Perpetual Peace Almost a hundred years after Hobbes and Spinoza, Immanuel Kant  proposed a fundamentally different justification for the nature of social relations. Kant’s philosophy—with its emphasis on moral duty, free will, and universal ethical values—clearly aligns more closely with the worldview of today’s volunteer movement and was entirely incomparable with the views of his contemporaries, as well as their successors a couple of centuries ahead.   Kant’s categorical imperative demands that one act only according to a maxim that one would will to become a universal law. In Kantian terms, the principle "the end justifies the means" is a false and perverted approach. One cannot know or influence the thing-in-itself through magical manipulations, but one can approach its understanding by following the logic of universals that reveal themselves to our perception in the transformations of the thing-for-us. In other words, the longer and more attentively we study and examine something in accordance with the universal laws of the universe, the more likely previously unknown aspects of it will be revealed to us.   Altruism, in Kant’s view, is not an emotion or “kind disposition” but the result of the operation of the moral law within a rational being. The only thing that makes an action moral is the motive to act out of duty: “Act only according to that maxim whereby you can at the same time will that it should become a universal law of nature.”   If I act not out of interest, nor sympathy, but because the moral law demands it, then I am obligated to respect the freedom and dignity of another. This is altruism as a demand of reason rather than of feeling—a logical consequence of moral autonomy. If I recognize myself as a bearer of the moral law, I cannot but recognize the other as equal to me, even if I feel no sympathy toward them.   Kant emphasized the importance of free will in moral choice, for every act of volition demonstrates the autonomy of the individual and their ability to independently determine their actions based on moral values.   Did Kant recognize that a person might disregard the moral law?   Yes, he did. Since a person is endowed with free will, they may choose to ignore it. In such cases, the person does not cease to be human, but becomes a slave to animal impulses and a socially destructive element.   Kantian universality of moral principles directs all human action toward the common good.   The movement toward "Perpetual Peace" presupposes the active participation of all members of society in its life. Interpreting Kant’s reasoning in a modern vein, we might say that volunteers are agents of social responsibility, for they consciously and freely assume obligations to care for the lives of others and for the needs of society as a whole.   From the founding of the European Union until quite recently, its liberal and inclusive order could rightly be called Kantian. Unfortunately, the Kantian understanding of social relations and the conditions of personal existence in the world does not exhaust the short intellectual history of Europe. Perpetual Slavery A younger contemporary of Kant, Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel —speaking from the lofty heights of Absolute Reason, accompanied by his sidekick the World Spirit—developed the dialectic of master and slave. Within Hegel’s dialectical system, freedom is possible only through the existence of slavery, and it is the slave, through rebellion and eventual subjugation of the master, who can attain it.   During this thrilling and seemingly eternal process, the slave acquires experience, useful skills, and forges a hardened character—so that at the right moment, prompted by the World Spirit under the guidance of Absolute Reason, he may socially bring down his master. However, this can only happen if the master has long subjected the slave to all manner of humiliation and abuse—otherwise, there is no dialectical payoff.   So what is the result of this prolonged head-butting between master and slave?   According to Hegel, we get the noumenon—the essence of the phenomenon—that becomes accessible to perception through dialectical transformation.   For comparison, in Kant, the noumenon—the thing-in-itself—is inaccessible to perception; only phenomena, things given in sensory experience, can be known. And even to know them, one must work incredibly hard for a long time.   But behold: Hegelian dialectics works a miracle. From social conflict, we leap to a higher level of historical development. The master-thesis oppresses the slave-antithesis, the latter strikes back—and voilà, we have societal progress-synthesis!   And so it continues—the contradictions of the previous era are resolved (only to make way for new ones), quantity transforms into quality, thought and being waltz toward each other in dialectical self-movement, evolution from the simple to the complex gathers momentum, and negation negates negation so completely that only fluff and feathers remain of the latter.   The automatism and all-encompassing pretensions of Hegel’s absolute idealism turn his system into a convenient blueprint for totalitarian concepts, ranging from esotericism to crudely mechanistic ideologies. A core feature of such ideologies is the denial of individual free will and the predetermination of natural processes. It is no coincidence that the most inhumane regimes of the 20th century eagerly borrowed from Hegel’s postulates. One such borrowing is Karl Heinrich Marx’s totalitarian doctrine of class struggle. There is nothing even remotely individual here. Puppets from the exploited class fight for better conditions of existence with puppets from the exploiting class under the command of a biblically remote and, as always, unforgiving economic Jehovah.   