The event was organized with the aim of putting the reconstruction and restoration of Ukraine in the foreground, uniting as many entrepreneurs and companies from the Italian and Ukrainian sides as possible. Emphasis was also placed on the preservation and restoration of the cultural heritage of Ukraine, the centers of which are being destroyed as a result of Russian aggression.
Opening of the official part of the conference on October 31. The director of the Triennale di Milano, Stefano Boeri, speaks. Photo by Gianluca Di Ioia
"We shape our buildings, and then they shape us" - Winston Churchill
The official part of the conference was opened by the speech of Stefano Boeri, director of the Triennale di Milano:
"Winston Churchill, during the bombing of London, said in one of his speeches: 'We shape our buildings, and then they shape us.' Today we see with what courage and dedication Ukrainians are rebuilding their country not only physically, but also spiritually. As part of our assistance to Ukraine, we aim to involve the best Italian expertise that exists in the field of reconstruction, and to reinforce this cooperation with specific contracts between administrations, between representatives of technical professions, and between citizens of these two countries.
We believe that free Ukrainian cities are the key to a free future in all of Europe."
The event began with these words of the director of the Triennale di Milano.
Stefano Boeri, director of the Triennale di Milano. Photo by Gianluca Di Ioia
Stefano Boeri's words were also supported by Alessandro Giuli, director of the National Museum of Art of the XNUMXst Century MAXXI:
"An air alert was announced in Odesa 42 minutes ago. As we speak now, people are forced to hide in bomb shelters. And this is the specifics. The specifics of the scale of the problem we are talking about. Reconstruction of Ukraine is our mission. After the war, we want to cooperate with Odessa: to establish connections between our cultures, between our museums, to expand these connections. The destruction caused by Russian bombs and missiles should not stand in the way of this."
Alessandro Giuli, Director of the National Museum of Art of the XNUMXst Century MAXXI. Photo by Gianluca Di Ioia
"An air alert was announced in Odesa 42 minutes ago. As we speak now, people are forced to hide in bomb shelters. And this is the specifics of the scale of the problem we are talking about" - Alessandro Giuli
One of the key decisions of the Italian side, presented at the Reconstruction of Ukraine forum, was to take patronage over the reconstruction of Odessa, in particular, to begin with, the Savior and Transfiguration Cathedral, which was damaged by shelling in July 2023.
This is what the Transfiguration Cathedral in Odessa looks like from the inside. The cathedral was damaged by shelling in July 2023.
After the official opening, the events in the forum program were divided in order according to the sectors to which the presented projects and speeches related: construction and infrastructure, energy and environment, agriculture and food, digital technologies and services, civil society and NGOs, investments and financing.
Also present at the event were representatives of the Foster + Partners foundation, which is engaged in creating a vision for the development of Kharkiv, and representatives of One Works Architects, which is developing an architectural strategy for the development of Mykolaiv. They presented their work, and representatives of Foster + Partners announced a book about the vision of the development of Kharkiv, created together with Kharkiv specialists and representatives of the public - it will be released soon.
The held conference is only the first in a series of planned events
A second meeting is planned to be held in Rome in the spring, and later the final part of the program will be organized in Kyiv.
Photo - Gianluca Di Ioia
Italian Minister of Culture Gennaro Sangiuliano spoke at the forum. Arguing the importance of helping Ukraine to restore its cities and architectural monuments, he addressed the issue of basic human rights in the civilized world:
"Our right to culture is written in the ninth article of the Italian Constitution. And in the same way, we work to help Ukrainians preserve their culture, because it is also their property, their heritage and symbols that are so important to society."
Italian Minister of Culture Gennaro Sangiuliano. Photo by Gianluca Di Ioia
Representatives of the Ukrainian government were also present at the Milan Forum. Minister of Foreign Affairs Dmytro Kuleba and Deputy Minister of Infrastructure Oleksandr Azarkhina spoke from Ukraine in the online format.
"Now, as then, the light of humanism emerges from the darkness of war" - Dmytro Kuleba
"During this time, important international conferences were held in Lugano, Paris, Berlin, London and Rome. One of their key results was the development of a large-scale support program "Renaissance". This is an ancient period of European history, but the parallels suggest themselves - because just as the Italian Renaissance was born in the years of calamity, wars and devastating epidemics, so the future, new Ukraine and new Europe are emerging today from the ruins of war on Ukrainian soil. Now, as then, the light of humanity rises from the darkness of war.
I am grateful for Italy's strong support: political, financial, military, humanitarian. Italy also plays an important role in the preparation and implementation of the post-war reconstruction of Ukraine. A stable and prosperous Ukraine will be a reliable ally and trade partner for European countries, will contribute to the economic growth of our entire Europe," said Dmytro Kuleba in his speech.
Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Dmytro Kuleba also joined the conference. He could not be present, but spoke via video link. Photo by Gianluca Di Ioia
"I believe that we can rebuild something better and more perfect. In Ukraine, we are already coordinating among ourselves experts from various fields, architects, social workers — all in order to make our work as fruitful and inclusive as possible. I believe that it is precisely in this aspect of the reconstruction of Ukraine that we have a great potential for cooperation. The already mentioned reconstruction of Odesa is, of course, the rescue of a remarkable cultural heritage, as well as the restoration of Ukraine's trade potential as an interesting international partner on the world economic arena," added Oleksandra Azarkhina, speaking next.
