Kharkiv Green Urban Fest 2023

On June 17, 2023, the Kharkiv Green Urban Fest 2023 was held at the Yermilov Center of Karazin University as part of the international research project Fusilli (Fostering the Urban Food System Transformation through Innovative Living Labs Implementation). This project received funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation program under grant agreement No. 101000717.

Everyone had the opportunity to take part in a master class on growing microgreens from the Green Landia NGO. Also, 50 kits for growing microgreens at home were distributed. The main goal is to build a quality food system in Kharkiv, so these kits are the first step towards a greener future. This is especially true for the implementation of the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

The partners of the event, "Mom, Plant a Tree!", told the participants of the festival about the initiative "Plant a Tree - Demine Ukraine", because every fifth tree planted will mine 1 square meter of territory in Ukraine. Karazin University's School of Sociology, together with its students and alumni, joined the initiative and planted 10 trees in Kharkiv region.

Another invited partner of the festival, Zmiivska Paper Mill, demonstrated the full cycle of Tetra Pak packaging recycling in Ukraine. It is interesting to note that this paper mill can process up to 15 thousand tons of products per year, which makes it a powerful processing enterprise in the region. And our partners 3.14BAN, founded by Kateryna Uvarova, a graduate of the School, is a brand of modern culture of conscious consumption that gives new life to old banners and produces accessories that are useful in everyday life. They demonstrated their products and everyone had the opportunity to buy them, because they are environmentally friendly, convenient and conscious.

Then, the festival participants had the opportunity to listen to a lecture from the Karazin University's Education and Research Institute of Ecology on the topic "Retrospection of Kharkiv's Urban Space Development: Reflections on the Past for a Green Future", which focused on the urbanized spaces of Kharkiv and green infrastructure. The next lecture was given by Anna Prokaieva, head of the Center for Public and Media Initiatives and head of Kharkiv Zero Waste, about waste management and governance. Anna told the participants about packaging, separate collection, responsible consumption, and public composting. Ruslan Zaporozhchenko, a junior researcher at the Fusilli project and senior lecturer at the Department of Political Sociology, also told the participants about food in movies and TV shows, the influence of culture and society on eating habits.

All participants of the event had the opportunity to see the art project Kharkiv Green Urban Tourʼ2023 and read the stories of Kharkiv residents who continue to garden in the face of war and constant shelling of the city.

The Kharkiv team of the Fusilli project is grateful to its colleagues, friends, partners, visitors, and everyone who joined the festival.