Having borrowed Hegel’s dialectics, Marx inverted its central thesis: “spirit creates matter through logic” became “matter creates spirit through labor.” And perhaps he took his own joke a bit too seriously—so seriously, in fact, that he turned it into a subversive ideology with “economic” justification.   “The ideal is the material,” “history is a material process unfolding through contradictions between productive forces and relations,” “the proletariat is the social class bearing the universal interest through which history cancels itself”—all these grotesque theses were meant to justify the destruction of the bourgeoisie, the triumph of the proletariat, and the birth of a “new man” from the womb of class struggle. Master and Slave, is it not?   Marx, without hesitation, crosses out all the foundations of global anthropology, for he is dealing with a “new human,” whose “human nature” is altogether different from that of the rest of humanity.   So how can we recognize the proletarian, according to Marx?   For the proletarian, there is no moral law—no laws at all, really—for capital has destroyed morality through the structure of productive relations. His class makes choices on his behalf.   The proletarian cannot possess free will, for in a class-based society, freedom is merely an “illusion and a form of alienation.”   The proletarian has no need to think or be tempted by bourgeois ideas, for all ideas are products of material relations, and therefore there is no universal morality—only ideology serving a particular class.   As for individual social action by the proletarian, it is groundless—for social activity is, by definition, manifested by the proletariat as a mass, inspired by a single goal in a revolutionary impulse to break its chains. And only afterward, when “we build our new life: those who were nothing will become everything,” will come the voluntary labor days, the labor camps, and all the other horrific forms of communist “volunteering”…   Thus, the proletarian is the man of the future. But what of the class traits of the representatives of capital—the “bourgeoisie”?   In The Communist Manifesto, Marx and Engels acknowledge the revolutionary role of the bourgeoisie in overthrowing feudalism, enabling scientific and technological progress, and constructing the global economic market—all driven by class interest and a purely limitless lust for profit.   Having triumphed in economic (and other) battles over the previously dominant class, the bourgeoisie immediately becomes reactionary. From that moment, its existential task is to defend itself against the proletariat—the new revolutionary force that capital itself has begotten.   This new class messiah brings his own testament, denying the last. As is known, in the Abrahamic tradition, each successive messiah reinterprets the moth-eaten heritage of predecessors, having received a mandate from Jehovah.   And since capital consciously hinders historical progress in its effort to preserve the wealth it plundered through proletarian labor, it must be punished for its anti-historical stubbornness… And so the cycle repeats.   The next step in our exploration of the anthropology of volunteering from a philosophical point of view shall be the 20th century—with its darkness and its rays of light. Artur Vsevolozhskyi

The word "volunteer" entered the European vocabulary at the turn of the 16th and 17th centuries. It referred to someone who joined military service voluntarily, often at their own expense. Thus, from the outset, the concept embodied both free choice and struggle. Over time, the military aspect faded, and the term began to apply to those who, by their own initiative, engaged in socially useful causes. Today, volunteering is mostly understood as a form of humanitarian activity aimed at addressing various deficiencies that, for various reasons, state institutions are unable to handle effectively. At the same time, it is important to note the political suspicion that the state often casts on volunteering as an anarchic force that competes with its authority and undermines its claim to absolute sovereignty. The mere presence of volunteers is a tacit admission of the state’s functional failure. In authoritarian or totalitarian systems, a volunteer is always a potential enemy. For example, in today’s Russian Federation, volunteers are pressured to swear allegiance to the regime and publicly praise its militarist policies and their chief architect. Yet this is still a transitional model of denial. In more rigid totalitarian regimes — such as the Soviet Union or the Third Reich — any attempt at independent volunteering was subject to unconditional repression. Following the declaration of independence, throughout the lethargic civic slumber imposed by post-Soviet elites, Ukrainians were not particularly known for charitable initiative. And such a political strategy by the ruling class appeared more than justifiable — in their eyes. For any kind of civic engagement was perceived as a threat to their parasitic enjoyment of a land that had somehow, by an incomprehensible historical accident, fallen to them as pasture. The ruling elite’s strategic slogan became “Maintaining stability.” Because to preserve the comfort of this comprador governance, it was necessary to lull any nascent stirrings of public agency. And for quite a long time, this policy largely succeeded — so much so that a presidential candidate could publicly refer to democratic activists as “Them bloody goats, always stickin’ their noses in, won’t let honest folk get on with the job” — a phrase echoing rural populist contempt for civic initiative, mimicking