Rebuild Ukraine Story Lab 2026

The Rebuild Ukraine Ambassadors Programme empowers young Europeans to shape a resilient and sustainable path for Ukraine’s reconstruction. Grounded in civic engagement, expert guidance, and collaborative policy development, the programme ensures youth-driven perspectives are central to conversations about Ukraine’s future. For the 2026 edition of the programme, 30 participants have taken the role of ambassadors. However, this Story Lab series is open to everyone!

The Rebuild Ukraine Story Lab is a series of online workshops with experts designed to help young people understand the current situation in Ukraine and the outlook for the nation’s reconstruction. The Story Lab, part of our Rebuild Ukraine Ambassadors programme, invites all young people to learn about and discuss the challenges and opportunities that Ukraine will face in the coming years, as it seeks a vision for rebuilding.

Three 60-minute online workshops will introduce participants to the current structural challenges faced by Ukraine, various ways to communicate about conflict, and how local initiatives can contribute to a national reconstruction effort. Sessions can be attended as standalone workshops, or as a series of three.

About the Speakers

Yuliya Zemlytska is a Principal Infrastructure Specialist with European Bank for Reconstruction and Development based in London, where she delivers EBRD’s policy dialogue initiatives and technical cooperation projects aimed at improving infrastructure regulation frameworks across the Bank’s countries of operation. Her work strongly focuses on reform of Ukraine’s critical infrastructure and energy state-owned companies. Before EBRD she spent 10 years developing and implementing policy and social impact programs with World Bank, EU, Ukrainian government and several non-profits. Originally trained as a lawyer, Yuliya holds an LL.M. in Public International Law from Leiden University and a Masters in Public Policy from National University of Singapore.

Olena Yermakova previously served as Head of Research and Partnerships at KI Insights, a think tank at the Kyiv Independent media, where she also co-hosted the Ukraine Insights podcast. She is now Partnerships Liaison for Ukraine’s Ministry of Defence working on international partnerships. She is a Ph.D. candidate in political science at Jagiellonian University in Kraków. She has held several prestigious research fellowships, including a Marie Skłodowska-Curie fellowship in a UCL-led international research consortium and a visiting fellowship at IWM Vienna. Beyond academia, Olena has experience in inclusive peacemaking in Donbas with the Geneva-based HD Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue, in communications for a post-Maidan government, and has served two terms as a Board Member of the European Youth Parliament Ukraine. Her writing has appeared in a range of academic and non-academic publications, including UCL Press, the Kyiv Independent, New Eastern Europe, and Eurozine, among others. Olena holds degrees from the College of Europe and Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv.

The Rebuild Ukraine Story Lab is part of the Rebuild Ukraine Ambassadors Programme which is co-funded by the European Union, the German Foreign Office, and the E.ON Foundation.