Unity & Collaboration

I was invited to speak at a one-day conference tomorrow (Ukrainian Unity Day) in Chicago’s Ukrainian Village.

The holiday of Ukrainian Unity is celebrated annually on the day of Reunification Act declaration of the Ukrainian National Republic and West Ukrainian National Republic, held in 1919. Officially, Ukraine Unity Day (Den’ Sobornosti) is celebrated since 1999.

I was contacted a few weeks ago by Daria Kaleniuk, a Fulbright scholar from Ukraine studying in Chicago. She and several other Ukrainian students had decided to organize Zlukacamp. This from their website:

ZlUKACAMP is a barcamp-conference, where Ukrainian students in the USA and Ukrainian Diaspora will unite efforts to search the ways for Ukraine to overcome the economic and political crisis. Conference will be held in the format of a barcamp, where every participant can become a speaker.

I’m excited to be a part of the event, looking at ways to bring the Ukrainian and Ukrainian American communities together. My own talk will focus on:

  • Preserving and sharing Ukrainian culture in Diaspora Literature
  • Magic realism as an exploration of the immigrant experience

With an impressive lineup of speakers, all the topics look fascinating and engaging. A sneak peek:

  • How diaspora managed to preserve the Ukrainian heritage in a society that called itself a “melting pot.”
  • Social Scientific Research on Ukraine: Why we should get involved
  • USA/USA program: raising new leadership in Ukraine and promoting Ukrainian language through “Word a Day” project
  • The strategy of return to Ukraine
  • Perspectives and Initiatives of Ukrainian Student Movement in State of Illinois as an origin and USA in general
  • Why and How Ukrainian students in the USA can be involved in projects of Diaspora
  • Crimean Tatar people. Who are they? History, deportation, struggle for life, and current situation. Story of one family.
  • The need and value of archaeological researches in Ukraine

There will also be group work and a dinner gathering. As you know, I really appreciative collaborative work, and I look forward to talking with the students who put this event together and will be in attendance.

I’m not sure where this will lead, but the possibilities are exciting!

If you’re interested in attending, it’s not too late! They will be registering participants at the Ukrainian-American Federal Credit Union Selfreliance (2332 West Chicago Avenue, Chicago, Illinois 60622) at 9:30am on Saturday, January 22. The event with be Ukrainian/English (I’ll be speaking in English.)

I hope to see some familiar faces there!

Published by Valya

Valya Dudycz Lupescu has been making magic with food and words for more than 20 years, incorporating folklore from her Ukrainian heritage with practices that honor the Earth. She’s a writer, content developer, instructor, and mother of three teenagers. Valya is the author of MOTHER CHRISTMAS, THE SILENCE OF TREES, and the founding editor of CONCLAVE: A Journal of Character. Along with Stephen H. Segal, she is the co-author of FORKING GOOD: An Unofficial Cookbook for Fans of The Good Place and GEEK PARENTING: What Joffrey, Jor-El, Maleficent, and the McFlys Teach Us about Raising a Family (Quirk Books), and co-founder of the Wyrd Words storytelling laboratory. Valya earned her MFA in Writing from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, and her poetry and prose have been published in anthologies and magazines that include, The Year's Best Dark Fantasy & Horror, Kenyon Review, Culture, Gargoyle Magazine, Gone Lawn, Strange Horizons, Mythic Delirium. You can find her on Twitter @valya and on Mastodon.social @valya

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