Together, these initiatives strengthen different aspects of the Museum’s work—from ensuring the long-term preservation of already documented testimonies to recording the experiences of children and teenagers whose families have been affected by captivity.

War Childhood Museum Ukraine Joins the Ukraine War Archive

The War Childhood Museum Ukraine has partnered with the Ukraine War Archive, Ukraine’s largest digital platform preserving evidence, testimonies, and other materials related to the Russian-Ukrainian War.

As part of the collaboration, the Museum is sharing testimonies previously featured in its exhibition projects with the Archive. These include stories from children and teenagers about living through Russian aggression, forced displacement, and experiences in temporarily occupied and frontline territories.

“We are glad to cooperate with the Ukraine War Archive because they are a prime example of an institution focused specifically on preserving collected materials. The Ukraine War Archive also offers a ready-to-use set of preservation tools, so we are pleased to apply them and transfer the previously published materials of the War Childhood Museum,” says Svitlana Osipchuk, Program Director of the War Childhood Museum Ukraine.

The Ukraine War Archive operates as a closed platform accessible to verified users, including law enforcement agencies, international organizations, journalists, documentary filmmakers, researchers, artists, and other professionals working with war-related materials. It preserves photographs, videos, audio recordings, written testimonies, interviews, and open-source content, with different access levels available for sensitive materials.

“We are thrilled about this collaboration and welcoming the War Childhood Museum Ukraine into our partner community. The recorded testimonies of the Museum are particularly valuable for documenting and preserving children’s experiences during the Russo-Ukrainian War. Now, these testimonies will become part of the Ukraine War Archive’s collections, which will not only help safely preserve the material but also allow verified users to work with the testimonies for various purposes—primarily aimed at achieving justice and preserving the memory of living through this war,” says Iryna Pavliukovska, Head of Partnerships at the Ukraine War Archive.

For the Museum, the collaboration provides an additional way to ensure the long-term preservation of collected testimonies while making selected materials available for professional research and other forms of engagement. These personal accounts can contribute to a broader understanding of how war transforms children’s lives and how their experiences become part of the history of the Russian-Ukrainian War.

Documenting the Experiences of Families Affected by Captivity

At the same time, the War Childhood Museum Ukraine is continuing to expand its documentation work. In collaboration with “People of the Future,” the Museum has launched an initiative to record the testimonies of children whose loved ones have returned from captivity.

“People of the Future” is a project of the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War, created for children and younger siblings of prisoners of war, fallen defenders, civilians unlawfully deprived of liberty, and people missing as a result of Russian armed aggression. The project brings together government institutions, businesses, humanitarian organizations, civil society groups, and benefactors to support Ukrainian children affected by the war.

“When we watch news reports about defenders returning from captivity, it is always a deeply joyful yet poignant moment. It brings immense joy to the families who have waited for their loved ones to come home. But the story does not end there. Years of waiting, uncertainty, and the impossibility of learning even the slightest detail about a loved one’s fate leave a profound mark on the entire family—on everyone who waited,” says Svitlana Osipchuk.

Through the initiative, the Museum seeks to better understand and document how waiting, uncertainty, separation, and the return of loved ones from captivity affect children and teenagers.

By both preserving previously collected testimonies and continuing to document experiences that have received less public attention, the War Childhood Museum Ukraine is working to ensure that children’s perspectives form part of the record of the war and remain accessible for future research, education, and remembrance.

Read more about our activities this month:

Educational Programs and Visits

Throughout August, we welcomed educational groups and visitors from different cities across Bosnia and Herzegovina, as well as from Italy, countries across the Western Balkans, Greece, the United States, and Ukraine.

The Museum also welcomed Volodymyr Bachynsky, Ambassador of Ukraine to Bosnia and Herzegovina, who met with WCM founder and Director General Jasminko Halilović. During the visit, they discussed the Museum’s work in Ukraine, where WCM has been active since 2018 and has built a collection of more than 1,000 testimonies from children and young people documenting their experiences before and after the full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Research and Documentation

In August, we shared more about the War Childhood Museum’s ongoing research and documentation work in Colombia, launched earlier this summer as part of our efforts to document and preserve experiences of childhood shaped by armed conflict around the world.

