The Sixth Summit of First Ladies and Gentlemen opens in Kyiv with an international dialogue on resilience

Kyiv hosted the scientific and expert conference “Mosaic of Experiences: An International Dialogue on Resilience”, which opened the programme of the Sixth Summit of First Ladies and Gentlemen “World 2026: Finding Stability in Times of Uncertainty”.

More than 200 Ukrainian and international experts, scholars, representatives of government institutions, international organisations, business, civil society and the security sector gathered at the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra to discuss what gives people, societies and states the strength to withstand crises, recover and move forward.

The conference was attended by First Lady of Ukraine Olena Zelenska, First Lady of Lithuania Diana Nausėdienė and First Gentleman of Slovenia Dr Aleš Musar.

The scientific and expert conference was organised by the Coordination Centre for Mental Health of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine within the framework of the All-Ukrainian Mental Health Programme “How Are You?” — an initiative of First Lady Olena Zelenska — in cooperation with the Institute for National Resilience and Security, with the support of the World Health Organization.

Resilience as a subject of shared research

“Mosaic of Experiences” brought together representatives of different countries, professional communities and academic schools. The participants compared the experiences of societies facing war, disasters, uncertainty and large-scale transformations, and explored common mechanisms that help them withstand adversity.

During the international discussion “Mosaic of Experiences: Mechanisms of Resilience,” moderated by public intellectual and military chaplain Andrii Zelinskyi, experts from Finland, Slovenia, Lithuania and the United States shared their experiences of living through crises.

They discussed inner strength, crisis preparedness, social capital, mutual trust, communities’ capacity for self-organisation, institutional adaptability and models of public security. Particular attention was given to how the experiences of individuals and communities can become the foundation for broader social practices.

A separate discussion, “Ukrainian Resilience: Experience, Lessons, Solutions,” focused on the Ukrainian perspective. Experts examined resilience through different dimensions of the country’s life, including the experience of the frontline, philosophy, people’s connection with the land and their communities, healthcare, demographics, mental health and cross-sectoral cooperation.

The discussion brought together, among others, Lieutenant Colonel Viktor Komarenko, Head of the 84th Psychological Support Centre of the 3rd Army Corps; philosopher Oleksandr Filonenko; Liliia Marachkanets, Head of CSR at Kernel; Minister of Health of Ukraine Viktor Liashko; and WHO Representative and Head of the WHO Country Office in Ukraine Jarno Habicht. The discussion was moderated by Oksana Zbitnieva, Director of the All-Ukrainian Mental Health Programme “How Are You?” and Head of the Coordination Centre for Mental Health of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine.

The Ukrainian experience emerged in this discussion not only as a lived experience of war, but also as a field of research. New approaches are being developed in Ukraine simultaneously across healthcare, mental health, rehabilitation, digitalisation, community work and cross-sectoral cooperation. Studying these practices systematically can help develop models that may be useful not only for Ukraine, but for other societies as well.

Sophiynist: a Ukrainian philosophy of life

One of the central moments of the conference was the presentation of Sophiynist as a Ukrainian philosophy of life.

The Manifesto “Sophiynist. A Ukrainian Philosophy of Life” was presented at the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra. Its authors are philosopher Oleksandr Filonenko, cultural studies scholar Nataliia Kryvda, military chaplain Andrii Zelinskyi, Director of the Institute for National Resilience and Security Rena Marutian, and Father Heorhii Kovalenko.

The manifesto was signed by representatives of different areas of Ukrainian society, including His Beatitude Sviatoslav, human rights defender and 2022 Nobel Peace Prize laureate Oleksandra Matviichuk, philosopher and human rights advocate Myroslav Marynovych, public figure Iosif Zisels, Said Ismagilov, Professor Yaroslav Hrytsak, director and actor Akhtem Seitablaiev, and linguist Orysia Demska.

The manifesto presents Sophiynist as a living practice that helps individuals, communities and institutions preserve their integrity, learn from experience, create new solutions and act in times of crisis.

It is grounded in three interconnected pillars: the will to live, the strength to fight, and the wisdom to learn.

The authors trace the source of Sophiynist to Ukraine’s thousand-year cultural experience, bringing together different historical eras, traditions and practices of self-organisation. At the same time, this experience is offered as a contribution to a broader international dialogue on resilience.

The manifesto is available at sophiynist.org.

From a conference to joint work

The venue itself was part of the conference’s concept. For centuries, the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra has been a space for learning, education, art, scholarship and spiritual reflection. This continuity — from the intellectual traditions of the past to contemporary scientific inquiry — became one of the symbolic dimensions of the meeting.

At the same time, the conference had a practical outcome.

The participants announced the launch of the International Expert Council on Resilience, initiated by Oksana Zbitnieva and Rena Marutian.

The new format aims to turn international exchange of experience into systematic work: studying the mechanisms of resilience, organising accumulated knowledge, developing interdisciplinary approaches and creating practical solutions for communities, institutions and governments.

The next step is to establish a broad international scientific cluster on resilience, bringing together scholars, universities, academic communities and international institutions.

The conference that opened the programme of the VI Summit of First Ladies and Gentlemen was therefore not only a conversation about resilience, but also the beginning of work to turn the experiences of countries and individuals into shared knowledge.

From Ukraine’s experience to shared knowledge for the world.
From resilience as a lived experience to resilience as a science of the future.