Behind us lies an extraordinary gathering in the Ukrainian Carpathians. The idea of the Small Centers of the World is coming to life
Behind us lies an extraordinary gathering in the Ukrainian Carpathians. The idea of the Small Centers of the World is coming to life — a shared vision of another way of being in culture and of deepening our relationship with place. Together with guests from different parts of Ukraine — from Avdiivka, New York, Kapytolivka, through Kharkiv, Hadiach, Drohobych, Lviv, to Vynohradiv and Uzhhorod — we created a common space of conversation that already points toward future practice.
The meeting brought together people working with culture in many ways — librarians, educators, artists, animators. Each of them arrived with their own personal experience, a story of place, and a vision of action that could reshape it. Among us flowed many dreams; we came together to bring them down to earth, to work out real ground for ideas that at first seemed impossible. Today, the boundaries of possibility are stretched by a culture that is instant, restricted, divisive, and escapist. It is precisely the desire for creative, living action that unites us. From resistance to a homogenized reality, focused only in large centers, the Small Center of the World is born.
It is extraordinary to listen to stories of beautiful and wise work taking place right at the edge of the frontline, in towns erased by war, where an open meeting can put one’s life at risk. From there comes a faith that reaches us: we gather against war, reflecting on what culture can truly give today and what hopes it can build for tomorrow. The ideas we discuss are already coming into being; they will gain strength and momentum when they become part of a wider network of relations and support.
Thanks to our hosts, we met in a very special place. The Small Centers of the World found an intimate space from which we could also embrace the wide horizon of the Carpathians, reshaped every moment by the sun and drifting clouds. After long conversations and days that slipped by almost unnoticed, we set out to breathe the air of mountain-hidden sites of memory. We listened to stories of Transcarpathian history, touched its legends and myths, and climbed the Hymba ridge, before slowly parting in the green light that shimmered through the mist of the Shypit waterfall.
In this setting, it was good to share what is difficult, while at the same time finding a new time full of energy and hope for action. This is only the beginning of our encounter — we are searching together for an idea that will be fulfilled only through shared practice.
Report: Piotrek Szroeder
The next step in shaping concrete programs within the places and communities of the participants will be the Summer School of the Small Centers of the World in Krasnogruda: July