The research is being conducted by Louis Monroy, WCM Research Collaborator, a university lecturer in Colombia whose work focuses on international relations, peacebuilding, and transitional justice.

Through the project, WCM is collecting personal stories and objects that shed light on childhood experiences from 1948 to the present day, spanning different periods of Colombia’s decades-long armed conflict. The project expands the Museum’s international collection and contributes to preserving diverse experiences of war-affected childhood across different historical and geographical contexts.

Peacebuilding and Education

In August, we looked back at “Creativity for Peace,” a two-year program through which teachers and students across Bosnia and Herzegovina used creative approaches to promote peace in their schools and communities. We shared moments from the program’s closing event and reflected on the experiences and connections built along the way.

We also spoke with Vernesa Manov, a teacher from Donji Vakuf who, together with her students, expanded the program activities—from creating a school museum to organizing humanitarian initiatives in their community.

International Projects

In August, the two-year texTALES project, co-funded by the European Union through the Creative Europe Programme, came to a close. Bringing together partners and participants in Italy, France, and Greece, the project explored how fashion, textile design, and participatory storytelling can challenge stereotypes about migration and create space for dialogue and inclusion.

The collaboration culminated in Handle With Care, a travelling exhibition and fashion collection shaped by participants’ personal experiences of migration, belonging, displacement, and home. Take a look at the final video retracing the two-year journey of texTALES, from storytelling and creative work in social tailoring workshops to the collaborative process and exhibitions across Europe.

Stories From Our Collection

In August, we launched Monthly Story Spotlight, a new series highlighting one object and the personal story behind it from the War Childhood Museum collection each month.

For the first edition of the series, we shared Lilian’s story from Gaza. Before leaving her home, she visited the sea one last time with her friends and collected seashells—a small object preserving the memory of a place and a moment before displacement.

The series will continue to introduce audiences to individual stories from the Museum’s collection, which includes more than 7,000 stories and objects documenting childhood experiences from 22 armed conflicts around the world.

Marking Important Dates

On World Humanitarian Day, August 19, we highlighted stories from the War Childhood Museum collection that illustrate the role humanitarian assistance can play during war and the ways children experience and remember receiving it.

We also marked 34 years since the burning of Sarajevo City Hall, which was set ablaze on the night of August 25–26, 1992, when it housed the National and University Library of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Around two million books and other library materials were lost in the fire.

Among the objects preserved in the War Childhood Museum’s collection is a book that survived that night, rescued from the burning library by our contributor Alma. We revisited Alma’s story and the story of the book she saved, which decades later became part of the Museum’s collection.

Media Mentions

The War Childhood Museum continued to receive attention in international media throughout August. Below is a selection of coverage from the past month:

• Sarajevo, the Museum Preserving Children’s War Memories – Osservatorio Balcani Caucaso Transeuropa
• War Childhood Museum – Deutsche Welle / DW Travel (VIDEO)
• Not Remaining Silent Without Causing Trauma: How to Talk to Schoolchildren About War and Memory (UKRAINIAN)

The Educational Resource Center shows how the Museum’s collection can serve not only to preserve stories, but also as a learning tool.

“The main question we are trying to address through our materials is: how can we teach about and reflect on the experience of war while the war is still ongoing? School curricula are not adapting quickly enough to this need,” says Svitlana Osipchuk, WCM Ukraine Program Director.

The educational materials were first developed by the War Childhood Museum Bosnia and Herzegovina. The WCM Ukraine built on these materials, adapting them to the Ukrainian educational context.

“Our approach equips teachers with the tools to adopt a trauma-informed and sensitive approach to teaching during the ongoing war,” explains Osipchuk.

From Objects to Questions

Object-based learning involves active engagement with artworks, artifacts, archival materials, or digital representations of objects. It encourages students to look closely, notice details, ask questions and develop their own ideas. The object opens the way for research and discussion.

This was one of the ideas that guided Nataliia Ponezha, a teacher, and Anna Lenchovska, a psychologist, in co-authoring the educational and methodological materials for WCM Ukraine’s Educational Resource Center.

Nataliia Ponezha, private archive

Every object in the WCM collection is connected to the real experiences of children who lived through war. In the classroom, these objects and the stories behind them can help students reflect on their own experiences of living through wartime, using the experiences of other children as a starting point for conversation and reflection.

