On 31 March 2025, Lviv Polytechnic hosted the Emergency Design 2025 workshop on Modernisation of Ukrainian Industrial Cities: Post-Carbon Approach during the Days of Italian Language and Culture. The event brought together the administration of Lviv Polytechnic National University, professors of the Institute of Architecture and Design, and students of the Department of Urban Planning and Design, who joined important creative processes concerning the future of Ukrainian cities.
The workshop began with welcome speeches by Professor Nataliia Hotz, Doctor of Technical Sciences, Head of the Centre for International Education; Professor Andrii Pavliv, Doctor of Architecture, the Department of Design and Architecture Fundamentals; Associate Professor Yulia Idak, Doctor of Architecture, Head of the Department of Urban Planning and Design; Associate Professor Roksoliana Kvasnytsia, Candidate of Architecture, the Department of Visual Design and Art; and Associate Professor Yaryna Onufriv, Candidate of Architecture, the Department of Urban Planning and Design. A special atmosphere was created by the participants who joined online: Emilia Ametrano, Director of the Art Lyceum of Brera, the Politecnico di Milano, Samuel Joseph Drago, Professor of Architecture at the Lyceum, and Natalia Siassina, curator of the Vitaworld/Vitaukr project, Milan.
It is worth noting that Associate Professor Roksoliana Kvasnytsia and Professor Andrii Pavliv have been actively collaborating with their colleagues from the Art Lyceum of Brera for several years. Today they are considering the possibility of expanding cooperation and updating their work in the field of urban planning which will open up new opportunities for mutual exchange of knowledge and experience.
At the event, the students presented the results of their work as part of a project that provides an innovative approach to the modernisation of industrial cities in Ukraine. The participants offered their vision of transformation through the integration of modern principles of sustainable development and environmental innovations in the context of the challenges provoked by the war and the changing paradigm of urban development.
The active participation of students in various initiatives that motivate further work and development is particularly inspiring. Students Iryna Ostashevska, Liliia Voroshchuk and Daniel Fanta presented their work as part of the Resilient Cities Ukraine competition organised by Rebuild Ukraine Hackathon Competition. It is worth noting that this work was recognised as the best and received the first prize. Their innovative solution in the field of sustainable urban development has become a vivid example of how young people can participate in solving complex urban planning problems.
The project of students Kateryna Pankiv, Valeriia Solova, Anna Pastukhova and Nazar Kvas was also successful. Their work Social House for IDPs and Socially Vulnerable Groups «Safe together» was presented as part of the 100 Ideas for Cities Hackathon and also won the first prize, becoming an important step in the development of social infrastructure in Ukraine.
The presentations of the AR-210 and AR-209 teams were also impressive. The first team (Uliana Bilyk, Alina Dzipetruk, Iryna Haidash, Yuliia Feduniak, Viktoria Semen, Dariia Vilhutska and Anhelina Alkhovytska) showed a creative exhibition reflecting their personal reflections on contemporary urban development, emphasising the importance of integrating environmental and social aspects into the urban environment.
Students of the AR-209 team (Karina Chepil, Nikoletta Rubish, Sofia Brus, Myroslava Pater, Olesia Plish, Mariia Shevchenko, Stanislav Stotsky, Daniela Ishchenko and Nazar Yevdochenko) exhibited a model Ideal City?, explaining their concept in the following words: «What is the city we want to live in? How do we imagine it? Is there anything else besides the outer shell that surrounds us?»
The projects cover a wide range of approaches to urban problems and not only contribute to the modernisation of the urban environment, but also inspire the creation of sustainable, socially responsible and innovative cities.
The workshop has become a powerful source of inspiration and a platform for generating new concepts that have the potential to shape the innovative future of Ukrainian urban planning.
