Dialogue in Action is a path to mutual understanding based on trust, respect, and radical honesty. It is not just words but a living process.
Our mission is to develop a culture of dialogue within Ukrainian society. The project is open to everyone who needs to speak and be heard without restrictions based on social group. We create a safe space where there is room for diverse beliefs, where conversations are built on mutual respect and shared values, and where representatives of any community are valued participants in the Dialogue.
Dialogue in Action embodies the journey from rhetoric to concrete practice. Since 2016, we have been actively conducting training sessions, consultations, and facilitated dialogues. Project uniqueness is its flexible approach: we offer individual and group support, develop educational programs, conduct comprehensive research and analytics, and involve external specialists according to specific requests.
Dialogue in Action is a support for those who serve others. We are approached by representatives of both secular communities and leaders and believers of various religious organizations. For religious communities, we become guides into secular society, explaining the need for changes to meet modern challenges. For secular communities, we act as interpreters, helping to understand the specifics of religious beliefs, ideas, and practices. As a result, both communities get along with each other, and the level of trust between them increases. That is the point where the true Dialogue begins.
We build bridges between those who are ready for dialogue.
We are for those who serve others. Our activities take place at the intersection of the religious and secular worlds, addressing representatives of both. We create a space for interaction and collaboration between religious and non-religious communities based on shared values.
Our beneficiaries are the members of communities united by common goals and values, a desire for change, and a willingness to act together for a common good.
We pay special attention to supporting religious figures, ministers, and leaders. While they are often ready to bring about change, they may not always be ready to change themselves. We help them recognize that continuing to live and act in old ways is no longer viable and that adopting new ways of thinking and acting is essential to achieving positive change.
We promise to create a space for dialogue that promotes the mutual strengthening of religious and secular communities. Our platforms are built on the principles of trust and the development of positive social capital, providing a safe environment for the open exchange of thoughts and experiences.
Safety and sincerity are key principles of our work. We encourage sincere conversations without judgment, where so-called “radical honesty” is possible – open and honest dialogues that help communities learn to trust each other and work together for societal consolidation.
Our platform serves as a space for exchanging experiences and best practices between religious and secular communities, enabling them to strengthen and unite their efforts.
We work to help religious communities become more open and adaptive and to help secular ones achieve greater consolidation and internal organization. Our task is to identify and integrate the strengths of both communities, promoting their interaction and cooperation, which ultimately strengthens the entire society.
We aim to change the traditional culture of coercion, abuse of power, corruption, and avoidance, which unfortunately still persists in Ukrainian society. Our goal is to develop a culture of sincerity, open communication, and cooperation. We do not promise to achieve complete mutual understanding, but we do everything possible to ensure open communication so that both sides can hear each other.
Secular and religious societies often exist separately, lacking an understanding of each other's specifics. This isolation creates a “ghetto” effect, leading to stereotypes and misunderstandings. Our task is to break this circle of isolation, promoting mutual understanding and communication that will help overcome barriers and build new connections. We create a common space where participants can not only express their thoughts but also hear and accept the views of others.
Our goal is to develop more platforms for open and honest conversations in a society where different views can be expressed without fear or judgment. It is important that after such discussions, those who are ready to cooperate for positive changes remain.
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We provide a platform where religious and secular communities can come together through discussions and joint resolution of pressing issues.
We create conditions where initial contact grows into real interaction, leading to joint actions and projects.
We promote the development of a culture of mutual acceptance of different points of view and approaches. This helps understand each other's strengths and combine efforts to achieve common goals. We do not aim to achieve complete unity, but we consider the development of mutual acceptance and respect between the parties critically important. This approach creates conditions for productive cooperation and addressing urgent problems concerning both religious and secular communities.
We are here to help society avoid divisions that can arise from escalating conflicts during the war. Before the war, these conflicts might have been hidden, but now they have become apparent, threatening the unity of communities. If left unaddressed, this could lead to a deep societal rift or even civil war. We aim to prevent such a scenario by promoting dialogue and cooperation as essential tools for fostering trust and understanding.