One of the first lessons Nataliia created was based on a simple object — a telephone. “The artefact itself — the telephone — is universal and familiar to everyone. Now I can see that this is the story teachers most often test in their classrooms.”

Educators who used the Center’s materials during the testing phase found that using an object as a starting point can create some distance from difficult personal experiences while opening discussion about topics like memory, loss, home and identity.

From Object to Action

The Center’s materials include creative tasks, group work, visual activities and other ways of working with an object. “It was important to me that the activities did not come down to conversation alone. I wanted children to act — to complete practical tasks, work with their hands and interact with the material,” says Nataliia. 

One example is a lesson based on the story titled “Big Problems”. The object becomes a starting point for creative work with modelling clay. Through a familiar image, students can approach more difficult topics connected to children’s experiences of war.

The activities also change depending on students’ age. Younger children work more with creative and visual tasks, while older students are encouraged to compare, analyse and interpret.

At the same time, the materials are not strict instructions. “These teaching materials are not a rigid set of instructions. This applies both to the content and to the age boundaries,” explains Nataliia.

The same object can lead to different questions depending on the lesson, the age of the students and the teacher’s approach.

“War should not be the only framework. So I deliberately expanded the context and looked for entry points through broader topics,” adds Nataliia.

For example, museum stories can be used in civic education and history lessons. They can open discussions about dignity, memory, values, migration and other topics.

From Materials Development to Classroom Use

The development of the Ukrainian educational materials took around eight months. To test the lessons in practice, WCM Ukraine invited teachers to join the project through an open call, which attracted considerable interest. Participants were introduced to object-based learning, a trauma-informed approach and practical ways of using the lesson plans.

The Museum organised online training seminars for teachers from across Ukraine. The sessions combined the methodology of object-based learning with psychological aspects of discussing war and memory with children. Teachers could also exchange experiences and ask questions about using the materials in their classrooms.

The lessons were then tested in schools across Ukraine. In total, 63 teachers conducted 69 lessons with more than 1,600 children and teenagers in 17 regions, including frontline and recently liberated areas. The lessons took place both online and in classrooms. The testing process also helped the Museum understand how teachers adapt the materials to different ages and classroom contexts. 

The War Childhood Museum Ukraine continues to support educators through networking meetings and individual consultations, giving teachers an opportunity to discuss their experiences and ask questions as they use the materials from the Educational Resource Center.

Big Problems

I was born in Kherson, where there are big problems now. Our courtyard was bombed. During the missile strike, the trees fell. Even the most stable ones were broken. Afterwards, barely any remained standing. Everything was in ashes. All the glass was broken. We lived on the eighth floor, and we still live on the eighth floor here in Kyiv.

One day, I saw those Z-kas driving on our roads. A month later, for our own safety, we went to Kyiv.

I made this tank with my own hands; I spent an hour making it. In Kherson, I have a whole drawer with three shelves filled to the brim with my models. I miss Kherson.

Mykhailo, born 2014,

Kherson

Colombia’s decades-long armed conflict has taken different forms and affected generations of children and families across the country. Through its work in Colombia, WCM is collecting personal stories and objects that shed light on childhood experiences from 1948 to the present day—from the emergence of guerrilla movements and the period marked by drug cartels, through the expansion of paramilitary violence, to the peace agreement and conflicts of recent years.

“Each year, we continue to develop our research activities in order to include as many diverse stories as possible in our collection. While every conflict is different, the impact on childhood carries common threads across time and place. Including stories from Colombia is important to the WCM’s mission of ensuring that more children’s experiences of war are being heard,” said Aynura Akbaš, Research Manager at the War Childhood Museum.

Documenting Experiences Across Colombia

In July, Monroy conducted field research in Barrancabermeja, where he documented the experiences of people who were forcibly recruited into guerrilla groups as children. During his stay, he also visited the House of Memory and the Human Rights of Women, an organization with a long-standing commitment to human rights, memory, and the experiences of women affected by violence.

“These stories serve as an insight into some of the underlying issues behind the Colombian armed conflict, serving as a tool for non-repetition of violent acts against society,” said Monroy.

The research process seeks to create space for participants to share their experiences on their own terms, recognizing that memories of conflict are deeply personal and that there is no single way to tell a story about childhood and war.

