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I spent a week in Lviv, Ukraine at the end of June, where frequent air alarms sounded day and night, generators hummed persistently, power outages were the norm, and nightly curfews from 12am–5am were strictly implemented.
Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine has continued unabated since February 2022. Yet, this turmoil hasn’t diminished Ukranians’ passion and love for their country – it has only strengthened it. As 16 year-old Dmytro Kostiv told me: “I believe in the future in Ukraine”.
Over the past two and a half years, Lviv, the largest city in western Ukraine, situated 70 km from the Polish border, has suffered multiple attacks. The most significant attack, a missile strike on the Yavoriv military training base in March 2022, killed 64 and wounded many more.
Although Lviv is considered one of the less dangerous Ukrainian cities, my stay made it clear that it is still dangerous. On June 21, a Russian missile hit an energy infrastructure facility, resulting in a fire. Although no casualties were reported, the air alarms sounded throughout the city for a few hours, causing significant distress.
However, on a typical day, life goes on in Lviv. People go out to parks, eat at restaurants, meet friends and continue their daily tasks. The air alarms that unsettled me did not seem to faze the locals.
Gen Z’s ‘crucial role’ in the war
A building protected with sandbags in Lviv, June 2024.
The war profoundly affects young Ukrainians, altering their education, safety, social interactions, and aspirations for the future.
Currently, the soldiers on the Ukrainian frontlines are generally aged 40 and above, but younger people are actively encouraged to join their ranks. The military mobilisation age has been reduced to 25, and many young Ukrainian men fear that they may be forced to serve.
There are more than 400,000 males who are now aged between 25 and 26. Although not all will join up, for a variety of reasons including health or being abroad, the general staff has determined that approximately 100,000 new soldiers will be added to the army.
Mustafa Nayyem, a former politician and the recently resigned head of the State Agency for Restoration and Infrastructure Development, emphasises the “crucial role” Gen Z plays in Ukraine’s future, bridging new ideas with the experience of older generations. In a conversation with Harbingers’, Nayyem describes this as a “partnership”.
Despite his optimism, Nayyem advises the younger generation to mentally prepare themselves for the worst-case scenario. “We don’t have the luxury to plan anything,” he says.
Dmitry Belotserkovets, an advisor to Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitschko and a member of the Ukrainian parliament, agrees that “these are truly hard times for young people”. “We are doing everything we can. However, we have to get used to this new normal,” he adds.
Lusia Sakovych is vice principal of Oryana Lyceum, a school in Lviv that was hit by a Russian attack on December 29, 2023. She has been working with students of all grades since the war began and is deeply committed to her pupils, believing that their potential to change lives and the world is immense. Sakovych passionately organises camps and activities that showcase the beauty of the world, alongside the harsh realities of war.
“We have to live in harmony with this world,” says Sakovych, who chose to remain in Ukraine despite opportunities to leave. She dedicates her efforts to nurturing future leaders who “will change the world and contribute to the resolution of the conflict”.
Klaudia Bacza (left) and Oryana Lyceum school vice principal Lusia Sakovych, Lviv, June 2024. | Picture by: Tatev Hovhannisyan
‘Value what you have’: Young Ukrainians’ message to global youth
Klaudia Bacza (left), Veronika Kulyk (centre) and Yana Kozlovska (right), Lviv, June 2024.
I spoke to two teenagers from Lviv. Veronika Kulyk, aged 15, shared her experience two and a half years into the war: “Our values changed, and we started to cherish our lives, our families, our close friends”.
Speaking to her made me realise that we are almost the same age, and I don’t have to worry about the same things.
Her friend, Yana Kozlovska, also 15, added: “We hope that the war will end and a lot of our troops will return home”. The girls agreed that their message to young people is: “Value what you have”.
Two brothers, 22 year-old Ustym Kostiv and 16 year-old Dmytro Kostiv, had a similar message. Ustym said: “Stay strong, never lose hope because life continues. We are just normal people, and figure out how you can be useful.”
Ustym returned to Ukraine just a few weeks ago after finishing college in the UK. Once the war started, he was not able to come back home; now, as a young man, he cannot leave the country until the war ends. It was a patriotic decision on his behalf, as he could have stayed away and not had to worry about serving in the future. Ustym explained: “It was a conscious decision that I made with my family”.
His younger brother added: “If you understand what’s happening in the east of Ukraine, how people are dying there, it’s hard to live with that in your mind”. Dmytro was very passionate about his love for his country, saying: “I am always ready to take a gun and go to war for Ukraine”.
Brothers Ustym (left) and Dmytro Kostiv in Lviv, Ukraine, June 2024. | Picture by: Klaudia Bacza
Dmytro shared a frightening experience with me, which shows how the war has made life more difficult for young Ukrainians. A few weeks ago, returning home with his friends, half an hour before the midnight curfew started, he was stopped by the police.
“They asked to see my ID, asked me if I had knives or drugs. I said no. He grabbed my bag, searched it, then searched my pockets and everything else. It was very stressful.” Dmytro claimed: “If it wasn’t for the war, I think the police officer wouldn’t have done it.”
When asked if he would ever leave Ukraine, Dmytro answered without hesitation: “No”. Many Gen Zers are leaving the country to look for more opportunities elsewhere. “My friends from my class, from my year, are going to study in Poland, Germany, and I am staying in Ukraine”. When I asked him why, he simply responded: “Because I want to help my country, I believe in the win”.
Born in 2007 in Krakow, Poland, Klaudia now studies in London, England where she is interested in history, English, French, and art design. In the future, she plans to study law in the United States.
In her free time, Klaudia plays tennis and basketball and enjoys painting, travelling, and running.
She speaks Polish, Ukrainian, Russian, English, and is learning French.
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