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We create a space where participants can realize an important truth: it is impossible to know oneself without dialogue with others, without understanding one's identity through interaction with others. At the same time, getting closer to the “other” or the “foreign” does not change one’s identity. We strive to help people understand that they can maintain their identity without feeling threatened by others and, at the same time, work together for the common good. We create a space for dialogue where everyone can gain insight into themselves through interaction with others without the need to change their core essence.
Our role is to unite people and organizations, fostering the exchange of ideas, resources, and practices. The dialogues we've held during the war illustrate that by bringing participants together, we can solve common problems faster, strengthening both efficiency and trust. Through cooperation, communities achieve their goals faster and more effectively while increasing social justice and transparency. We work to ensure that society can live together without underlying tension, achieving social good through collaboration.
Our logo represents the dialogical process central to our work.
The ancient fonts, created by the famous Kharkiv calligrapher Oleksiy Chekal, highlight the Ukrainian identity of our organization. Their combination carries significant meaning. “Dialogue” is presented as a clear constant—a permanent element of our work. It represents the steadfastness of our values and key principles. Meanwhile, the depiction of the words “in Action” symbolizes forward movement and the dynamics of development. The three dots signify the continuity of the process, which does not always have a clear beginning or end.
The ability to make changes without betraying one’s own values is a true indicator of societal development. We strive to support and catalyze this process through Dialogue in Action.
Ph. D. in Sociology of Religion, her thesis work about “Religious component in Socio-Political Conflict in Ukraine 2013-2017 years”. Together with other colleagues, created an initiative called “Dialogue in Action” that aims to develop culture of dialogue in territorial communities in Ukraine, uniting secular and religious leaders in the fieldwork. She is co-founder of NGO “European Center for Strategic Analytics” working in the field of Conflict analysis, Sociology of Religion and Peacebuilding. Currently working in the field of Conflict Transformation, Conflict Sensitive Planning (Do No Harm) and Peacebuilding as national adviser for Peaceful Change Initiative (London), dialogue facilitator for national and international organizations. Main interests: sociology of religion, conflict studies, peacebuilding and reconciliation.
Email:
info@dialogueinaction.com.ua
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Denys Brylov is a Head of European Centre for Strategic Analytics. He is psychologist and anthropologist of religion, doctor of philosophical sciences (DSc) in Religious Studies and Theology. He is associate professor in the Department of Theology and Religious Studies, National Pedagogical Dragomanov University. Since 2014, after the outbreak of the Ukrainian-Russian conflict, he has been involved in projects aimed at developing a culture of dialogue involving religious and secular leaders in small territorial communities in Ukraine, as well as aimed at identifying and transforming the religious component in Ukrainian – Russian conflict. His main academic interests are Islam, political activism in Islam and transnational Islamic movements, religious factors in conflicts, and religion and nationalism. Brylov has authored some 80 publications in Ukrainian, Danish, Polish, German, French and English, russian.
Email:
d.brylov@ecsa.com.ua
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Lidiya Lozova’s academic background is in cultural studies and art history. She completed her bachelor’s degree at the National University “Kyiv-Mohyla Academy” (NaUKMA) and also undertook one year of undergraduate study at the University of Maine (Maine, USA). She has two master’s degrees, from Jacobs University of Bremen (Germany) and NaUKMA, respectively. She earned her Ph.D. in 2015 at the Modern Art Research Institute of the National Academy of Arts of Ukraine, with the thesis “The Theological Dimension of the Leningrad School of Avant-garde Art from the 1920s–1960s”. Dr. Lozova’s research and practical experience encompass three main areas: culture and visual arts, Christian (especially Orthodox) theology, and peacebuilding theory and practice. From 2004 to 2010, with a two-year break to study abroad, Dr Lozova worked as a fellow of the the National Art Museum of Ukraine. Since 2009 she has been on the staff of the “Spirit and Letter” Research and Publishing Association, the European Humanities Research Center of the NaUKMA and St Clement Center: Communion and Dialogue of Cultures; she carried out a number of research projects, translations and conferences in the field of humanities, theology and peacebuilding. In 2016, Dr. Lozova – alongside Dr. Tetiana Kalenychenko – became a co-coordinator of the Dialogue in Action initiative. In 2020, she became a co-founder of the educational platform ETHOS and coordinated a program of online courses that featured lecturers from all over the world on topics related to theology, philosophy, cultural studies and art.