The Deputy Minister of Infrastructure of Ukraine, Oleksandr Azarkhina, also spoke at the conference via video link. Photo by Gianluca Di Ioia
The publisher and editor-in-chief of PRAGMATIKA.MEDIA Kostyantyn Kovshevatskyi, founder of Goldakovskiy Group Architects Vladyslav Goldakovskyi, founder and CEO of the development company "Spilnota" Ihor Raykov, co-founder of the "Agents of Change" organization Maksym Golovko, as well as the founder and CEO of the project company also went to the conference from Ukraine. AIMM Maksym Myatko.
From left to right - Ihor Raikov, Maksym Golovko, Vlad Goldakovsky, Kostyantyn Kovshevatsky, Maksym Myatko
"It was clear that the presence of Ukraine at such international events should be active and meaningful. We discussed with our colleagues what exactly we would like to present there, and already with this program we went to the forum. We knew that the big program prepared by the Triennale would include not only the meeting in Milan, but also the meetings in Rome and Kyiv - they would take place later. So we wanted to discuss our next steps and understand in a more structured way what the cooperation between Ukraine and Italy should be in reconstruction issues, how the cooperation between Ukrainian and Italian architects will be organized and, in general, what place Ukraine will occupy in its own reconstruction.
Triennale di Milano director Stefano Boeri was also present at the workshop organized by the Ukrainian side after the official part of the event. Photo by Gianluca Di Ioia
We have planned a workshop that would allow us to discuss these issues comprehensively and from different angles. Such tandems as "architects - architects", "developers - architects", cooperation of international financial donors with architects, interaction at the cultural level, the role of educational institutions in this cooperation between countries and the training of relevant personnel - architects and engineers, who will take a direct part in reconstruction, about which we are talking - it was important to raise all these questions.
We also presented our projects. I showed a project combining architectural visions for the reconstruction of Mariupol, and also talked about our work on the urban planning code of Ukraine, which I am moderating and which should help align the legal system in the field of architecture and urban planning with the European approach," shares Vlad Goldakovsky.
In the photo, the founder of Goldakovskiy Group Architects, Vladyslav Goldakovskiy, speaks as part of the workshop. Photo by Gianluca Di Ioia
"We had the task of telling Italian architects, designers and engineers about the challenges that Ukrainian cities are currently facing. In particular, the task was to make the description of these challenges eventually grow into the development of a strategy on how to rebuild these cities, and at the same time not just reproduce their previous appearance, but make them better, improve them structurally and visually," adds Maksym Golovko.
In the photo is Maksym Golovko, co-founder of the "Agents of Change" organization. Photo by Gianluca Di Ioia
"From the outside, it may seem that similar events, which are held even during the war, in advance, are done to discuss the problem in a very abstract, virtual plane, but in fact this is not the case at all" - Ihor Raikov
Ihor Raikov also spoke about his impressions after visiting the Reconstruction of Ukraine forum: "Going to the West, I set myself the goal of understanding how to establish international relations not only at the level of "government - government", but also at the level of "business — business". Thanks to our workshop session, which we arranged at the end, we managed to communicate more directly with the professionals who joined the forum and establish just such horizontal connections. The workshop session took place in a separate conference hall, and all participants of the event were invited to it that day. A large number came to listen and get to know us directly, get acquainted with our ideas and projects, despite the fact that it was not part of the official program.
It was only during the forum, to tell the truth, that I realized how thorough the approach to the reconstruction of Ukraine is by all those present. From the outside, it may seem that similar events, which are held even during the war, in advance, are done to discuss the problem in a very abstract, virtual plane, but in fact, this is not the case at all. Everyone who participated in the conference from the Italian side is deeply immersed in the subject of discussion. And all these people are already laying the groundwork so that, when the time comes, they will come to us with a ready action plan and help us with expertise, money, materials — structurally, according to those projects that are already being developed."
In the center is the founder and CEO of AIMM project company Maksym Myatko. Photo by Gianluca Di Ioia
"We have to build new meanings that will be signposts for Ukraine on its further path" - Maksym Myatko
Considerable emphasis was placed in the forum program on the importance of a comprehensive approach and structure in building further plans and developing projects. Maksym Myatko holds the same opinion.
"I believe that this event for us is not just about reconstruction, it is about the dreams of our country. We should not just recreate what was destroyed - we should build new meanings that will be guideposts for Ukraine on its further path, - believes Maksym. — And my opinion is that you should not wait for the end of the war: it is worth starting work in this direction now, building connections and developing an action plan.
Moreover, in addition to problems in the context of construction and physical reconstruction, there is also the issue of the psychological state of Ukrainians, in particular those who lost their homes. Under what conditions did this happen? What other trials did they have to go through? How can we help? It is not enough to simply give a person a roof over his head - he needs to be given hope, given faith that his life continues and will be better. The question is not even about a specific person - we have to give this sense of hope and meaning to the whole society. To give the feeling that we are not folding our hands and working to solve the problems that the country is currently facing, and these people are worthy of it, and they are strong enough to join and also work for victory.
I believe that this conference is a worthy challenge for us not only in building architectural, but also cultural and ideological ties."
From left to right: Kostyantyn Kovshevatsky, Maksym Myatko, Vlad Goldakovsky, Maksym Golovko. Photo by Gianluca Di Ioia
"Nothing about Ukraine without Ukraine. This is exactly how we kept this idea in focus when forming a pool of Ukrainian architects for a visit to the Reconstruction of Ukraine forum. The experience of specialists who are already facing the challenges that necessitate the reconstruction of the country should have been - and as a result was - useful to all those who attended our workshop session. Considering the fact that we have plans to organize the first platform in Ukraine for the popularization of current architectural thought and the exchange of experience between our and European practices, it is difficult to overestimate the connections developed in Milan," stressed Kostyantyn Kovshevatsky, publisher and editor-in-chief of PRAGMATIKA. MEDIA.
