On December 18, a meeting of scientific and pedagogical workers of the Faculty of History, Political Science and International Relations of Vasyl Stefanyk Precarpathian National University with fellow historians from Kherson State University was held at the Center for Innovative Educational Technologies “PNU EcoSystem”. Opening the meeting, the Dean of the Faculty of History, Political Science and International Relations Ihor Hurak emphasized that twenty years ago, during the presidential election campaign, the Kremlin political technologists who led Viktor Yanukovych’s election headquarters tried to play on the differences between the regions of Ukraine. Despite attracting significant resources, the candidate from Donetsk, together with his Russian mentors, suffered defeat in 2004. Even then, it was clear that, despite regional peculiarities, Ukraine is one. Ukrainians were even more convinced of this after the start of the large-scale phase of the war. In this context, Ihor Hurak mentioned the provision of Vasyl Stefanyk Precarpathian National University with its premises for colleagues from Kherson State University, who, due to the occupation and destruction, were forced to move their activities to the city of Ivano-Frankivsk. This undoubtedly posed new challenges for Kherson scientists. At the same time, it provided certain new opportunities for cooperation with Precarpathian researchers.
During the meeting, Kherson scientists presented their scientific achievements within the walls of the Vasyl Stefanyk Precarpathian National University. In particular, the head of the Department of History, Archaeology and Teaching Methods of Kherson State University, Natalya Kuzovova, presented her monograph “The Holodomor of 1932–1933 in the Kherson Region”. In her speech, among other things, she drew attention to the importance of disseminating truthful information about the crimes of the Soviet regime, primarily the Holodomor of the 1930s, to the population of Stanislav Region. She also demonstrated commemorative stamps dedicated to the heroes of the Kherson Region who died during the Russian-Ukrainian war.
Professor of the Department of History, Archaeology and Teaching Methods of Kherson State University Oleksandr Cheremisin presented the publication “Chronicle of the Civil Resistance of Kherson” and shared several specific stories about the occupation of Kherson. Associate Professor of the Department Halyna Mykhailenko presented the work “Kherson 2022: with Ukraine in the Heart”, which was recently announced as the winner of the competition of cultural and artistic projects of the Institute of the Ukrainian Book in the nomination of popular science publications.
During the meeting, the Head of the Department of Ethnology and Archaeology, Director of the Institute of History, Ethnology and Archaeology of the Carpathians of the Vasyl Stefanyk Precarpathian National University Mykola Kuhutyak and Professor of the Department of History, Archaeology and Teaching Methods of the Kherson State University Serhiy Vodotyka shared their thoughts on the importance and ways of maintaining close scientific partnership between Precarpathian and Kherson researchers.
Concluding the conversation, Ihor Hurak thanked the Dean of the Faculty of Psychology, History and Sociology of the Kherson State University Iryna Shaposhnykova for the initiative for the meeting, those present for the exchange of views and expressed his belief that it will become an important step towards deepening cooperation between the historical schools of Precarpathia and Kherson region.