Email:
lidiya.lozova@gmail.com
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Olena Kopina – sociologist, mediator, dialogue facilitator. Worked with a lot international peacebuilding projects, as researcher and developer of methodological materials for OSCE mission in Ukraine, USAID, UNDP, Humanitarian Dialogue and others. She is active in working as trainer in Conflict transformation and mediation, dialogue facilitator in Ukrainian communities, psychologist for groups of support, activists and local specialists. The author of non-governmental initiative “Labaratory of Peaceful Decisions”, Kharkiv (since 2014). Organizer and dialogue facilitator in the project “Conflict resolution for lowering polarization in Ukraine”. She teached Sociology at Kharkiv National Karazin University. Facilitator of ICA Ukraine, completed a number of educational programs in organizational and business mediation at Kyiv-Mohyla Business School and Institute for Peace and Common Ground, Kyiv. Works as facilitator, trainer and analytical specialist in Dialogue in Action.
Email:
dialogfmd@gmail.com
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Svitlana Krot – trainer, facilitator, project manager, methodological materials developer and leader of two NGOs “Country of Free People” and “Center for Social Initiatives and Partnership”. The main topics of her work are social cohesion, psychological support, media literacy, information security, Do no harm approach, strategic planning and dialogue, restorative practices and mediation. As well as the development of quests, non-standard events and their implementation, with a focus on both adult participants and youth. The main partners in cooperation are IREX , IPCG, CivilМ+, Alert International, German Ministry of Foreign Affairs, USAID, CMI, British Embassy. Cooperates with Dialogue in Action as a trainer and community facilitator.
Email:
Skrott@ukr.net
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Taras Dyatlik is vice-rector for development and international cooperation of the East European Institute of Theology, regional director of the Overseas Council-United World Mission in Eastern Europe and Central Asia. In 1997 received BA in Theology at Donetsk Christian University (DCU, Donetsk, Ukraine) and MA in Theology in 2005 at Evangelische Theologische Faculteit (Leuven, Belgium) majoring in New Testament textology. From 1998 till 2009 he was working as librarian, Associate Professor, Dean and Professor at DCU, in 2008-2011 coordinated Slavic Research and Resource Center. From 2011 to 2019, he was the education development coordinator of the Euro-Asian Accreditation Association. From 2012 till 2022 he was representing the Association at International Council for Evangelical Theological Education. He also has experience working in the Ministry of Education and Culture Commission for State Recognition of Documents on Higher Spiritual Education, in the Scientific and Methodological Subcommittee on Theology of the Scientific and Methodical Commission for Humanities and theology of the Higher Education Sector of the Scientific and Methodical Council of the Ministry of Education and Culture. Currently, he is a member of the Public Council of the Ministry on Cooperation with Churches and Religious Organizations under the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine, and the Advisory Council of Theologians Without Borders. The main type of professional activity since 2011 is the development of theological and educational structures, initiatives and projects as the regional director of the Overseas Council in Eastern Europe and Central Asia. His passion lies in the development of missionary theological education for the realization of God’s mission in the world and participation in peace-building processes. Taras has more than 20 years of experience teaching theology and exegesis of the New Testament in Eastern Europe. In Dialogue in Action he works as fundraising manager, educational programs developer and trainer.
