Annual report2023
Internews Ukraine has 27 years of expertise in the areas of media, communications, education, and consulting.
Strengthening European values in Ukraine by developing a successful media ecosystem
A prosperous, democratic, successful Ukraine
- Pro-active Ukrainian stance
- Responsibility and independence
- Flexibility and adaptability
- Teamwork and lifelong learning
- Stress resilience and savvy
- Professionalism and efficiency
Our history
With its independence newly restored, and after decades under a totalitarian Soviet regime where free media did not exist, Ukraine needed an organization that would develop quality journalism. Internews Ukraine stepped into this critical role.
Kostiantyn Kvurt
Chairman of the BoardThe Armed Forces of Ukraine are fighting for us every day. That's why we have to work at maximum capacity here in the rear. Every step and decision our organization takes is based on three key principles: innovation, professionalism, and effectiveness. Together, we are building a future where Ukraine will take its rightful place among the world's leading countries.
Our year in numbers
Natalia Pedchenko
Executive DirectorDespite the challenges posed by the full-scale war, Internews Ukraine is continuing to develop and grow: in 2023, we reached a record number of 52 projects and 124 employees.
Natalia Rudenko
Chief Operating OfficerIn 2023, we gathered our entire team for a strategic session in Kyiv where we jointly identified 8 key priorities for our organization. In the coming years, we are focusing our efforts on these areas.
Media program for journalists
We researched the needs of regional media outlets and provided them with comprehensive support, including instruction on creating analytical texts about the war and solutions journalism materials, as well as enhancing the competitiveness of local newsrooms and increasing their organizational capacity.
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330materials published
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89media
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4,747,025total reach of
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1,800,000+total grants awarded
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20regions
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1webinar on reconstruction
Our regional media partners increased their audiences on social networks. For example, the Poltava-based news service ZMIST increased its subscriber numbers by 2.5 times.
Two newsrooms (Tribun and NikVesti) reported improvements in content quality and editorial work organization.
32 journalists from 30 media outlets who attended our solutions' journalism webinar How to Write About Reconstruction created 60 stories about Ukraine's recovery.
An analytical report by our program team provides a comprehensive account of the state of regional media during the full-scale war.
Program for media from the border, eastern and northern territories
We conducted training sessions and provided mentoring and technical equipment to prepare outlets in border and frontline areas to work under fire. We also taught them how to create analytical materials about the war and special projects that meet journalistic standards.
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50
journalists provided in Hostile Environment Awareness Training (HEAT)
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126media outlets supported
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102
materials published
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1,342,418
total reach of published materials
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2,800,000+
value of purchased equipment
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896,000grants awarded
Our training for journalists, cameramen, and recorders who regularly work in frontline or border regions is aimed at giving them the knowledge they need to work under fire and return home safely.
The outlets we trained created special projects on topics on which there is very little specialized content in the Ukrainian media space, including rules for wartime survival, animals during war, mined areas, post-combat military rehabilitation, life in frontline communities, and more.
50 regional media outlets from the east, south, north, and center of Ukraine received 94 pieces of equipment.
Rebuilding Ukraine through solutions journalism
We trained journalists from regional media to create solutions journalism materials about rebuilding Ukraine, helped media professionals work to find recovery solutions, and popularized solutions journalism as a tool for stories about rebuilding Ukraine.
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A three-day course on solutions journalism
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Mentoring support from experts in solutions journalism and urbanism
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67
media
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50
scholarship materials
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10
special projects about rebuilding Ukraine
95.5% of our participants said that the course gave them an understanding of how solutions journalism works and encouraged them to start writing in this genre.
The publication of a special project by Kherson Plus media outlet, Destruction of the Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Plant: No Drinking Water, provoked an active public discussion: as a result of public pressure, the authorities committed themselves to delivering drinking water to people where there were problems with it regularly.
A special project from the news site 18000 titled “Underground Stops and Modular Facilities. How are Cherkasy and Kropyvnytskyi solving the problem of lack of shelters?” contributed to the adoption of an important change in policy by the Cherkasy City Council.
Our program team created a practical guide for journalists who want to learn how to produce solutions journalism materials.
Network of media literacy clubs
We created a nationwide network of clubs which work to improve Ukrainians’ media literacy, including teaching people how to recognize disinformation and manipulative media content in the media, and to develop similar local initiatives in the long term.
