The Final International Workshop “Resilience to Hybrid Threat Challenges”
Nov 8, 2024

On November 7, 2024, MESU hosted the final project workshop, “Resilience to Hybrid Threat Challenges,” based on the project results. The mixed-format workshop allowed international partners to participate remotely. Opening remarks were delivered by Timo Tiihonen, project coordinator and professor at the University of Jyväskylä; Svitlana Shytikova, coordinator of the EU project “National Erasmus+ Office in Ukraine”; and Oleksandra Husak, Director-General of the European and Euro-Atlantic Integration Directorate at the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine.

During the first session, project participants reported on Key Project Outcomes and a Related Spin-off Initiatives aimed at enhancing societal resilience during turbulent times. The second session focused on benchmarking European approaches to countering hybrid threats. Panu Moilanen, Doctor of Economics and Coordinator of the JYU Master’s Degree Programme in Strategic Analysis at the University of Jyväskylä, discussed the organization of voluntary defense training in Finland.

Additionally Application of European Resilience Experience Against Hybrid Threats in the Erasmus+ Project WARN was analysed.

The Kharkiv Regional Employment Center, an associated project partner, also joined the seminar. Its director, Oleksandr Kotukov, emphasized the importance of skills needed to counter hybrid threats in modern professions and the corresponding demands of the labor market. Andriy Zagorodsky, the WARN environment partner and program director of NGO Styyka Ukraine presented a report on lessons learned from cross-sectoral simulation exercises focused on sustainability and countering hybrid threats.

The WARN environment partner and program director of NGO Resilient Ukraine presented a report on lessons learned from Cross-Sector Resilience Simulation Exercises: Countering Hybrid Threats.

On the night of November 7, enemy drones attacked Kyiv, continuing until morning. This caused temporary disruptions to electricity and internet connectivity, delaying the workshop’s start. Despite these challenges, the workshop proceeded as planned, demonstrating the consortium’s resilience and ability to work effectively under ongoing hybrid and conventional threats.