low-register speech to signal class-based scorn. And the public, by and large, accepted it. The “managers” managed, and the citizens quietly tended to their own affairs on the small slices of public life left to them by the authorities. The relationship between state and citizen could be described by a crude proportion: you don’t touch us, and we won’t bother you — even as stagnation deepened and inter-clan struggles escalated the political crisis and ideologically fractured society. According to the World Giving Index for 2013, Ukraine ranked a mere 103rd out of 135 countries. Typically, such a low rating is explained by researchers as a result of insufficiently dense social capital among the populations of colonial or post-colonial societies — meaning the lack of horizontal ties between people that would allow them to act toward a common goal. However, the well-known Ukrainian proverb “My house is on the edge” — which supposedly captures the national character — actually reflects a cultural-historical format in which an oppressed population defends its consciousness and way of life from foreign intrusion, rather than simply revealing a deficit of social capital. Contrary to the implications of that index, the very next year — after we became aware of our 103rd-place rank — Ukrainians suddenly shot up to nearly the top of the list. So it seems the mechanism of social mobilization works quite differently. In a country gripped by political distrust, where elections often feel more like an exchange of mutual suspicions, volunteering becomes a way to reclaim agency — even if not through the ballot box, but by distributing food packages, caring for people with disabilities, or combating gender-based violence. It does not emerge as an extension of any political program, but rather as politics without institutions, filling the void where official politics has failed. During times of civil trial, activist consciousness — embodied in the volunteer movement — reaches its peak. Notably, in independent Ukraine, we have seen three powerful waves of civic activism: in 2004, 2013–2014, and again in 2022… Each of these waves, in one way or another, was triggered by a deep sense of existential threat to the national community. The Orange Revolution was ignited by election fraud and further anti-state actions by part of the ruling elite. The crime committed by Moscow’s proxies — violating the foundational right of citizens in a democratic state to choose the guarantor of their constitution — shocked many. And the response was a broad realization that not only private well-being, but also individual political engagement, shapes the quality of life around us. The Revolution of Dignity was sparked by the violent suppression of students protesting the government’s Kremlin-serving decision to abandon a European path. And the subsequent tragic events only reinforced the collective resolve to resist hostile forces and support one another. Occupation, destruction of cities and villages, genocide... From that point on, the Ukrainian volunteer movement evolved into a powerful, multi-purpose sector encompassing all facets of national life — from defense logistics to elderly care. Volunteering has become a prototype of an ideal state, precisely because it functions within the boundaries of a deeply imperfect one. However, daily tragedies, grief, and tears can easily mutate into a sense of helplessness and futility. After every surge of enthusiasm, there inevitably comes a drop in activity — say mental health professionals. Perhaps for a nation as unstable as ours, the contrast between mass mobilization and sweeping apathy feels especially sharp. Yet this is far from a uniquely Ukrainian phenomenon. Every national community — even small social groups — experience something similar. After all, we are one biological species, and the forms of our socialization differ only stylistically. Still, what motivates a volunteer to offer their time, energy, or money — often to abstract causes or strangers? Where does social altruism come from? Some evolutionary biologists suggest that intra-group altruism is an instinctive reaction of a social animal to external threats. For instance, an attack by a predator or a natural disaster provokes altruistic behavior toward members of its pride, herd, or swarm. This is what we will explore next time. Artur Vsevolozhskyi

Oleksiy Filimonov 29.07.1980 – 02.12.2024   Oleksiy was born in the gentle summer of 1980. He was a child like any other – bringing joy to his family and loved ones. Yet, he had one remarkable trait: from a young age, he had a special sensitivity to the world of beauty and living things – he found joy in every little blade of grass.   He studied at Kharkiv School No. 35 and was a good student. Oleksiy read a lot, wrote poetry, and was passionate about chess – often winning in tournaments. After finishing school, Oleksii enrolled in a technical college majoring in Repair and Maintenance of Medical Equipment. However, his creative nature drew him toward more natural and tactile pursuits. At different times, Oleksiy worked as a shoemaker, crafted custom furniture, and engaged in painting and other hands-on work that called for a sense of aesthetics.   His last civilian job was with the support service of the NGO "Volunteer-68". Even in this emotionally demanding role, Oleksiy proved to be a compassionate and responsible person.  Oleksiy joined the Armed Forces in 2024 and served in the 47th Separate Mechanized Brigade "Magura", in the 2nd Engineer-Sapper Unit.   Oleksiy Serhiiovych was killed in action in the Kursk region of Russian Federation on December 2, 2024. He left behind a grieving daughter, brother, and mother.   Glory Eternal!