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“Disinformation Hunters” communication campaign
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Offline pieces of training on media literacy, project management, and fundraising
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Online meetings of club leaders and members
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Online and offline events in 10 Ukrainian cities
We created and organized 10 media literacy clubs in Sumy, Dnipro, Kharkiv, Kramatorsk, Zaporizhzhia, Odesa, Kropyvnytskyi, Ivano-Frankivsk, Lviv, and Zakarpattya.
They reached over 800 thousand users on social media.
Detector Media and IMI published articles about the project.
Eco-journalism in Ukraine
We were one of the first in Ukraine to popularize the importance of covering the impact of war on the environment among the media. It is critical for media professionals to be able to investigate and cover this topic competently in order to create a record of Russian war crimes. This is why we trained members of local media to write about environmental security issues, in particular about Russian crimes against the environment during their aggression against Ukraine.
Training programEnvironmental chronicles of the war: record, research, and tell
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Three-day training program
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50participants
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Eastern, southern and northern regions of Ukraine
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25
media materials
25 stories received 130.9 thousand views. One video about Mariupol reached over 569 thousand users on Facebook.
One program participant published a story predicting the consequences of a potential Russian destruction of the Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Plant, which drew the attention of Ukraine’s environmental ministry. Unfortunately, the Russian military later committed this very atrocity, and the author became a frequent guest and commentator in the media on the disaster.
Training courseEco-journalism without garbage
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9days and 35+ training hours
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35+training hours
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90
participants
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22trainers and speakers
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Journalism competition for course participants
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2animated videos based on lectures
Video titled How a journalist can start writing about the environment offered practical advice for journalists who are just starting to write about the environment.
The video “Eco-journalism in Wartime” provides figures on the damage caused to Ukraine's environment by Russian aggression.
Program to support the sustainability of Ukrainian media
We organized training sessions and provided grants for regional and local media, including those in frontline areas and/or those trying to survive the challenges of war. The project strengthened their capacity to increase their audiences and attract new revenues.
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10
days of online training
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Individual consultations
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Grants for the production of materials
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20
media
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150
materials
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3 080 000
people reached
The outlets received comprehensive support, which allowed them to continue their work and provide even better coverage of socially important topics.
Expanding the production of independent content
We joined the large-scale international project “Expanding Independent Content Production”, which is being carried out in 7 countries. The project aims to build a strong independent media sector in Eastern and Central Europe that resists manipulation and control by influential people.
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20
local media partners
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6cross-border media partners
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200+content items
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2offline events to expand connections between content producers
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A program of cross-border exchange visits for media partners
Our media partners have already published 77 materials along with social media posts (14.1 million reached with 663.1 thousand interactions).
Our grantees' materials not only received high views but also helped to solve pressing challenges. For example, an article about apartments flooded by the Russian troops destroyed the Kakhovka hydroelectric dam which published by the Kherson Plus TV channel helped its subject receive support from volunteers, local authorities, and the UN.
Ukrainian regional media guide
Every year since 2019, we have released the largest English-language study of the regional media sphere in Ukraine. It is based upon our decades of expertise and connections in Ukraine’s regional media.
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The first and only English-language report on Ukraine’s regional media
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The most comprehensive overview of over 500 regional media outlets
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Covers the entire territory of Ukraine, including partially- and fully-occupied regions
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Based on Internews Ukraine’s 27 years of media expertise and experience of cooperation with regional journalists
Media Guide identifies popular regional media outlets and key players that influence the media markets in each oblast and nationwide.
157 users registered during the first week (three times more than in the previous issue).
Communications for social change
UkraineWorld
We continued developing our popular multimedia project on all things Ukraine, which produces articles, podcasts, video explainers, analytical materials, and other products in English and other languages. We explained Ukraine iand its culture, in covered the most important events in and around the country, and countered anti-Western propaganda and disinformation.
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Analytical articles
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Articles with testimonies of victims of Russian aggression
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Podcasts
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Video explainers
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On-the-ground video reports
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Video in a storytelling format
In 2023, UkraineWorld's posts on X received 165 million impressions, and our page topped 283 thousand followers.
The Facebook page reached more than 20.7 million users over the year.
Explaining Ukraine podcasts received 1 million listens.
The interface of the ukraineworld.org website was completely modernized and adapted to modern demands, which will help increase audience engagement.
The UkraineWorld team regularly organizes expeditions to frontline areas (Kharkiv, Sviatohirsk, Druzhkivka, and other cities). These trips yield videos, articles, and podcasts.