Email:
tarasd@duck.net
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The United States Institute of Peace is a national, nonpartisan, independent institute, founded by Congress and dedicated to the proposition that a world without violent conflict is possible, practical and essential for U.S. and global security. In conflict zones abroad, the Institute works with local partners to prevent, mitigate, and resolve violent conflict. To reduce future crises and the need for costly interventions, USIP works with governments and civil societies to build local capacities to manage conflict peacefully. The Institute pursues its mission by linking research, policy, training, analysis and direct action to support those who are working to build a more peaceful, inclusive world.
Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) is a global, nonprofit organization that strives to share God’s love and compassion for all through relief, development and peace. In all our programs we are committed to relationships with our local partners and churches. As an Anabaptist organization, we strive to make peace a part of everything we do. When responding to disasters we work with local groups to distribute resources in ways that minimize conflict. In our development work we plan with community and church groups to make sure the projects meet their needs. And we advocate for policies that will lead to a more peaceful world.
The mission of the “Institute for Peace and Common Ground” team is a dialogue building for groups`, organizations` and communities` development; and achievement of positive, sustainable change. Activity of the Institute is focused on the search for common points that unite different people or groups in complex conflict situations. Also it works on recovering of broken relationships, overcoming barriers encountered in communication. Due to this, the underlying principle of the Institute activity is called “restorative approach” or idea of recovery. Originally this approach was developed as a “different” philosophy of conflict resolution. It allows the conflict parties to restore the lost trust and relationships, to emend the conflict consequences and avoid similar situations in the future. This philosophy is based on the principles of confidentiality, voluntariness and mutual respect, and the process is facilitated by the competent mediator.
ETHOS is a web-platform created in 2020 to accumulate research and educational projects initiated at various times by Kyiv based Research and Publishing Association “Spirit and Letter” and St. Clement Centre : Communion and Dialogue of Cultures. Among those projects are annual international Kyiv Summer Theological Institute, Assumption Readings international theological conference, and Dialogue in Action project. The platform got its name from the document “For the life of the World. Towards the Social ethos of the Orthodox Church”, developed by the Ecumenical Patriarchate of the Orthodox Church in 2020. From 2020 to 2022, ETHOS has prepared a program of theological, philosophical and other online courses from lecturers from around the world, which can be found on our website (mainly in Ukrainian). The range of topics is inspired by the main intentions of “For the Life of the World”: the openness of Christianity to the modern world with its challenges, the Christian assertion of human dignity, ecumenical dialogue, among others. From February 2022, the main project of ETHOS has been God Against War, aimed at supporting Ukrainian Christians who oppose Russian aggression against Ukraine.
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Country of free people was founded in April 2014 by a group of civil activists of Donbass, with the mission to “mitigate the impact of the military conflict on Ukraine’s population by enabling constructive interaction that leads to tangible change”. Since that time, the organisation has implemented more than 45 projects, reaching more than 4 500 persons evacuated from the conflict zone, 55 000 internally displaced persons (IDPs) and working with more than 300 front-line settlements, home to some 200 000 Ukrainian citizens.
The organisation’s activities include:
– Humanitarian aid and temporary shelter
– Minimizing the effects of military conflict and advocacy
– Livelihoods and economic development programs
– Development of the civil society sector
– Psycho-social support for vulnerable groups
– Protection and development of children and youth
The Mediation and Dialogue Research Center at Kyiv-Mohyla Academy aims to generate high quality academic research that impacts the practice of conflict transformation in Ukraine.
The Center conducts research mediation and dialogue as conflict transformation tools to counter the violence and consequences of the armed conflict within the broader context of positive peace and reforms in Ukraine.