“The Museum’s Colombian collection brings together personal stories and objects connected to childhoods shaped by armed conflict, spanning the period from 1948 to the present day. Each story offers an individual perspective on how armed conflict has shaped childhood in Colombia,” says Aynura Akbaš, Research Manager at the War Childhood Museum.

Creating Space for Children and Young People to Share Their Stories

At the end of July, WCM supported the organization of a workshop in Bogotá for children and young people whose family members had been kidnapped by guerrilla groups. Using artistic methods, participants were invited to explore and communicate their experiences in ways that felt most appropriate to them. Some chose to contribute stories and personal objects with the Museum, becoming contributors to its growing Colombian collection.

The workshop reflects an important principle of WCM’s research and documentation methodology: children and young people should have agency over how, when, and whether they share their experiences. Objects, drawings, photographs, memories, and personal stories can all become ways of communicating experiences that may be difficult to capture through conventional forms of testimony.

The work underway in Colombia is part of the War Childhood Museum’s broader commitment to preserving the voices and experiences of children affected by armed conflict worldwide. As the Colombian collection continues to grow, the Museum aims to document the diversity and complexity of these experiences while respecting each contributor’s dignity and their right to tell their story in their own way.

Read some of them below. 

Humanitarian Aid Packaging Collection

I wanted to keep a memento of something completely new to Yugoslavia—humanitarian aid. We laughed about it at the time, thinking: Come on, by Monday everything will be back to normal. That’s the real reason why I kept that first tin. But the crisis wasn’t over by Monday, and more tins followed. Soon we were eating things that had never been seen before in Yugoslavia. It was an excellent reason to collect all those wrappers and tins.

At one point as I was forming this collection I had to ask myself how long I would continue to do so. That’s when I decided to keep collecting either until I made it into the Guinness World Records or until the war ended and we stopped receiving aid. Thanks to the journalists who visited Sarajevo, I was able to send a letter to Guinness. I continued collecting wrappers as I awaited their response. Even though my collection made it into the record book, the number of wrappers is actually greater than the one listed by several hundred.

We even erected a monument to ICAR in Sarajevo, but few remember that there were actually three different types of ICAR tin. Because of details like that one, collecting proved to be a good way to preserve our collective memory of that period.

Filip, b. 1981, Bosnia and Herzegovina

Magic Wand

This magic wand was part of a New Year’s care package filled with colorful knickknacks from a humanitarian organization that was active at the time. The New Year’s celebrations included a recital. Each child received a magic wand: we hoped that by playing “abracadabra” we could make the war end.

Unfortunately, it took a long time for the war to end. I held on to that magic wand, occasionally lending it to younger children to make their own wishes, provided that they return it to its rightful owner.

Denisa, b. 1981, Bosnia and Herzegovina

Letters for First Graders

During the Siege of Sarajevo, we had our classes in improvized basement classrooms. When we were in first grade, on one occasion, we received humanitarian aid care packages that contained toys and letters from our peers from other countries.

I kept mine to this day because they reminded me of the wonderful feeling of knowing that, even in the most difficult times, there was someone out there thinking about us.

Alma, b. 1988, Bosnia and Herzegovina

A Box for Play

I got this box in early 1999 from an English humanitarian organization. When the bombing of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia began that same year, and when the air-raid sirens sounded for the first time, it was the first thing I brought down to the basement with me. I would play with this box’s contents during all 78 days of the bombing.  I spent the time in the basement together with my mom and my younger brother, while dad who was in the army was often at the military airport. Whenever dad was home we would read the “Zabavnik” children’s magazine or play games from the box. During my time in the basement, I also discovered books and comic books. These things comforted me and brought me fun, but today they remind me of the fear and danger I felt.

Maja, b. 1990, Serbia

Reward for an Important Task

Occasionally, we received humanitarian food aid, which was distributed based on the number of “heads” in a household. My family would receive one loaf of bread and one end piece. The bread was distributed near my grandmother’s building, in a place hidden from shelling, so we children were allowed to go out and stand in line for bread. 

Once, while waiting in line, I was given the “important task” of going behind the counter to help the local community representatives with cutting and distributing bread. For a job well done, I earned two loaves of bread and 10 dinars. I never spent those 10 dinars. I kept them, alongside this ration card for bread distribution.

