Like more than eight million people around the world who have watched the video I Am a Ukrainian, I was deeply moved by the message of Yulia Marushevska from Kiev earlier this year.
Yulia, filmed by Graham Mitchell, captured the horror of the continuing conflict in Ukraine, and the hope for a brighter future for its people.
Since then, Yulia has been working incredibly hard to spread her message. She has been on a speaking tour of the US, explaining what is happening in the Ukraine. She has been visiting leaders, organisations and especially colleges across the country, as raising awareness about the ongoing issues with young people is so important. After speaking at Stanford University, Yulia has been offered a two semester scholarship as a visiting scholar.
I was fortunate enough to meet Yulia in Washington. She is passionate, bright and very articulate about the need for the West to maintain and increase its support for the country. She told me of the enormous bravery of people in the Ukraine to campaign and then fight for their belief in true democracy.
It was an honour to receive a special present from Ukraine, a hand-painted orange helmet which a local artist painted for protesters headed to Independence Square or the Maidan to protest – at the risk of death.
Read the full story here.
