On 27-29 March 2024, Ewa Hofmanska, President of the Foundation Sunflowers attended a symposium organised by the Kenan Institute for Ethics at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina. There she gave a lecture to law students on documenting war crimes and other human rights violations in Ukraine for use in post-conflict accountability proceedings. In addition, she also participated in a panel on Witnessing and Accountability: Allocating Care in an Age of Global Crisis, where she discussed the issue of accountability for international crimes committed in Ukraine.

We are thrilled to announce that Dr Ewa Hofmańska, President of the Foundation Sunflowers, will participate in a symposium on Ukraine at War: Life in a Time of Fear and Hope, organised by The Kenan Institute for Ethics at Duke University from Wednesday, March 27 through Friday, March 29, 2024.

The symposium seeks to raise public awareness about the struggle of Ukrainians to defend their democracy and culture in the face of the Russian invasion. Dr Hofmańska will be a featured speaker along with other Ukrainian activists.

More about the program, please, see: https://kenan.ethics.duke.edu/event/ukraine-at-war-life-in-a-time-of-fear-of-hope/

In partnership with Omnis Foundation, we are implementing Project Sunflowers, that mission is, among others, to raise awareness of the youth, their parents and legal representatives, of their rights as victims of the war.

Omnis is a nonprofit organization dedicated to restoring communities in crisis by establishing health and education programs based on social responsibility. Omnis’ goal is to provide the resources necessary to achieve sustainable growth. Omnis believes that the best way to realize one’s potential is to create an environment that fosters progress.

Omnis began their work in Ukraine in 2014 in response to the immediate humanitarian needs of families and children affected by the unrest in Eastern Ukraine. Today, that conflict unfolded into a humanitarian catastrophe and put millions of civilians at risk. Omnis established partnerships and initiatives play a critical role in providing emergency medical aid and empowering doctors with resources to treat wounded and those in need of critical medical care.

Educating future generations is a part of their long-term initiatives. As they say, knowledge is power. Omnis ongoing initiatives give underprivileged children and young adults access to better education through direct sponsorship or education resources that open them up to reach their full potential.

Omnis works with the global community to develop and implement programs that help the people of Ukraine address current challenges. Omnis strives to equip individuals with the necessary tools and skills to prepare them to overcome present challenges and shift the trajectory of their life toward a brighter future.

To join Project Sunflowers, please complete the form at: https://reportwarcrime.org/volunteers/ 
or email us at: contact@projectsunflowers.org and info@omnisfoundation.org  

If you would like to share information about evidence of international crimes committed in Ukraine and/or about victims of the war, please, check how to do that here: https://reportwarcrime.org/downloads/ 

Since May 20, 2022, Mariupol has been under Russian occupation. To this day, it is virtually impossible to fully reconstruct the extent of the destruction that the city experienced and the number of victims.

It is still unknown how many people were forcibly resettled to Russia. The stories of the survivors themselves help us understand the dimension of the tragedy. Their testimonies, like Mstislav Chernov’s film, allow us to see the terrible reality of life in Mariupol under siege and during occupation.

In Poland, the testimonies of survivors are documented by four organizations – the Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights, OPORA in Poland, Project Sunflowers and the Rafał Lemkin’s Center for Documenting Russian Crimes in Ukraine at the Pilecki Institute. However, different methodologies lead to a common goal, which is to provide people affected by international crimes with access to justice. And this takes various forms – a court trial, support in returning to social life or recognition of historical truth.

After the screening of the Oscar-winning documentary 20 DAYS IN MARIUPOL on March 17, 2024, there was a debate with representatives of these organizations about the consequences of the siege and what life is like in occupied Mariupol.

The meeting was hosted by Agnieszka Lichnerowicz and the speakers included:

• Olga Kotsiuruba from the OPORA Civic Network and the OPORA Foundation in Poland

• Prof. Hanna Kuczyńska from the Project Sunflowers and the Department of Criminal Law of the Institute of Legal Sciences of the Polish Academy of Sciences

• Yulia Miziukina from the Rafał Lemkin’s Center for Documenting Russian Crimes in Ukraine

• Elena Wasylew from the Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights

We are thrilled to announce that Ewa Hofmańska, President and Co-Founder of Foundation Sounflowers that runs Project Sunflowers, has been honored with the esteemed Epiq Woman Award for Justice and Advocacy during the 5th Annual International Law Conference On the Status of Women, organized by the New York City Bar Association.

Ewa’s dedication to supporting communities affected by conflict, particularly in Ukraine, has been instrumental in driving our mission forward. As part of the Project Sunflowers, she has spearheaded initiatives to collect information about evidence of international crimes committed in Ukraine and victims of the war, organise open webinars to discuss the legal and social aspects of armed conflict, expand the network of organisations supporting Ukrainian refugees in the countries covered by the Project, and search for centres of professional psychological support for survivors of the war in Ukraine.

Her recognition with this award underscores the incredible impact of her work and serves as a testament to her unwavering commitment to justice and advocacy. As an organization, we are immensely proud to have Ewa leading our efforts and congratulate her on this well-deserved honor.

On the 8th March 2024 Hanna Kuczyńska, Board Member of the Project Sunflowers, took part in the meeting organized by the UNHCR Mental Health & Psychosocial Support Network. MHPSN it is a growing global platform for connecting people, networks and organizations, for sharing resources and for building knowledge related to mental health and psychosocial support both in emergency settings and in situations of chronic hardship. This meeting’s focus was safety of refugees, allocating appropriate resources and considering including mental health and psychosocial support in the NGOs’ programs (e.g. psychological first aid training), key concepts and best practices in mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) in response to the Ukrainian refugee crisis.

In the meeting active participation took: Przemysław Marszał from UNHCR, Katarzyna Nowakowska from Feminoteka, Elena Wasylew from Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights, Olia Kotsiuruba from Fundacji Opora, Hanna Kuczyńska from Project Sunflowers and Anna Rzym from International Rescue Committee.

During the meeting supporting efforts for justice for victims were discussed, such as providing information to investigative authorities in Poland and Ukraine as well as to the ICC, giving voice to refugees who wish to testify about the injustices they have experienced, historical memory, raising awareness in Poland about the consequences of crimes and their impact on the lives of victims and entire communities (Physical health, psychological consequences, economic situation); disseminating land to ensure access to the justice system and the identification and rehabilitation of victims; documenting organizations: Lemkin Center; Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights, Opora, Project Sunflowers.