Naida, b. 1981, Bosnia and Herzegovina

One of the program participants was Vernesa Manov, a teacher at the First Primary School in Donji Vakuf, who, together with her students, expanded the program activities far beyond what had originally been envisioned—from creating a school museum to organizing humanitarian initiatives in the local community. Below, read her reflections on the program and what it brought to her students.

From Trust to Partnership

Vernesa emphasizes that her story with the War Childhood Museum did not begin with the “Creativity for Peace” (CfP) program, but much earlier, when she shared her personal story and objects from the war with the Museum. Because of that experience, she says, she had no hesitation about applying when the call for participation was announced.

“I was simply looking, after everything that had happened, for a space and for people who, without hatred, nurture a culture of remembrance in a normal, civic, peacebuilding way. So that what happened to us never happens to anyone else.”

Speaking about her collaboration with the Museum, she particularly emphasizes that it was this sense of trust that motivated her to become even more involved.

“The War Childhood Museum created a sincere, safe, friendly, and well-intentioned environment for me, where I felt I could do everything I wanted to do with my students through your projects.”

When a Project Grows Beyond Its Original Scope

One of the activities within CfP was initially envisioned as a classroom exhibition in Donji Vakuf that would help students broaden their understanding of others and strengthen their empathy. However, the activity grew into a permanent museum corner at the school, which uses personal stories to teach students about experiences of war in a constructive way. Vernesa says she quickly realized that she wanted to create a space that would continue to live on after the project ended. Students, teachers, the school administration, and technical staff all became involved in creating the space, while over time, the exhibition also began incorporating objects contributed by other school staff.

For Vernesa, this is proof that the project became much more than a set of activities.

“I don’t think we simply carried out activities. I think we carried out an entire project mission.”

Learning Peace Through Concrete Actions

Vernesa believes that one of the program’s most important outcomes was the way students began to understand their own role in the community. One of the exercises they completed as part of the program, which focused on empathy, inspired the idea of working with the people who use the public kitchen in Donji Vakuf.

“Through this ‘Creativity for Peace’ project, I wanted the students to understand that they are part of a larger human endeavor and that they themselves are doing something for the benefit of humanity, for the benefit of our country.”

The children, she says, quickly embraced the idea and demonstrated that solidarity does not depend on how much someone has.

Big Ideas Do Not Depend on the Size of a Place

At the end of the conversation, Vernesa reflected on common prejudices about smaller communities. She believes that young people, through their work, demonstrate just how meaningless such divisions can be.

“I think it is precisely children and young people who are moving beyond the usual clichés about small and large communities and breaking down that taboo, those prejudices. There are great young creatives in Donji Vakuf. There are children with big hearts in Donji Vakuf. And there is tremendous enthusiasm among people who refuse to accept that they cannot bring their big ideas to life.”

For her, this is precisely one of the program’s key values—showing young people that where they come from does not prevent them from creating, helping others, and building a culture of peace.

Read more about our activities this month:

Educational Programs and Visits

Throughout July, we welcomed educational groups and visitors from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Italy, Ukraine, Japan, Belgium, and across the Western Balkans.

The Museum also welcomed 11 travel creators from eight countries as part of the Discovering Bosnia & Herzegovina journey led by travel creator Robert Dacešin. During their visit to Sarajevo, participants learned about children’s experiences of war through the Museum’s collection and reflected on the importance of preserving personal memories as part of our shared history. Take a look at what they had to say about the visit here. 

Peacebuilding Programs and Exhibitions

In July, the War Childhood Museum opened the final exhibition of the Furaj mir (“Live Peace”) program in Tuzla.

Titled “A City Built on a Grain of Solidarity,” the exhibition explores how anti-fascist resistance, Tuzla’s industrial heritage, and the memory of the Kapija Massacre have shaped the city’s identity. Through months of research, participants examined how traditions of solidarity, justice, and civic responsibility continue to inspire young people today and how this heritage can contribute to building more peaceful and inclusive communities. Take a look at the atmosphere at the opening here.

Marking International Days

On 11 July, marking the International Day of Reflection and Commemoration of the 1995 Genocide in Srebrenica, we presented As Long As We Are Together, a graphic novel based on the testimony of Srebrenica genocide survivor Almasa Salihović.