The "Dignity and Safety: Focused Assistance"  project has been ongoing since June 2024. In both concept and structure, it continues the "Dignity and Safety"  initiative, which was implemented by our organization with funding from the Women’s Peace and Humanitarian Fund (WPHF) from June 15, 2023, to November 30, 2023. However, unlike the previous version, this new phase includes an emergency response function to address the challenges of wartime.   The Women's Peace and Humanitarian Fund (WPHF) funds international programs dedicated to advocating for women's rights. The fund primarily partners with UN Women, as well as national governments and local humanitarian organizations, especially those led by women. Its primary focus is on funding programs aimed at protecting the rights of women who have been marginalized due to underdeveloped social institutions, various crises, and conflicts that disproportionately affect women. For instance, in the fall of 2024, as hostilities escalated, prompting the evacuation of residents from Vovchansk and Kupiansk districts, the Women's Peace and Humanitarian Fund urgently allocated funds for the evacuation of civilians. The new project for targeted humanitarian assistance in Kharkiv, currently implemented by the NGO "CNGD 'Volunteer-68' ," is also funded by the Women's Peace and Humanitarian Fund . Specifically, it provides food and hygiene kits for elderly women and women with disabilities in Kharkiv. Moreover, the project "Dignity and Security: Focused Assistance" extends to displaced women in the same category, highlighting the urgency of the response. The program clearly defines its target groups: Elderly women; Women caring for relatives with disabilities; Internally displaced women with disabilities (25+); Internally displaced women with children. Humanitarian Mission and Its Effectiveness In adherence to the Sphere humanitarian standards , our center has significantly intensified its assistance to vulnerable populations in Kharkiv. However, we have been engaged in this work since the early days of the war, beyond the scope of externally funded projects. During the implementation of the "Dignity and Security" project, we provided assistance to over 1,400 beneficiaries. Based on direct experience and periodic telephone surveys, we concluded that it is essential to categorize the list of aid recipients to optimize the provision of assistance. For some, humanitarian aid is a matter of survival, while for others, it is less critical. Awareness of this distinction allows us to allocate limited resources efficiently, ensuring that the most in-need individuals receive comprehensive support. This approach significantly simplifies logistics while enhancing the overall effectiveness of aid distribution. Project Results Food and Humanitarian Aid 2,541 food packages were distributed to 2,041 individuals. 902 hygiene kits were provided, including 505 dignity kits for women. 100 individuals received personal rehabilitation aids (canes, walkers, commode chairs, etc.). 80 families received special blackout emergency kits (flashlights, power banks, blankets). Evacuation and Transportation Support 327 people were evacuated from dangerous zones or transported within social care programs. Psychological Support and Case Management 559 individuals received consultations, psychological assistance, and case management services. Through personalized support and referrals to relevant services, affected individuals were able to access necessary aid and gain confidence in ongoing support. Psychological Support and Case Management 559 individuals received consultations, psychological assistance, and case management services. Through personalized support and referrals to relevant services, affected individuals were able to access necessary aid and gain confidence in ongoing support. Inclusivity and Improved Shelter Conditions Three ramps were installed in Kharkiv: two in shelters to improve living conditions and one at the Kharkiv-Pasazhyrskyi railway station to enhance accessibility for persons with disabilities. A shelter for people with reduced mobility was winterized, ensuring safe conditions during cold periods. Needs Assessment and Transparency in Assistance Over 500 household surveys were conducted to assess current needs and verify beneficiary selection. We continued compiling lists of vulnerable categories requiring priority assistance, refining mechanisms for humanitarian aid distribution. We view the implementation of these projects as a successful example of international financial institutions supporting local initiatives in crisis situations. Would you like to join us  in making a direct impact? Your support can transform lives.

