The phenomenon of the Ukrainian national minority is well known in Bavaria. Despite the noticeable presence in Landtag, local universities, Bavarian Academy of Sciences, diplomatic offices and other institutions, they are not the most populous minority in the region. Moreover, in the early 2000s there was the Ukrainian school, Technical- Husbandry Institute and University which had the legal acts to offer education to not only Ukrainians but also to people of other nationalities. What opportunities are available to Ukrainians in Bavaria to benefit from favourable conditions and how is the local authority handling the matter of the Ukrainian institutions? The main objective of the research is to identify the main periods of Ukrainian presence in scientific and educational institutions in Bavaria, as well as research their status in the region. Moreover, the support of these institutions to Ukrainian refugees in 2022 will be studied. Examining the Ukrainian refugee situation in Europe, the article will also evaluate the utility of these institutions. As a final point, the study presents the capacity of these institutions to affect the integration of students into society nowadays.

The full-scale war in Ukraine caused the largest refugee crisis in Europe after World War II. Poland was the initial destination for people fleeing the war, causing a rapid influx of several million refugees in just a few weeks. An unprecedented and rapid response of the Polish society in terms of providing assistance to refugees enabled the acceptance of those who decided to stay in Poland Social action that began at the local level and translated into commonly known non-governmental assistance provided the basis and impetus for fostering beneficial connections between Poland and Ukraine, not only on the state level, but especially within the respective populations. The purpose of the article was to explore the forms of assistance offered by the Polish society, the scope of aspects of the refugees’ lives it addressed, and how this was reflected in the mutual perception of Poles and Ukrainians. As a hypothesis, it was assumed that a direct involvement of the Polish society in helping refugees from Ukraine decreased over the course of a year of the full-blown war in Ukraine, with simultaneous high social support for the state’s systemic solutions in this regard. In order to verify the hypothesis, a combination of descriptive, analysis of existing data, comparative and statistical methods were employed.

“Through a green border to paradise”, or a few remarks on the book “Refugees. Illegal crossing of the Polish-Soviet border in 1918–1939” by Serhiy Humenny

This review article is a critical approach to Serhiy Humennes monograph published in the IPN Publishing House (Warszawa 2022, „Monografie” series, vol, 179, p. 166) concerning illegal migrations across the Polish-Soviet border in the Interwar period. In the course of reading, I have come across many errors of both substantive and technical and linguistic nature. I have also revealed a rather peculiar phenomenon of using an almost unchanged text four times for various purposes. On its basis, a masters thesis has been written, defended at the then Jan Długosz Academy in Częstochowa, published in the form of a subject monograph. In the meantime, however, the author slightly modified the content of the typescript and used it as the basis for conferring the degree of doctor of history at the Faculty of History of the Taras Shevchenko National University in Kiev. Once the dissertation has been successfully defended, a book published in Ukrainian has also seen the light of day

Refugees as a challenge for intercultural education

The article presents the author’s concept of the continuum of intercultural relations referred to the cultural differences concerning refugees. This concept is based on the distinguishing of four stages of relationships: narrowly understood tolerance, cognitive interest, intercultural dialogue and cultural symbiosis. The ordering criteria used to distinguish the stages were: the sign of emotions related to the culturally Other, the sociocultural identity of the interacting individuals (especially people from the society that receives refugees), and the presence or absence of direct interaction between an individual representing the receiving society and the refugee. The concept of the continuum is presented against the background of the ideas underlying the emergence and development of the idea of intercultural education in Poland.

After the “Special Law for Ukraine”. Remarks on the Latest Amendments in Light of the Theory of Temporary Protection

The aim of this study is to analyse the envisaged process of phasing out the exceptional provisions of the Polish ‘special law for Ukraine’, introduced in response to the mass influx of war refugees from Ukraine to Poland. As clearly preferred by the Polish legislator, this phase-out is to be achieved through a mass transition from temporary protection to temporary stay permits. The analysis is conducted in light of the theory of temporary protection as formulated in the scholarship. The conclusion is that while transitioning from temporary protection to temporary stay permits is a step in the right direction as regards the legal certainty of status of war refugees, it would be more adequate to permit war refugees to submit asylum applications without the need to effectively give up on their entitlements under the special law.

The War in Ukraine and Humanitarian Aid on The Example of the Regional Branch of the Polish Red Cross in the Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship

The Russian aggression in Ukraine commenced in 2014. During this period, Ukrainians began arriving in the Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship and other regions of Poland, being treated as migrants. However, since February 24, 2022, there has been a substantial increase in the influx of people from Ukraine, predominantly women and children, seeking refuge in Poland, including in the Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship. This region, due to its direct proximity to the Russian Federation (Kaliningrad Oblast), with a border of approximately 200 kilometers, did not attract particular interest from refugees. The aim of this article is to present the involvement of the Warmian-Masurian Regional Branch of the Polish Red Cross (hereinafter: OO PCK) in aiding refugees from Ukraine. The hypothesis posits that this Branch of the Red Cross has been engaged in aid activities for two years; however, in the second year of the full-scale war, this involvement diminished. The basic research problems include questions about the scale of aid to Ukrainian refugees in 2022 and 2023 organized by OO PCK, the forms of aid provided, the number of beneficiaries for each form of aid, and the specific groups of refugees to whom OO PCK directed its financial and material assistance. The results of the study provided answers to the research questions and positively verified the research hypothesis.

Difficult conversations with young people about war

The aim of the article is to analyse the most important challenges faced by parents, guardians, educators, teachers, and psychologists in communicating with Ukrainian youth after the start of the full-scale Russian-Ukrainian war. Selected good practices of educational, pedagogical, and psychological institutions, organisations and scientific research centres in Poland supporting the mental health, well-being and promoting intercultural integration of Ukrainian adolescents residing in Poland were identified. Using individual, semi-structured interviews, barriers and facilitators to communication and integration of Ukrainian teenagers with their Polish peers were also explored. The conducted analysis confirmed the necessity of addressing the topic of war in discussions with young people, considering their psychological needs and perceptual capabilities. Systemic solutions are needed to educate them in the field of information security and intercultural dialogue, and to intensify activities increasing the social inclusion of teenage refugees from Ukraine in Poland.