Research projects of the Center deal with the patterns of dialogues and the associated risks, mapping of civil society in peacebuilding, monitoring of dialogues at tracks 1,5-3 across Ukraine, civil society inclusion into dialogues processes and peace negotiations, and the impact and evaluation of dialogue. In addition to research, the Center members teach conflict resolution and mediation courses and modules within the undergraduate and post-graduate curriculums at the law, political science, international relations and public administration departments of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy. The Center maintains close links with practitioners; its research is practice-driven and relies on the “research in action” approach. It responds to the concerns of international organizations working in Ukraine, local NGOs and the community of mediators and dialogue facilitators by bringing academic research into practice and practical problems into academic research.
The members of the Working Group engage in interdisciplinary, ethnographic study of lived religion and public life in Eastern Europe and Eurasia. Our focus on lived religion centers on the encounters, exchanges, and entanglements that religious practices, beliefs, and sentiments create. We consider contemporary forms of vernacular religiosity and the experiences of the transcendent they offer as well as institutional forms of religion and their transnational and global connections.
As an ongoing, long-standing research network that unites anthropologists, sociologists, and historians, the goal of the Working Group is to advance the critical study of religion in and of the region by supporting original research and insightful publications on how religion affects contemporary social and political life. Our events have featured such themes as Religion and Public Space; Sharing Sacred Sites; Religion and Public Life; and Conflict and Reconciliation.
The Peaceful Change initiative is an independent, international non-governmental organisation working to help societies manage large-scale change in non-violent ways that build the mechanisms and relationships that support long-term peace. The Peaceful Change initiative’s work reduces violence and enables communities and societies who are in conflict with each other to preserve and strengthen relationships, and promote development.
Kerk in Actie is a special branch of the Protestant Church in the Netherlands to support partner churches and ngoś in more than 30 countries over the world. Support is provided on emergency relief, children and young people at risk and strengthening churches in taking an active role in society to fight poverty and injustice.
We are the church in action: a worldwide community of people who believe. Who believe in God and in each other. A real church is an active church. We are the Protestant Church in the Netherlands in action: two million members (of 17 million habitants), over 1600 local congregations are active on behalf of their fellow men and women, near and far. No one is excluded. All are welcome. It is our calling to share what we have received.
The Laboratory of Peaceful Solutions is a public initiative that arose in 2014 to work with conflicts between ideological opponents, social conflicts in the city of Kharkiv and the Kharkiv region. Later the organization implemented its projects in the communities of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions. Within the framework of the initiative, monitoring is carried out in communities with the help of qualitative sociological research, dialogues to reduce polarization and to proceed with conflict resolution. At the request of communities, joint activities of the public with local authorities, conflict detection and prevention systems are being planned. The dialogue format introduced by the initiative allows dialogue participants – representatives of different opinions – to hear each other, to invent joint solutions to problems, to develop fruitful strategies for joint work.
Non-government organization “St. Clyment Center: Communication and Dialogue of Cultures” was founded in 2007 with the blessing of His Beatitude Volodymyr, Metropolitan of Kyiv and All Ukraine. The goal of the Center was to promote dialogue between different cultural traditions and provide spiritual and theological enlightenment, primarily among the academic community, intelligentsia, and youth. The Center is designed to promote the common witness of Christian Churches in the face of modern challenges.
MIRamiDA – First training in peacebuilding in post Yugoslav countries, since 1995
Family of MIRamiDA trainings include Youth, Basic, Plus, Partnership , all organised in Croatia, Bosnia-Hercegovina, Serbia, Macedonia and Ukraine & Peacebuilding Days held in Groznjan-Grisignana, Istria, Croatia.
Team of local trainers, empowerment for active citizenship, nonviolence, human rights, conflict transformation are among key topics explored.
MIRamiDA is coined term from MIR, Ami and DA (Yes) and has variety of meanings including Pyramid of Peace, where foundation is most important.
There were over two hundreds of them, mostly in duration between three and five days, up to ten at MIRamiDA Plus! Regional trainings. Dialogue in Action main partner is Goran Bozicevic whose book “Gradnja dijaloga” was translated into Ukrainian.