Created by Swedish graphic novelist Anneli Furmark as part of the Survivor-Centred Visual Narratives (SCVN) project, the publication is the result of months of conversations and close collaboration centred on preserving the survivor’s voice with authenticity. As coordinator of the Bosnia and Herzegovina component of the SCVN research cluster, the War Childhood Museum facilitated the collaboration between Furmark and Salihović while supporting the development of the project from its earliest stages.

We also shared the story behind the creation of the graphic novel, offering audiences a closer look at the collaborative process through which testimony was transformed into a visual narrative.

Institutional Development

After an intensive first half of the year, the War Childhood Museum team gathered in Livno for its semi-annual planning session and staff retreat.

The retreat provided an opportunity to reflect on achievements, review ongoing priorities, strengthen collaboration across teams, and plan the Museum’s activities for the months ahead.

Media Mentions

The War Childhood Museum continued to receive attention in regional media throughout July. Below is a selection of coverage from the past month:

• The Doll Without an Eye– BHRT Radio (BOSNIAN)
• Participants from 13 Countries Visit the War Childhood Museum as Part of the International Summer School “Youth and Heritage”– (VIDEO, BOSNIAN)
• “More Than Football: Bosnia and Herzegovina Prepare for Historic Match Against the United States”– Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (BOSNIAN)

Red Cross Letters

When I was in seventh grade, I was forced to leave behind my neighborhood, Ilidža, my school, and my friends—they stayed “on the other side,” and I longed to get in touch with them again. By chance, I learned that it was possible to exchange messages through the Red Cross and that those messages really did reach their intended recipients.

I wrote the first of these at the end of 1993. I wasn’t entirely convinced that the letters would reach their intended recipients, so when I got the replies, I jumped for joy! Today, the content of these letters always brings a smile to my face and makes me laugh. We mostly talked to each other about our everyday lives—what we looked like, what we listened to, what we ate. Although the war was a part of that everyday life, we rarely mentioned it.

Alma, born 1978

Bosnia and Herzegovina

Food Without Flavor

My friends Ziyad, Mousa, and I grew up together in the same neighborhood in Gaza. After school, we were always at each other’s houses, sharing meals and laughter. Food was at the heart of our friendship. 

When the war began, I fled to Egypt. Ziyad and Mousa stayed behind. I learned through social media that they were killed. 

Now, whenever I eat, I remember Gaza. I remember my friends. I feel as if I can no longer taste my food without feeling grief.

Khalid, born 2014

Gaza, Palestine

 “The First Orange, After Eleven Months”

A friend of mine got a hold of some oranges, which he shared with us. Of course, we got an orange each.

I brought my orange home so that I could share it between the five of us. I still remember that happiness because it was the first orange I’d seen in eleven months. Don’t even get me started on the taste!

The orange was so important to me that I glued a piece of it to my journal and wrote, in all capital letters: “THE FIRST ORANGE, AFTER ELEVEN MONTHS.” I remember its taste to this day.

Medina, born 1977

Bosnia and Herzegovina

Seashells from Gaza

Before the war in Gaza, the sea was my favorite place. I spent all my free time there with my friends. 

Then the war began. We had to leave our home and move to our relatives’ house in a safer area. We lived crowded together with no privacy and nowhere comfortable to sleep. 

Life there was hard. Whenever I could, I escaped to the sea for a moment of calm. The other girls and I would stay there until we saw the military boats. Then we would run back. 

Eventually, I fled to Egypt with my parents. My extended family and many of my friends are still in Gaza. I think about them and their safety every day. 

Before leaving, I went to the sea one last time. A big wave came and left many seashells on the shore. My friends and I collected as many as we could. These are some of them.

Lilian, born 2011

Gaza, Palestina

My Favorite Napkin

My friends and I used to collect paper napkins. We kept them, very carefully, in cardboard boxes, and traded them regularly. The most valuable were the so-called “Japanese napkins”, which were prettily patterned and made with fine paper. My favorite, however, was the “Pamucki” napkin, which I treated with the utmost care and wouldn’t trade for any other, not even a Japanese one. Even though it became pretty decrepit by the end, I decided to keep it as a memento of those hours spent with my neighborhood friends, in cold basements and building entryways.