We have begun to create videos in a new format - caption videos - that allow the project to broadcast examples of Russian propaganda to a Western audience.
The project reached new audiences in Latin American countries.
Voice of War Journalism School for Ukraine’s defenders
We conducted an online literary course with the support of mentors to empower Ukrainian service members, facilitate their rehabilitation, and develop civilian understanding of military experience. Together with mentors, the course participants created 22 essays about the war. The essays are collected on the Voice of War platform.
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2
months
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16
workshops
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6
psychological support sessions
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70%of participants said that the project contributed to their social adaptation
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84%
of participants noted that the project improved their mental health
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100%
of participants improved their writing skills
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12
essays published (Ukrayinska Pravda, Rubrika, Novynarnya, The Village)
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6
essays translated into English and published (UkraineWorld, Rubryka, The Village)
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Media articles received 840,620 views
The school's trainers are well-known writers and literary figures, such as Yuriy Andrukhovych, Oksana Zabuzhko, Kateryna Babkina, Rostyslav Semkiv, and Oleksandr Mykhed.
After completing the course, participant Svitlana Penkova wrote and published her first book. She dedicated her memoir Ukrainian Hummingbirds to her husband, a military aviator who was killed in action. In the foreword, she offered special thanks to the Voice of War School. Another graduate, Oleksandr Budko (callsign Teren), released an autobiographical novel about his time at war titled The Story of a Stubborn Man.
Made in...
Our team developed a PR campaign for local producers in Uzhhorod, Ivano-Frankivsk, Kamianets-Podilskyi, and Zhytomyr to increase the competitiveness of small brands and strengthen ties between local authorities and producers.
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Branding for local producers in 4 cities
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4Brand books in Ukrainian and English
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Online catalogs of local manufacturers
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Offline events
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80
Videos about local businesses with a reach of 1.5 million views
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60Billboards and billboard screens with a reach of over 9.5 million
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2
Trainings on targeting for entrepreneurs
Videos about Zhytomyr's local producers were broadcast on billboard screens for a month with the help of: a local advertising agency, which was inspired by the project and posted the videos for free.
Online catalogs of local producers were posted on the websites of the economic departments of city councils in Uzhhorod, Ivano-Frankivsk, and Zhytomyr.
The Internews Ukraine team will offer assistance to an Ivano-Frankivsk brand which wants to register its trademark.
One of the brands is using our project's video to promote its products to foreign audiences. Another brand used our campaign's promotional video to increase website traffic by 17% and revenue by 26%.
“Thanks to us!” communication campaign
We conducted a nationwide communication campaign about the role of vocational education in rebuilding Ukraine.
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2Info sessions for journalists and bloggers
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2
Press tours to vocational schools in Lviv and Rivne regions for journalists from all over Ukraine
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20
Articles about opportunities and benefits of vocational schools
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Videos, audio clips, text, and graphics
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50
Billboards and 70 billboard screens in Lviv, Rivne and Kyiv regions
The campaign reached over 30 million online and offline users.
Based on the press tours, journalists produced 15 materials and videos which received over 200 thousand views.
Campaign on the activities of UNFPA mobile teams
Our team raised awareness among both men and women about sexual and reproductive health, gender equality, and combating violence. We informed audiences about the activities of UNFPA mobile gynaecological teams and mobile socio-psychological support teams in Ukraine.
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55
Informational materials
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19
Special projects
Special projects in national and regional media received more than 3 million views, as well as a large number of comments and shares.
Following the successful implementation of this campaign, we continued to work with our partners to popularize the Aurora platform, which provides psychotherapeutic help online for individuals who have experienced war-related violence, including sexual violence.
Strengthening the communication capacity of stakeholders
Effective communication of changes in communities
We helped authorities from hromadas across of Ukraine improve communication of changes in their communities. We worked with them to improve communications regarding integration of IDPs, community branding, waste management, reorganization of communal facilities, landscaping, and other important local issues. We also provided expert mentoring and communication support. The final product for each hromada was a communication plan for systematic implementation of the changes decided upon.
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96
participants
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48
hromadas
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209
Hours of work
75% of participating hromadas are already implementing their communication plans.
870,000 citizens are receiving better communication from their local authorities.
According to participant feedback, the program was useful and has been put to use: the Shepetivka hromada improved their skills in dealing with negativity and objections, the Zaitseve hromada researched the needs of their residents and segmented them into relevant groups, and the Berezan hromada improved the quality of photo and video content.
