Kherson State University

The Basel Peace Forum was visited for the first time this year by representatives of Kherson State University - teachers of the Faculty of Pedagogy Yevheniia Morozova and Anastasiia Volianiuk. The motto of the event in 2024 is the statement "Rethinking peace - innovation of the future", since the previous arrangements for peaceful existence stopped working due to wars, so modern views on peace definitely need an urgent rethinking.
It is especially important that in every event of the Forum (including panel discussions, speaker debates, lectures and creative seminars) theses about the war in Ukraine, support for Ukrainians and the need to constantly remind the world about our state were heard.
Anastasiia and Yevheniia attended the lecture-discussion "From conflict to cooperation - peace and borders in Central and Eastern Europe" (speakers - Professor Jarosław Janczak from the Faculty of Political Science and Journalism of the Adam Mickiewicz University in Poland and Ambassador Florian Raunig, Permanent Representative of Austria to the OSCE), plenary session, panel discussions "Navigating Narratives" (speakers: professor of political science at the University of Basel Stephanie Beiler, editor of "DER SPIEGEL" Monica Bolliger, founder of the company Miller&Meier Consulting Dominique Meier, digital rights activist and technical policy analyst Javier Pallero, moderated by the director of Swisspeace and Basel Peace Forum Laurent Getschel) and "Healing the past to transform the future" (speakers: psychologist on the issue of enforced disappearance and displacement Pamela Favre, director general of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation Patricia Danzi, director of the Institute for Transcultural Health Sciences of the Cooperative State University Baden -Württemberg Professor Jan Ilhan Kizilkhan, Head of the Service of Foreign Policy Instruments of the European Commission Dr. Peter Wagner, Moderator - Executive Director of the European Organization for Public Law Sonia Reynes-Givanides).
Important theses of the Peace Forum:
• The war in Ukraine needs the world's continuous attention and support, as the security of Europe (economic, military and security of human capital) depends on it;
• Narratives of peace not only provide opportunities for developing empathy, mobilizing support and preserving memory, but can also lead to polarization, manipulation and misinformation (eg Russian propaganda). Society must understand the difference and realize the potential of positive narratives to build peace and transform conflicts;
• Professional inclusion requires the intersection of trauma, grief and the potential for healing, so the focus should be on the deep emotional and psychological consequences associated with violent conflict and the absence of loved ones. It is important to work not only with people affected by the war, but also with their environment;
• Historical borders of countries have constantly changed, but it is important to understand that borders are not about physical obstacles, but about the possibility/impossibility of building cooperation. That is why the European space should be a territory of conditional borders and real partnership.
We consider it incredibly important that speakers and participants from all over the world are coming together today to discuss peace issues, particularly in the context of the war in Ukraine. By the way, the symbol of the Basel Peace Forum is traditionally a combination of blue and yellow, which corresponds to the colors of our hearts. The world has no right to forget about us, such measures must continue until the war ends with the victory of Ukraine.