Winners of the first Responsibility Award 2021

On January 22, the Day of Unity of Ukraine, the ceremony of awarding the winners of the first Responsibility Award 2021 was carried out by the Bohdan Hawrylyshyn Family Foundation. Congratulations to all involved!

Three months ago, at the celebration of the first All-Ukrainian Human Responsibility Day on October 19, the Bohdan Hawrylyshyn Family Foundation announced the launch of the annual Responsibility Award. And this Saturday the names of the winning organizations became known. During this time, a lot has happened: we have accepted applications for the award, we have looked forward to the results of voting on the site, and then – and the results of the evaluation of finalists from the expert jury. It is symbolic that the awarding of the winners took place on January 22, the Day of the Unity of Ukraine. The event combined the values ​​of unity and responsibility as fundamental and driving for Ukrainian society.

How was the voting held?

This year the Award was presented for the first time. At the semifinal stage, a public vote was held for 23 participating organizations. One vote was taken from one person, and duplication was canceled. It is gratifying that the participants took a very responsible approach to the information campaign, actively disseminated information about it and involved their communities in the voting. Therefore, 15 organizations with the highest rating made it to the finals. Then, the evaluation passed to the jury, each of which had to choose its three winners according to certain criteria: responsibility, sustainability, transparency, influence, political impartiality, innovation, inclusiveness. The jury’s assessments did not add up to the results of the previous stage. Given the different resource capacity of organizations to conduct active information campaigns and attract large audiences, voting on the site was not a decisive factor in selecting winners, but was a condition for reaching the finals of the Award.

The set of the expert jury can be found on the website of the Award: https://responsibility-award.com/jury/.

Winner of the 1st prize – public organization “Come back alive”

“It’s very unexpected, but, on the other hand, it’s expected for us as an organization. The organization, which in 2014 took responsibility for the lives of our servicemen, has taken the responsibility to accumulate people who want to help. In 2022, this organization has become an organization that feels responsible for helping the army; it feels responsible for veterans, for their lives after their return and helps them; it is also responsible for change in our country. It is an incredible pleasure to be here to receive this award on behalf of the Foundation. Thank you!” – says Victoria Dvoretska, the head of the veterans’ department.

NGO “Come Back Alive” received a cash prize of UAH 100,000.

Winner of the 2nd prize –  the initiative “Building Ukraine Together”

 “It is important to me that “Building Ukraine Together” began with students from Lviv taking responsibility for rebuilding war-torn houses in Kramatorsk. And, in fact, responsibility has been our value since then… When we applied for this award, I saw how many organizations also consider responsibility important in their work. That is why I am very grateful to the jury, very grateful to the Bohdan Hawrylyshyn Family Foundation and very grateful to all the organizations that build Ukraine every day, based on this fundamental value,” – said Pavlo Pryzhegodsky, a representative of “Building Ukraine Together”.

NGO “Ukrainian Educational Platform” received a cash prize of UAH 50,000.

Winner of the 3rd prize – public organization “Friends of the community of St. Egidius”

“It is very honorable, and we are very grateful to the Bohdan Hawrylyshyn Family Foundation. We are very grateful that we can be here today and that there is such an opportunity to celebrate the Day of Unity, because for the Community of St. Egidius, unity has always been important. The catholicity that begins the way Bohdan Hawrylyshyn lived, starting with the presidents and ending with the Maidan with all the citizens. It has always been important for the community: to be close to the poor, to fight for them, to fight for this city… We are very grateful to you and we ask you: help, dream, act as Bohdan Hawrylyshyn,” – Yurii Lifanse, the head of the St. Egidius Community in Kyiv, shared his emotions.

The NGO “Friends of the Community of St. Egidius” received a cash prize of UAH 25,000.

In addition to the financial award, the winners were presented with a special award – a statuette designed by People’s Artist of Ukraine Oleg Pinchuk. Mr. Oleg is a longtime friend of the Hawrylyshyns family and the Bohdan Hawrylyshyn Family Foundation. Therefore, his participation in the Award is kind of symbolic. He knew Bohdan Hawrylyshyn like no other so he could interpret his words about responsibility, values ​​and youth in the language of art perfectly. The Foundation’s team expresses its sincere gratitude to Oleg Pinchuk for creating this unique award!

The Fedor Shpyg Foundation also awarded the organizations that became the leaders of the public voting with financial prizes in the amount of UAH 15,000.

Each participant of the “Responsibility Award 2021” in their activities is guided by the principles of responsibility and motivation for positive change. “… You should have some clear, decent principles of behavior. You need to choose a certain way for yourself, understand what is important to you and what you want to achieve. You need to have your own vision and clear vision. You have to be honest, tell the truth… You have to be able to inspire others, be able to ignite and mobilize them,” – Bohdan Hawrylyshyn shared the recipe for success. It should be noted that all public organizations that took part in the award are working in this direction, which means that their good deeds will have positive results. So, despite the fact that there are officially three winners of the award, we congratulate all participants! We hope that the Responsibility Award has been a great opportunity for you to talk about your activities, plans, and involve the public in discussing socially important topics.

The event took place in the Recording House of Ukrainian Radio. And a wonderful concert for our guests was presented by the orchestra of folk and popular music of the Ukrainian radio. Sincere thanks to the friends and partners of the Foundation: the Society of Ukrainians in Switzerland, Ukrainian Radio, UA: Social, ISAR Unity, the Fedor Shpyg Foundation and all those who joined the Responsibility Award. Special thanks to the guests of the event who came to support and congratulate the participants.

If you missed the broadcast of the event, you can watch the video here: https://fb.watch/aLBxOM41iy/