Euro-Atlantic integration
EU culture diplomacy
We helped the European Union delegation to Ukraine to present the EU from a different perspective to Ukrainians in the regions. This showed that Ukrainians and EU citizens share common values and cultural heritage, contributing to the idea that becoming a member of the EU is a natural direction for Ukraine's development.
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Media literacy pieces of training for regional journalists
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Cultural web platform of the EU Delegation
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Video stories about how the EU supports Ukraine
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Video flash mob and educational trip to Brussels
The participants of the residency continue to work on joint projects.
Belgian artist Arthur de Kort became so fascinated by Ukrainian culture that he started learning Ukrainian and got a tattoo with a trident.
Enrique Gutierrez from the Netherlands will add a chapter on Ukraine to his upcoming book, Hungry Hearts.
The poetry flash mob collected 60 videos from participants from 14 EU member states.
10 participants visited EU institutions and learned more about the policies of the countries they are currently visiting.
Countering disinformation
Countering Russian disinformation and propaganda
Combating Kremlin narratives aimed at justifying Russian war crimes and Russia's war against Ukraine. We released communication products for Ukrainian and foreign audiences which highlighted Russian war crimes. We also created a platform that shows the connection between the Kremlin's genocidal rhetoric and the crimes of the Russian military in Ukraine.
The Book of Memory online platform is an archive with stories of victims and witnesses of Russian brutality
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Paper and e-book with stories of victims and witnesses of Russian war crimes
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An online presentation
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10 animated videos with victim testimonies
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10 articles in Ukrainian and English with human rights defenders
The Kremlin’s Voice online platform is a comprehensive database of Russian propagandists
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Online presentation of the platform for a wide audience in an interactive format
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Short videos
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Social media posts
These platforms are auxiliary tools to justify the Kremlin's war crimes. In the future, the information collected on them will be available to international judicial proceedings against Russia.
Government Affairs and Strategic Communications
USAID RADA: The Next Generation Program
We worked to make Ukraine’s Verkhovna Rada parliament a modern, effective, and accountable institution for Ukraine's democratic development. The USAID RADA: Next Generation Program increased citizen engagement in the legislative process, enhanced the Rada’s analytical and oversight capacities, and introduced innovative digital and communication solutions into its work.
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Developed a 5-year draft communication strategy for the Verkhovna Rada
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Provided communication support to 5 Rada committees (SMM audits, recommendations on social media and website content, visuals for social media, templates for visual products, branded products for events)
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Developed SMM recommendations for the Verkhovna Rada for the years 2023-2024
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Provided strategic consultations to improve interaction between MPs and stakeholders in 8 oblasts
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Held a public discussion (140 participants) on ensuring democratic standards in wartime
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Conducted a series of communications workshops for 82 employees of the Verkhovna Rada Secretariat, parliamentary committees, editorial offices of the Voice of Ukraine and the Rada TV channel, as well as the Verkhovna Rada Educational Center
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Prepared a comprehensive study titled “Parliament at War”, which analyzed the work of the Parliament during wartime and highlighted the Rada’s main successes and challenges
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Published the English-language digest “Parliaments on the Frontline” to mobilize support of foreign parliamentarians for continuing to help Ukraine
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Promoted involvement of foreign users in the Verkhovna Rada pages in X
Our “Parliament at War” was published on AGORA, the most prestigious international portal for parliamentary development.
The “Parliaments on the Frontline” digest reached 20,000 readers worldwide.
The average daily activity of the Verkhovna Rada Facebook page increased tenfold over pre-war levels, while the average number of content reposts of the rose from 25 to 1200 per day.
More than 400 of the Verkhovna Rada staff members, MPs, and their assistants received training.
According to the results of a study of the transparency of the Verkhovna Rada Committees for the second half of 2023, conducted by the CHESNO Movement, all committees supported by the Program have strengthened their rankings. In particular, the Committee on Social Policy and Veterans' Rights showed a significant increase in transparency.
Strategic communications needs of communities
We studied the strategic communications needs of communities most affected by the Russian invasion.
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30 hromadas
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2 months of research
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30 in-depth interviews
In a short time, we developed a survey methodology and both organized and conducted in-depth interviews with representatives of local governments.
We conducted a sociological study of the communication needs of the hromadas’ residents with the help of Gradus.
The results will form the basis of a community support program implemented by the PARTNERSHIP FUND FOR A RESILIENT UKRAINE (Early Recovery component).
