Seite - 19 - in options, Band winter 2018/2019

4 12 Ukrainians, on average per year, are employed by IIASA since 2008 Ukrainian research partners working with IIASA Sustainable agriculture and food security Areas of research collaboration Capacity building Sustainable energy future Integrated management of food, energy, and water security Financial and natural disaster risk management researchers, advisors, and diplomats from Ukraine have visited or attended an event at IIASA since 2008 Young Scientists Summer Program participants Ukrainians have completed the Young Scientists Summer Program since 2008 and NASU Vice President Anatoly Zagorodny, IIASA researchers Yurii Ermoliev and Tatiana Ermolieva aimed to promote self-sufficiency in their home country with their research on integrated management techniques. The Ermolievs know that in the wake of financial and natural disaster, self-sufficiency means everything for a country as vulnerable and resilient as Ukraine. “The country is extremely rich in land and sufficient mineral resources to cover domestic demand,” explains Ermolieva. “However, it is suffering from inconsistent and disintegrated policies that make it fully dependent on international help.” The legacy of collaborative research between IIASA and Ukraine connects researchers young and old as they become experts in their fields. In fact, some of Ukraine’s notable scientists and scientific leaders got their start in the YSSP program. This includes Oleksandra Borodina, who works at the Central Reform Office in Kiev, advising the Ministry of Regional Development, Construction, Housing and Communal Services, and Nikolay Royenko, who founded Miratech Company – a leading international IT company. Since 2008, 15 doctoral students from Ukraine have participated in the YSSP contributing to more than 200 publications. IIASA’s latest Ukrainian YSSPer is Bohdana Dubrovets. Working in the Ecosystems Services and Management Program alongside previous Ukrainian YSSPers like Olha Danylo, Mykola Gusti, and Myroslava Lesiv, she assessed the ecosystem services of forests in Chernobyl for implementing sustainable forest management in radioactively contaminated territories. The support of friends and mentors brings Ukrainians at IIASA together in a tightly knit community. “I wish every PhD student would experience this kind of mentorship,” says Danylo. If science and education define a country, then Ukraine’s budding talent and strong scientific connections are a testament to its enormous potential as a country, even in the face of its challenges. “More attention to science in Ukraine could unlock its economic potential,” says Anatoly Shvidenko, a forestry expert at IIASA. “The positive relationships between Ukrainian and European research institutions over the past decades will open many opportunities for science and education.” Zagorodny, who is also the IIASA Council member for Ukraine and leads a major IIASA- NASU collaborative project, is making the most of abundant scientific opportunity. “Building on longstanding collaborations, NASU is looking forward to furthering its relationship with IIASA to conduct truly integrated multidisciplinary research addressing problems of common interest for Ukraine, IIASA, and the world, that require robust solutions that cannot be solved by traditional approaches,” he says. According to Yuriy Kostyuchenko, from the Centre for Aerospace Research of the Earth at NASU, and the NMO secretary, the horizontal links between interdisciplinary programs and projects are sometimes even stronger than the vertical links within individual institutions. “The scientific community of Ukraine strongly believes in the necessity of cooperation with IIASA and this well- developed scientific cooperation will continue on a solidly constructed base,” he adds. 218 15 Further info: A list of references and further reading can be found online at: www.iiasa.ac.at/Options/Ukraine-18 Tatiana Ermolieva: ermol@iiasa.ac.at Yuri M. Ermoliev: ermoliev@iiasa.ac.at Anatoly Shvidenko: shvidenk@iiasa.ac.at Member since: 1994 www.iiasa.ac.at 19OptionsWinter 2018/19