When survival becomes strategy

“We eventually fled to Italy, where I finally felt safe enough to work again. When I returned to Ukraine, my role as safeguarding coordinator had changed completely. Our programmes shifted from prevention to survival: trauma support, emergency aid, rebuilding schools, protecting women and children. The war reshaped not only our lives, but how we had to work and how decisions now had to be made.”

WCU’s Communications Manager Vera Karaicheva reflects on how this lived reality has shaped not only what the organisation does, but how Ukrainian leadership is redefining humanitarian response.

“Our advantage as a Ukrainian organisation is simple but profound: we live the same reality as the people we support. The WCU team has remained in Ukraine throughout the war, experiencing the same conditions, losses, and emotional strain. This embeddedness allows us to understand not only what communities say, but what they cannot always articulate. We can identify unspoken needs, respond precisely, and communicate directly with public authorities when necessary. These are realities that external actors, however well intentioned, often cannot fully grasp. From this lived experience, we have developed practical approaches to humanitarian response that are grounded in today’s wartime context.”

“Our work does not end with delivering assistance. Through participatory approaches, communities – especially women, children, and young people – see themselves as capable of shaping solutions. Small initiatives grow beyond their original scope, inspiring wider action and long-term change. Safe spaces become platforms for leadership, dialogue, and mutual support. As international actors consider exit strategies, Ukrainian organizations will continue this work. For decision-makers, the lesson is clear: investing in local leadership is not a temporary measure. It is essential for sustaining recovery, strengthening communities, and ensuring that humanitarian response evolves into lasting social resilience.”

The Women's Consortium of Ukraine team, photo courtesy of WCU

“We are also among those who have been advocating at both the national and international levels for the inclusion of Roma needs in humanitarian response plans and for the allocation of funding to local Roma organizations. We are building dialogue between the UN Country Team and Roma CSOs (we were initiators and co-organizers of such dialogues in 2023 and 2025).

“Today, the capacity and expertise of civil society in Ukraine have grown significantly. However, most funding from major international donors still flows through international organizations that manage humanitarian projects, which means leadership remains uneven. At the same time, more and more civil society organizations are forming their own consortia and scaling their work to the national level.

“However, I believe that support from international actors remains critically important, as the war is still ongoing. People still need humanitarian assistance, especially those who have lost their homes and become internally displaced. Many require long-term solutions and sustained support to secure livelihoods and expand economic opportunities, particularly in non-frontline areas.”

Anzhelika and Polina, photo courtesy of Voice of Romni

“Before the war, I was involved with GAU on and off, mainly focusing on activism and LGBTQIA+ visibility. But when I reconnected with GAU in 2023, people were broken and exhausted. For the LGBTQIA+ community, this was no longer about being seen, it was about survival. Today, my work focuses on psychosocial support: listening, stabilising, and helping people find meaning again. From that foundation, everything else begins.”

Yuliia added the crucial role GAU plays four years on since Russia’s invasion in 2022.

“I would describe the role of our organisation as leadership-oriented and feminist. The war has amplified women’s voices in Ukraine’s humanitarian sector. For me, it is especially important that in our daily work we try to act from feminist positions. The last four years have shown how much cultural and social context matters for humanitarian response. Many people we now support had never needed help before February 2022, and it is very important how you offer that help, and that the help you provide respects every person’s dignity.”

She added that the work of local humanitarian actors is crucial in this context. “For me personally, this is my country. Before anything else, I am Ukrainian. In these terrifying times, I am grateful that I can help my own country. I see how our programmes have changed the lives of people who came to us for support. Trust is built from practical experience and good intentions that are put into action. For our organisation, constant dialogue with the LGBTQ+ community is essential. It allows us to respond quickly and effectively to changes that affect people’s lives.”

Yuliia photo by Rhea Catada/Oxfam

Alisa points out that their organization is good at translating data into the real needs of the community. They gather information and local context that international partners often don’t.

“We work closely with local communities — residents, village elders, local councils, city administrations, district authorities and individual beneficiaries. We know all the little details, like what type of wood they need for their stoves, where to store this wood and the conditions it requires. It’s part of our everyday routine,” Alisa explains.

“There is a field team, a monitoring department, and monitoring specialists who travel directly to the communities, arrange meetings in advance, present our capabilities, listen to the needs, potential, ideas and constraints of each community. They collect this data not only from formal representatives, but from a wide range of people — volunteers, doctors, and community leaders, heads of residential buildings and cultural centers.

All collected information is passed on to the coordinators and the fundraising department, which develops grant proposals based on real data from 16 regional offices. If the format proposed by a donor does not fit the context, we try to explain why adjustments are necessary.”

Alisa's Photo by Anna Romandash/Oxfam

“While I was in Kherson, I saw people dying, losing their homes, and witnessed overall devastation. For so many, survival was the main issue. Who would help them? Someone had to be on the front lines, and someone had to support people here. I learned that a Kharkiv-based organization was hiring; it had been operating in our region since the Khahovka dam explosion. I applied.”

Oleksii says their organization often operates in areas where international actors don’t reach.

“We risk our lives every day. This is our reality. We work directly in zones close to the frontline, where help is needed most. All our staff are fully aware of the risks, but under the current circumstances, this is the only way to provide assistance to people. At the same time, it’s crucial to draw the international community’s attention to these areas. The fact that international actors cannot always be present due to security concerns does not mean help isn’t needed — on the contrary, these are precisely the zones that require priority attention.”

“International partners naturally have more experience. But over the past four years, with their support, we’ve learned a great deal: how to structure our work, improve processes and implement new standards. That’s how it should be — we need to learn from organizations with significant experience. The past year has been challenging; some funding was cut. 2026 looks a bit better. The need for assistance isn’t decreasing.”

Oleksii, photo courtesy of Peaceful Heaven of Kharkiv

“Three years into my work, I manage the Development and Partnerships Department. There are only two of us, but the work is incredibly important: we build partnerships, connect with new organizations, bring in donors, secure funding and write grants. This is the work that truly makes a difference.”

Yuliia shares how Shchedryk is shaping the humanitarian sector in Ukraine.

“We’ve moved beyond traditional aid to focus on solutions that strengthen livelihoods and local economies. After international actors scaled back food assistance, we partnered with other organizations to support agriculture, help internally displaced people and provide microgrants for new business initiatives. In practice, this means humanitarian efforts in the region now go beyond delivering aid — they include long-term support through training, grants and employment programs. One example is a project in Mykolaiv that trains drivers for municipal transport, showing how humanitarian funding can simultaneously tackle social challenges and improve city infrastructure.”

“We’ve already moved past the stage where international actors alone decide how resources are allocated and what forms of aid are delivered. Today, it’s local organizations — those working directly with communities every day — that set response priorities based on the real context, security conditions and long-term needs of the region. But one thing I want to say is this: we don’t want to face our grief alone. I understand, and I hear often, that the international community may be exhausted after these years of war, but we are not. Of course, we are strong and we will get through this, but it means so much to go through it together.”

Yuliia, photo courtesy of Shchedryk

“TTA’s work has long gone beyond individual projects. Since 2022, we have built a very strong network of local civil society organizations across southern Ukraine. We support them through project grants and capacity-building initiatives. We also train communities to create their own organizations, write grant proposals, secure funding, and implement initiatives at the local level. We help them collaborate with local authorities, strengthening the impact of their work.

Communities we had never worked with before now reach out to us, asking whether we can help them implement initiatives or provide training for their people. This journey toward trust and scale is something we feel very clearly today. Behind that scale are people who ultimately receive support.”

Serhii believes that while international organizations’ work in Ukraine remains critically important, Ukrainian organizations can take on more leadership.

“Over time, smaller organizations demonstrate strong results, build a clear development strategy, and gradually grow to the level of the organization that originally supported them. At a certain point, they can work directly with donors. It would be great if there were more organizations like this. Administrative structures could be simplified, making it easier for international donors to channel funding effectively. This would be a very positive strategy for localization.”

Serhii photo courtesy of The Tenth of April