Digital security
Nadiyno.org platform
Together with the Canadian technology organization eQualitie, we implemented a project to provide Ukrainians with emergency digital security support. We launched Nadiyno.org, the first digital security hotline in Central and Eastern Europe.
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66 thousand active users
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200+ thousand visits to the website
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1500 requests processed
Nadiyno operators advised Divoche.media when its telegram channel was hijacked and helped the Donetsk-based NGO repel Russian hacker attacks.
100 telecom industry leaders came together to develop solutions the industry at a joint conference with eQualitie.
Our project team conducted 24 individual trainings and consultations on digital security for Ukrainian CSOs and media (La Strada-Ukraine, Women of Steel, Active Community, Greencubator, Vector Media, Divoche.media, WAW Media, and more.)
The Nadiyno.org platform was promoted by popular YouTube channels, including : Bihus.Info, Toronto TV, Rozmova, Tokar.ua, Nightingale Show, and Yarema Dukh.
Protecting of yourself online
Together with CRDF Global, we educated Ukrainians about cyber threats and basic rules of cyber hygiene. The project helped Ukrainians be mindful of their online security, reduce the likelihood of data theft, and make cyber hygiene a daily habit.
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1.57
million users were reached by posts about cybersecurity guidelines.
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15
million Ukrainians saw our posters in subway stations, Ukrzaliznytsia trains, and station squares.
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656
school children watched cybersecurity lessons.
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34,625users played an online game via the national media outlet ShoTam.
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111,774
111,774 users took our Instagram quiz.
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621,360
621,360 views viewed our articles in the media.
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913,460
users engaged in collaborations with influencers.
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307,398
307,398 views received by three videos about cybersecurity rules.
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13,353
views received our Instagram mask.
Thanks to our large-scale offline information campaign, more than 18 million Ukrainians learned the basic rules of cybersecurity. Editors who published campaign materials in print media received calls from readers thanking them for the valuable material.
Realizing the potential of Internews Ukraine
Rapid changes caused by the growth of our organization created the need for changes within our team. In 2023, we devoted significant attention to our corporate culture, organizational structure, and team training.
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19
New team members
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7
New positions
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12
Training sessions for the team
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15+
Training sessions at professional courses and universities
Internews Ukraine boasts 124 employees who are ready to solve complex problems and have the intelligence and energy to influence change.
Work on our organizational structure: new positions and roles.
Business processes that increase productivity and bring us closer to international NGO standards.
A corporate culture based on values.
Focus for the next year
We believe that Internews Ukraine can protect and develop Ukrainian democracy through effective communication, promotion of European values, and bringing about socially important changes. In 2024, our work will focus on supporting independent journalism, developing strong and transparent institutions, and strengthening the resilience of Ukrainian society. This will help Ukraine resist the enemy while at war.
Guided by our values and mission, we will continue to work on the implementation of 8 strategic priorities:
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Development of independent media
We are helping independent media outlets to not only survive the challenges of wartime, but to emerge stronger and more sustainable. With our innate understanding of Ukrainian media needs and our long and storied experience of supporting journalists and outlets, Internews Ukraine is perfectly positioned to help the Ukrainian media sector endure and thrive.
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Strengthening communication capacities of government, civil society, and the media
Effective and transparent communication serves as the cornerstone of a resilient and engaged democracy in Ukraine, fostering trust, participation, and accountability among both citizens and institutions.
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Social impact communications
With the full-scale war, the struggle for minds both in Ukraine and abroad continues, and the need to communicate Ukraine’s story to the world and promote ideas facilitating Ukraine's reintegration with the global network of democratic countries is perhaps more existential than ever, as ‘Ukraine fatigue’ sets in abroad, and internal audiences’ first concern is survival.
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Euroatlantic integration
We need to focus on demystifying and explaining the complex bureaucratic and political processes of integration, to ensure the ordinary citizen understands what is at stake while also not having unrealistic expectations.
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Infowatch
We will work to increase Ukrainians’ media literacy, as well as to build a healthy information space in Ukraine.
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Digital security
In response to the challenges of hybrid warfare, we will focus on developing important cybersecurity skills both within our team and among the public.
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Government Affairs and Strategic Communications
We will work more closely with our government institutions, to help them reform and deliver on their commitments to our country and its citizens to preserve democratic principles in Ukraine even in times of war.
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Building Internews Ukraine’s organizational capacity
We will continue to apply modern management approaches to build teams, implement digitalization, and optimize all business processes.
