Ukraine has been a member of UNESCO since May 12, 1954.
During the cooperation with the Organization, our country has initiated many international programs and projects. For example, the Ukrainian initiative to use the media to strengthen peace, prevent the propaganda of war, violence and hatred between peoples gave impetus to the development and adoption of the Declaration on Race and Racial Prejudice in 1978.
At the 27th session of the General Conference of UNESCO (1993), Ukraine took the initiative to develop a "Culture of Peace Program". This initiative became the basis for directing UNESCO's activities towards strengthening its ethical mission and role in shaping the psychology of a culture of peace, a climate of trust and tolerance.
During the 29th session of the General Conference of UNESCO, Ukraine initiated an appeal to the UN to celebrate the International Year for the Protection, Preservation and Revival of Cultural Heritage. The 56th session of the UN General Assembly supported the initiative – the year 2002 was declared the International Year for the Protection of World Cultural Heritage.
Ukraine has been elected 4 times to the governing body of the Organization - the Executive Council.
Under the circumstances of Russian aggression against Ukraine and illegal occupation of the Crimean peninsula by the Russian Federation, one of Ukraine's priorities in UNESCO is to ensure effective monitoring by the Organization of the situation in Crimea in the sphere of UNESCO competence. At the initiative of the Ukrainian delegation, the Executive Council constantly reviews this issue and adopts a decision "Monitoring of the situation in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea (Ukraine)", which confirms the territorial integrity of Ukraine and lays the legal foundations for UNESCO monitoring in the temporarily occupied Crimea.
International conventions and recommendations, to which Ukraine is a party:
Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions (2005).
Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage (2003).
Convention on the Protection of the Underwater Cultural Heritage (2001).
International Convention against Doping in Sport (2005).
International Convention for the Protection of Performers, Producers of Phonograms and Broadcasting Organizations (1961).
Convention on the Recognition of Qualifications concerning Higher Education in the European Region (1997).
Convention for the Protection of Producers of Phonograms against Unauthorized Duplication of their Phonograms (1971).
Convention on Wetlands of International Importance especially as Waterfowl Habitat (1971).
Universal Copyright Convention, with Appendix Declaration relating to Article XVII and Resolution concerning Article XI (1952)).
Convention concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage (1972).
Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property (1970).
Convention on the Recognition of Studies, Diplomas and Degrees concerning Higher Education in the States belonging to the Europe Region (1979).
Convention concerning the Exchange of Official Publications and Government Documents between States (1958).
Convention against Discrimination in Education (1960).
Convention concerning the International Exchange of Publications (1958).
Protocols to the Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict (1999).
Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict with Regulations for the Execution of the Convention (1954).
Ukrainian sites on the UNESCO World Heritage List:
Cultural:
2013: Wooden Tserkvas of the Carpathian Region in Poland and Ukraine
2013: Ancient City of Tauric Chersonese and its Chora
2011: Residence of Bukovinian and Dalmatian Metropolitans
2005: Struve Geodetic Arc, jointly with Belarus, Estonia, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Republic of Moldova, Russian Federation and Sweden
1998: Lviv - the Ensemble of the Historic Centre
1990: Kyiv: Saint Sophia Cathedral and Related Monastic Buildings, Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra
Natural:
2007: Ancient and Primeval Beech Forests of the Carpathians and Other Regions of Europe, transboundary with Albania, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Germany, Italy, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia and Spain(extended in 2011 and 2017)
Man and the Biosphere Programme
The MAB programme is an intergovernmental scientific programme that aims to establish a scientific basis for enhancing the relationship between people and their environments. It combines the natural and social sciences with a view to improving human livelihoods and safeguarding natural and managed ecosystems, thus promoting innovative approaches to economic development that are socially and culturally appropriate and environmentally sustainable.
The Ukraine’s National Network of Biosphere Reserves consists of eight sites, including four transboundary sites:
2011: Roztochya
2009: Desnianskyi
2002: West Polesie Transboundary Biosphere Reserve, jointly with Belarus and Poland (extended in 2012)
1998: Danube Delta Transboundary Biosphere Reserve, jointly with Romania
1998: East Carpathians Transboundary Biosphere Reserve, jointly with Poland and Slovakia
1992: Carpathian
1984: Chernomorskiy
1985: Askaniya-Nova
Three Ukrainian cities are members of the UNESCO Global Network of Learning Cities - Melitopol, Nikopol, Novoyavorivsk.
Two Ukrainian cities: Lviv (2015) and Odessa (2019) are included to the Creative Cities Network in the field of literature.
UNESCO special statuses
The honorary title of "UNESCO Artist for Peace" is awarded to outstanding cultural figures "for their contribution to drawing public attention to the problems of peace, justice, tolerance, the plight of children in difficult situations, the fight against illiteracy and the environment." People's Artist of Ukraine Herman Makarenko became the first Ukrainian artist to be given such a high status by UNESCO.
Serhiy Bubka, President of the National Olympic Committee, has the special status of a UNESCO Champion for Sport.
UNESCO Associated Schools Network
The UNESCO Associated Schools Project was launched in 1953. The main goal of the Project is to provide quality school education aimed at implementing projects to support knowledge in the field of human rights, democracy, intercultural relations and environmental protection in the UN system.
The Network of UNESCO Associated Schools in Ukraine includes 74 schools from different regions, among them - schools, kindergartens, secondary schools, specialized schools with in-depth study of foreign languages, gymnasiums, lyceums, vocational schools.
UNITWIN/UNESCO Chairs
In 1992, the UNITWIN / UNESCO Chair Program was launched to promote international inter-university cooperation and institutional capacity building through collaboration and knowledge sharing.
In Ukraine there are following UNESCO chairs:
2016: Chair on Lifelong Professional Education in the XXI Century, National Academy of Pedagogical Sciences
2009: Chair on "Spiritual and Cultural Values through Education",Volodmyr Dahl East-Ukrainian National University, moved to Kyiv
2002: Chair in New Information Technologies in Education for all, International Research and Training Center for Information Technologies and Systems, Kyiv
2000: Chair in Environmentally Clean Technologies, Kharkov State Technical University for Automobile and Road Engineering
1999: Chair in Technical Higher Education, Applied Systems Analysis and Informatics, National Technical University of Ukraine «Kyiv Polytechnical Institute»
1998: Chair in Cryobiology, Institute of Cryobiology, Kharkov
1998: Chair on Human Rights, Peace and Democracy, Tolerance and International Understanding, National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy
1996: Chair for Philosophy of Human Communication, Petro Vasylenko Kharkiv National Technical University of Agriculture
1995: Chair in Information and Communication Technologies in Education, International Science and Technology University, Kyiv