On 25 September 2025, European Endowment for Democracy (EED) and the Westminster Foundation for Democracy (WFD) organised an event titled “What do Ukrainians think about democracy and recovery?"
The event brought together policymakers, academics, and civil society representatives to examine how to help deepen the understanding on how Ukraine’s democratic trajectory can be best supported during wartime and beyond, and to contribute to shaping smarter, more targeted support to help Ukraine succeed not just as a state—but as a vibrant, functioning democracy.
The event was opened by Katarína Mathernová, Ambassador of the EU to Ukraine, who emphasised that Ukraine needs to prevail as a democratic country, and the EU accession path gives hope in that regard.
The opening was followed by keynote speeches from Jerzy Pomianowski, EED Executive Director and Anthony Smith, Chief Executive, Westminster Foundation for Democracy (WFD).
Vasyl Sehin of WFD gave a short presentation on the latest findings from WFD’s polling and focus groups on public attitudes toward democracy, politicians, elections, and the recovery process.
The second part of the event included a panel discussion, moderated by Alexandra Kirby, Senior Programme Manager East at EED. The speakers were Olha Aivazovska from Civil Network OPORA, Maksym Kostetskyi of Serhiy Prytula Charity Foundation/ Centre for Policy Making, and Anna Matviienko from Dnipro Media. They shared their own experiences and highlighted both challenges faced and innovative practices developed, and provided recommendations to support Ukraine's ongoing democratic resilience.
The panel was followed by a Q&A between the panelists and the participants, further addressing the topics of democratic resilience and renewal.
