Hope and Healing Centers, Save Ukraine Foundation

I have dedicated more than 26 years of my life to protecting children’s rights, including serving as Ukraine’s Ombudsman for Children’s Rights from 2014 to 2021. Across all Save Ukraine programs — for orphans, children with disabilities, young children, and vulnerable mothers — especially in our Hope and Healing Centres where rescued children reunite with their families, our mission is to create a true safe space for healing. We surround them with love and care so they can stabilize, breathe again, and begin to overcome trauma and move forward with their lives. We ensure they feel humanity in how they are treated — that they are seen, heard, and valued. More than 70% of our staff are people we once rescued. Sharing this lived experience, they build trust, helping families open up, share their stories, and find the courage to begin again. We are doing everything we can to make these transformations possible, because we believe the future of Ukraine depends on the resilience of the generation we are raising today.

Mykola Kuleba

CEO and co-founder, Save Ukraine

What the judges said

Save Ukraine Foundation, in the Kyiv region, northern Ukraine, operates the ‘Hope and Healing Center’, providing comprehensive psychological and social assistance to Ukrainian children rescued from Russia and from Russian-occupied territories. The judging panel said it was an “impressive application borne of horrendous circumstances offering psychological support to clearly-disturbed children who have been kidnapped and returned” to Ukraine. The judges were impressed by the provision of holistic and bespoke care “ensuring that the children are given the best chance of rehabilitation and reintegration.” Save Ukraine has a large and dedicated team working across its programs. The project team at the Hope and Healing Center includes 14 internally displaced persons rescued by Save Ukraine. In 2025 alone, 216 children and their families who were rescued from temporarily occupied territories and Russia, received rehabilitation and comprehensive support through the project. Since 2022, the Save Ukraine team has rescued more than 1,095 children from temporarily occupied territories and Russia, including 233 orphans.

What the rescued say

I want you to understand what it feels like to leave occupation. It’s like facing a step that’s a meter and a half high. You stand in front of it for a long time, gathering the courage, knowing how hard it will be to climb. And it really is hard. But the moment you make it over—when you finally cross the border into Ukraine—it feels like an enormous weight falls off your shoulders, and for the first time, you feel free.

The thing that surprised me the most when I arrived at the Hope and Healing Center was that I was not abandoned. At every stage of my journey, I kept asking the volunteers: Will someone really take care of me? Will I really have a place to live? Please understand—I had only $100 left. I knew I wouldn’t be able to take care of myself. I was genuinely afraid I would end up on the street.

So you can imagine my surprise when I arrived and was given not just a roof over my head, not some run-down dormitory, but truly decent, dignified conditions. There were people here who had gone through the same experience, people I could talk to and who understood me. And most importantly—they cared.

They offered me clothes, food, and asked if I needed psychological support. