Episode 4: Sumy/Lisbon. Dr Olena Bondarenko – interviewed by Dr Anastasiya Maksymchuk (Lusófona)

This episode hosts Dr Olena Bondarenko, a philology teacher from Sumy State University, who shares stories about her work of education and resistance in Sumy during these four years under the russian invasion, and her support for her family members fighting for Ukraine in the Armed Forces. In conversation with her, Dr Anastasiya Maksymchuk, Ukrainian filmmaker, teacher and researcher working at Lusófona University, Portugal.

This special edition is a collaboration between FilmEU and Sumy State University, Ukraine.

On 24 February 2026, Ukraine marked 4 years of resisting the russian full-scale invasion (while russian invasion in the east of Ukraine has been going on for 12 years now). The city of Sumy is situated 30 km from the northeastern border with russia. This means the city is under constant threat of shelling and is being bombed almost daily. Living, studying and working in the area is therefore a very different reality from the one in relatively safe Western Europe.

It requires a whole different skillset of survival and emotional coping that the Ukrainians have developed. Even during our calls with our colleague from Sumy, we were interrupted several times and had to pause our conversation because of the explosions in the campus area. Sometimes throughout the podcasts you will hear air raid alerts being announced as we speak. This summer will be a graduation time for the bachelor's students who started their studies in 2021/2022. It means their whole student experience has been marked with war.

We strive to encourage support – both emotional and by action – and while we wish to do so by telling stories about human resilience, strength and courage, we truly state that Ukrainians are not cyborgs but people: hard-working, brave, yet vulnerable, whose endurance is fuelled by love and hope in their hearts.

This production is funded by a grant from the European Union. The views expressed are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union.

This episode can be listen on Spotify and Youtube.