Emina, born 1985

Bosnia and Herzegovina

Read more about our activities this month:

Educational Programs and Visits

Throughout June, we welcomed educational groups and visitors from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Italy, Serbia, Croatia, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Germany, the United States, Switzerland, Canada, and Czechia.

These visits continue to provide opportunities for dialogue about children’s experiences of war, memory, and the importance of preserving personal testimonies across generations and national borders.

Awards and International Recognition

In June, the War Childhood Museum received the regional “Jelena Šantić – Brave Steps Forward” Award for its “Furaj mir” (“Live Peace”) program. The award was presented at the Museum of the Nineties in Belgrade, Serbia, by the Jelena Šantić Foundation, which recognizes artistic and social initiatives that promote peace, tolerance, understanding, and solidarity. Presented every two years in memory of one of the region’s most prominent peace activists, the award represents an important recognition of the Museum’s long-term work empowering young people to build peace in their communities.

Conferences and International Events

From 4–6 June, members of the War Childhood Museum Ukraine team participated in the fourth annual symposium “The Most Documented War: Polyphony of Narratives,” which brought together documentation and archival initiatives from across Ukraine and beyond. Project Manager Renata Chechel and researchers Viktoriia Nesterenko, Oleksandra Domorosla, and Svitlana Telukha joined colleagues to exchange experiences, discuss new documentation projects, and strengthen international cooperation.

The Museum also presented We Grew Up in War at the POINT Conference, the region’s largest conference dedicated to political accountability, civil society, and new technologies. The presentation introduced conference participants to the game’s innovative approach to digital storytelling and its potential to foster empathy through interactive experiences. Take a look here. 

Our Director for Bosnia and Herzegovina, Amina Krvavac, participated in the European Museum of the Year Award (EMYA) Conference and Awards Ceremony 2026 in Bilbao, Spain, in her role as Chair of the Board of Trustees of the European Museum Forum (EMF). The conference brought together museum professionals, nominee museums, former award recipients, and partners from across Europe to celebrate innovation, excellence, and the transformative role of museums in society. The War Childhood Museum is proud to be part of the EMYA community as the recipient of the 2018 European Museum of the Year Award.

Exhibitions and Youth-Led Initiatives

In June, the War Childhood Museum participated in the exhibition Interrupted Childhood at the library of Rondine Cittadella della Pace in Italy as part of YouTopic Fest 2026. Developed in collaboration with Rondine International Peace Lab, the exhibition brought together personal objects, testimonies, and stories from people who experienced war, alongside contributions from participants in Rondine’s international peace education programs. 

In June, we also featured Handle With Care, an international travelling exhibition developed as part of the Creative Europe-funded TexTALES project. The exhibition explores migration, identity, and belonging through fashion and personal stories and was shaped through a mentorship process facilitated by the War Childhood Museum.

Through the “Furaj mir” (“Live Peace”) program, young people continued to create community-based exhibitions exploring peace, identity, and belonging.

In Zenica, participants from Zenica and Foča opened the exhibition “Friendship Knows No Borders,” presenting the results of months of collaboration exploring what connects people despite distance, differences, and divisions.

In Sarajevo, young people from Sarajevo and East Sarajevo presented the exhibition “What If the Border Is Within You?”, examining how administrative divisions shape everyday life while highlighting the ways young people overcome them through cooperation and shared experiences.

The month concluded with the final gathering of the Furaj mir program in Konjic, where participants reunited to celebrate a year and a half of learning, research, travel, creative work, and friendships built across communities.

Public Engagement and Awareness

June also provided opportunities to connect the Museum’s collection with important international conversations.

To mark the first-ever United Nations Peacebuilding Week, we shared reflections from participants in PEACESTORY, a project supported by the United Nations Peacebuilding Fund, highlighting how personal storytelling contributes to peacebuilding processes. You can take a look here and here. 

On World Refugee Day, we drew attention to children’s experiences of displacement by sharing a story from the Museum’s collection, reminding audiences that for millions of children around the world, leaving home is not a choice but a consequence of war and violence.

As the world followed the FIFA Club World Cup, we also shared a story from our collection exploring what football meant to one child before—and during—war, illustrating how everyday childhood passions persist even in times of conflict.

