This week, UNUN organised the Kherson–Umeå workshop at Orange Architects: a working session built around two perspectives on the future of Kherson — bottom-up (local/regional) and top-down (national/international). The central question was not how to rebuild first, but why Kherson matters now and why its future matters.

The workshop was guided by Patrick Meijers (UNUN+Orange Architects), Pavlo Gorokhovskyi (UNUN+CRa), Nazar Gresko (UNUN+PosadMaxwan), and Dmytro Borodin (Orange Architects), and brought together delegations from Kherson and Umeå, including deputy mayor Anders Ågren and Vitalii Bielobrov.

What emerged was sharp and clear: Kherson is not just a city to repair. It is the one place in Ukraine where river, steppe, waterfront, agriculture, logistics, energy transition and Ukrainian identity come together in one position. That combination gives Kherson the potential to become not only a better city for everyday life, but also a strategic frontrunner for Ukraine’s sustainable future.

We are grateful to Umeå, Malin Lagervall and especially to Kherson for their trust in UNUN to organise and guide this workshop.

After the workshop, the delegation was received by the Municipality of Rotterdam, including Jon Meijer and Mattijs van Ruijven.