The training center of the Volunteer-68 NGO once again hosted a training session for first responders. This time, the lecture and practical exercises were devoted to stopping bleeding in two different ways, namely by applying tourniquets and by tamponading wounds. In the theoretical part, lecturer Mykhailo Morgun focused on the safety and logic of first aid, touching on its legal aspects. But the main thing that our trainers tried to convey was the algorithm and protocol of actions of someone who can potentially stop the bleeding of a victim. How to recognize the signs of bleeding? Where and in what way, depending on the nature and intensity of the bleeding, can certain stopping techniques be applied? The trainers drew our attention to these fundamental questions, presented in various situational scenarios, throughout the six hours of training. Mykhailo Morgun and his assistants from the Vostok Tactical Medicine Center demonstrated the rules of applying different types of tourniquets in practical classes, and after several attempts our colleagues have mastered this art. As for tamponade, we more or less coped with this challenge, although training on dummies is naturally different from the cruel reality.    This was just one of the modules of premedical training and we sincerely thank the rescuers from the Tactical Medicine Center “East” for their professional presentation of the difficult material.

Employees of the NGO “Center for Humanitarian Aid ‘Volunteer-68’ constantly face unexpected psychological circumstances, logistical crises, emotional problems, and sometimes situations that pose a threat to their lives and the lives of their wards. That is why our organization periodically conducts trainings that are close to our activities and are designed to expand experience or introduce new ones. Trainings aimed at personal growth and psychological relief stand out in this line. For example, in order to optimize interaction between all colleagues and various departments of the NGO “Volunteer-68”, a training was held to stimulate intuitive approaches to creative solutions, teamwork and pairwise dialogic cooperation in a playful way. The event was focused on the problem of harmonizing individual actions with a collective goal and mutual trust between the players. In the format of mime theater, the participants tried to convey the mimic message set by the coach as accurately as possible through the chain of players. The result was very pleasing to everyone present and at the same time clearly demonstrated that improper perception of information leads to critical distortion. The mise en scène, which reproduced the interaction between the manager and the managed, showed that it can be considered adequate only when the “manager” has a strategy and his instructions are clear, and the “executor” perceives them carefully. The scenarios involving collective efforts to achieve a result illustrated the need to invent and test appropriate technology, and the team competitions revealed the need for individual initiative and sometimes playing on the verge of a foul to achieve victory. Improving understanding and empathy among colleagues is key for humanitarian organizations, as understanding and empathy are key tools in their interactions with those they are trying to help.

Among the priority areas of social rehabilitation work carried out by the NGO "Volunteer - 68", one occupies a special place. This is a project called “60+Active”, which is unique in its versatility. The result of its implementation should be the development of a therapeutic space of trust and peace for one of the most affected segments of our country. The essence of the project is to create and maintain a social platform for women over the age of sixty. These are not just elderly women, but women who have been uprooted from their usual environment, whose homes have been destroyed and whose property has been lost. These are women who have been under occupation for a long time, who have suffered under enemy shelling, who have lost their loved ones. These women are internally displaced persons (IDPs). How do we try to maintain this space? The project consists of several rehabilitation practices that are equivalent in impact, although they differ in form, based on the gender and age of the participants. These are traditional get-togethers with tea and coffee and goodies, where women can communicate naturally with each other and the organizer, usually a professional psychologist, who naturally guides the communication in the most favorable and non-conflictive direction. Such an event can be combined with a joint screening of classic Ukrainian films, which performs a certain transcendental function - mentally returning women to their young, carefree years. Workshops are another form of psychological rehabilitation for women. As a rule, they are led by craftswomen who are skilled in handicrafts or by someone from among the project participants who have mastered some simple art that takes up their hands and does not interfere with communication. Among such events, for example, were master classes on making rag dolls, creating various variations of origami and toy animals from woolen threads, and similar activities that are not tiring and promote relaxation. The next way we organize our activities in line with the 60+Active project is to hold lectures and psychological trainings. This is done by invited specialists. For example, lectures on gender-based violence (GBV) and strategies to combat it, psychological relief trainings, as well as manual and hypnotherapy sessions are conducted by a certified specialist, Kharkiv psychologist Natalia Korotia. How is the 60+Active project being physically implemented? There are two options here. Either our employees bring IDP women from the places of compact settlement (CCs) to the training center of the NGO “Volunteer-68” and the event takes place at our center. Or we bring lecturers or trainers and everything necessary for the event directly to the place where the 60+Active participants are staying. “60+Active” is a way for older IDP women to adapt and restore their vitality and improve their emotional state as soon as possible. This project is not a one-time event, its effectiveness lies primarily in its ongoing nature, regularity of meetings and involvement of the widest possible range of participants. And we, in turn, will continue to think about diversifying and intensifying this initiative of the NGO “Volunteer-68”.