Media Mentions

The War Childhood Museum continued to receive attention in regional media throughout June. Below is a selection of coverage from the past month:

• War Childhood Museum Receives Regional Award for the “Furaj mir” Program (BOSNIAN)
• Handle With Care: International Travelling Exhibition on Migration, Identity, and Belonging (BOSNIAN)

Today, almost 90 years after the war began, these testimonies are becoming increasingly rare. Through interviews, research, exhibitions, and public programs, the Museum helps ensure that these stories remain part of public memory and contribute to broader conversations about children’s war experiences.

Collecting Stories Nearly 90 Years Ago

Working with witnesses to World War II is increasingly challenging, as the number of living witnesses dwindles each year. War Childhood Museum Ukraine currently has 59 stories related to World War II in its collection.

“We want to preserve the childhood experiences of people who survived World War II, because there are very few witnesses left. From our archive, we learned that even after more than 80 years, for many respondents this is still the first time they have spoken publicly about their childhood during the war,” says Svitlana Osipchuk, WCM Ukraine Program Director.

These interviews are not only a way to preserve individual memories, but also an opportunity to better understand how children experienced the war beyond the confines of military events and official narratives. “Oral testimonies allow us to communicate with people who never intended to document their memories, never kept diaries or wrote memoirs. While it is still possible to interview living witnesses, it is important to do so in a way that the picture we reconstruct through testimonies becomes more complete,” explains researcher Oleksandra Domorosla.

Between Memory and History

Working with these stories requires researchers to consider not only what happened, but also how people remember, interpret and give meaning to events many decades later.

“We collect oral testimonies not just to verify historical facts. We record them to understand how people themselves processed their experiences throughout their lives. When we tell our stories, we create a narrative that helps us understand what happened to us,” says Osipchuk.

These testimonies complement archival documents and official records, drawing attention to experiences that are often absent from institutional collections. They provide insights into everyday life during the war and illuminate aspects of childhood that have historically received little attention.

“Testimonies help researchers go beyond what can be found in archives and official records. They reveal everyday experiences, survival strategies, and aspects of childhood that have often been ignored or excluded from dominant narratives about the war,” says Domorosla.

Sharing stories with the public

Collecting stories is only one part of WCM Ukraine’s work. The team is also exploring ways to present these experiences through exhibitions, educational events, and public programs that make personal stories accessible to a wider audience.

“One of every museum’s functions is to provide a broader perspective on events and experiences. Exhibitions and public programs help to place individual stories in a broader historical context, while ensuring the visibility of children’s experiences,” says Osipchuk.

In 2025, the exhibition “War Childhood: Experiences of World War II” was held in Lviv, in which the Museum team demonstrated how personal testimonies and objects can help visitors get acquainted with the experiences of children who survived World War II. By bringing individual stories into public spaces, the Museum creates opportunities for dialogue between generations and encourages reflection on how war shapes childhood, both in the past and today.

“By telling stories about childhood during World War II, we not only acknowledge this experience, but also observe its long-term impact on our identity and memory. This evidence is valuable material for understanding both the past and the present,” adds Domorosla.

Testimonies from World War II occupy a special place in the War Childhood Museum Ukraine’s collection. While they document a conflict that ended almost 80 years ago, they also offer valuable perspectives on the long-term impact of war on children’s lives and on how society remembers and interprets a traumatic past.

“Wars end, but the experience of growing up during war stays with people for the rest of their lives,” says Domorosła. “The emotions described by witnesses of World War II often resonate with the experiences of children experiencing war today.”

As opportunities to communicate with witnesses become increasingly rare, the work of collecting, preserving, and developing these stories becomes essential. Through this work, the Museum helps to bring children’s experiences to light and use them as a source for understanding the present.

“The preservation of this historical perspective is extremely important. “Museums help society see itself through time, connecting past and present experiences, rather than allowing them to disappear from public memory,” emphasizes Osipchuk.

Around the Lamp

In the early mornings, they would gather together to embroider. The whole corner was bustling with young girls. Some embroidered pillowcases, some towels for themselves. They also used to spin. They would sit around the lamp and embroider.

The boys would come and stir up some mischief. They didn’t embroider; they would come from the hamlet to court the girls.

Many used to gather. I didn’t participate, I didn’t do embroidery. How old was I then? This was my older sister. 

Hanna, b. 1938 

Vaskivtsi, Chernihiv region