary European Studies. This event, which will take place on March 6 at 5:00 p.m. in McKenna Hall 215, is part of the 2024-25 Notre Dame Forum focused on the theme “What do we owe each other?”

University President Rev. Robert A. Dowd, C.S.C., will offer opening remarks followed by an opening program featuring distinguished guests: Ambassador Oksana Markarova, Ukraine Mission to the U.S.; Bishop Kevin Rhoades, bishop of the Fort Wayne-South Bend Diocese; Taras Dobko, rector of Ukrainian Catholic University; and Mary Gallagher, Marilyn Keough Dean of the Keough School of Global Affairs.

Rooted in the Catholic intellectual tradition of integral human development — a core commitment of the Keough School — the event will examine how hope serves as a powerful counterforce to what has been described as “integral human destruction,” including war, misinformation and the erosion of trust.

Clemens Sedmak, director of the Nanovic Institute and professor of social ethics at the Keough School, said this conference captures a pivotal moment for Ukraine and the study of Ukraine globally. He noted that both the conference and keynote will take place just weeks after the three-year anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. “In that context, Ukraine needs our best scholarship, thought and solidarity,” he said.

Ukraine is relevant for a global audience, Sedmak added. “We also need to learn from Ukraine, a unique country that can teach us a lot about humanity as a whole.”

This public event welcomes all members of the Notre Dame community and the general public to discuss the institute's ongoing work with Ukraine through its Ukrainian Studies Hub. This interdisciplinary initiative coordinates Ukraine-related scholarship and research across all Notre Dame colleges and schools.

“The Nanovic Institute is committed to participating in this vital work,” Sedmak concluded. “We look forward to hosting this conference and growing the life of the Ukrainian Studies Hub at Notre Dame, its research, scholarship and our partnerships in Ukraine, particularly with UCU.”

In addition to this keynote event, the conference will host several cultural events (an art exhibition, a poetry and music event, and a screening of the award-winning documentary film “Porcelain War”), as well as public keynote sessions. Registration to attend panel discussions is free and open to all and closes on Friday, Feb. 28, at 3 p.m.

The conference is supported and co-sponsored by the Department of German, Slavic, and Eurasian Studies, the Kellogg Institute for International Studies, the Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies, the Notre Dame Democracy Initiative, Notre Dame Global, the Office of the President at Notre Dame, the Raclin Murphy Museum of Art and Ukrainian Catholic University.

Originally published by Keith Sayer at nanovic.nd.edu on February 26, 2025.