This report presents the results of a survey conducted among the beneficiaries of the "Volunteer - 68" Humanitarian Aid Center to determine their socio-demographic characteristics and current needs. The survey covered 555 respondents, including women with disabilities, people with limited mobility, and those who care for bedridden patients or people with disabilities. The study is based on data collected from September 17 to November 28, 2024 , and includes an analysis of the information received through four focus groups. The report provides an in-depth analysis of the life challenges, needs, and level of social support required by these groups.

At our initiative, in early 2023, a shelter for people with limited mobility and disabilities was set up in a Kharkiv dormitory. The project was to be implemented within the framework of the program “Warming centers and evacuation: providing assistance to the affected population of Ukraine” with the support of the Diakonie Katastrophenhilfe. The work was carried out with the financial participation of the Vostok SOS Charitable Foundation. The partners allocated over UAH 1,000,000 to purchase the necessary materials and equipment. Thus, the first transit shelter for vulnerable people with physical disabilities was to appear in Kharkiv. And on July 26, 2023, the Bez Boundaries shelter was opened. The shelter is designed to accommodate 34 people at a time. The rooms have all the necessary equipment and functional beds. Medical and psychological assistance will be provided around the clock. The premises are located on the ground floor and have a separate entrance with a ramp. There are no steps or thresholds - all accessibility requirements for people in wheelchairs or with reduced mobility have been taken into account. Shelter will host evacuees from the dangerous areas of Kharkiv, Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts around the clock. It is expected that they will be able to stay here for up to a month while the shelter staff looks for a place for them to live permanently. During this time, lawyers will provide free legal aid to the victims, for example, if they have lost their documents as a result of the war or have problems with pension payments due to prolonged stay in the occupied territory. Head of the Humanitarian Aid Center “Volunteer - 68” Galina Kharlamova It's been almost a year and a half since the Bez Boundaries shelter opened its doors. “Some people stay here for two or three days, others for a month, depending on the situation. On average, it is about two weeks. We restore documents and conduct medical examinations. Afterwards, the evacuees are sent to their relatives or to safe places in Ukraine or Europe, where they can be well taken care of,” says the head of the Humanitarian Aid Center. “Volunteer - 68” Halyna Kharlamova. “We have twelve people working in three shifts, as well as drivers and administrators,” Halyna continues, ”There are caregivers on each shift who provide sanitary and hygienic services. There is a paramedic and a nurse who monitor people's condition. If necessary, a doctor comes to see them.” Even in such bad times, a good initiative with the right approach overcomes hopelessness and despair, giving hope for the future. As of today, the No Borders shelter has helped about three hundred people.

Volunteers in Ukraine are a large and friendly family, where everyone is ready to lend a shoulder to their fellow man without hesitation. Joint evacuations from war zones, distribution and delivery of humanitarian aid, joint participation in tenders... And many, many more areas of collective work for the benefit of affected or threatened people. Cooperation is a practical ideology of volunteering. The CO Charitable Foundation “ East SOS ” has been supporting the activities of our organization for the second year. More than a year ago, we opened the Bez Mezh shelter together. This is a temporary shelter where we take in IDPs who have lost their mobility and people with disabilities who need round-the-clock care. Here, this category of the most vulnerable people has the opportunity to recover a little from the hardships of wartime. And, of course, to receive indispensable help. Thanks to the timely funding of the charity organization, East SOS managed to repair the roof of a new rehabilitation center with a long-term shelter for people with disabilities. Here, people will be able to survive the winter in comfortable and safe conditions, where they will be properly cared for. We sincerely thank our fellow volunteers for their help. Together we will overcome any obstacles.

Key figures and funding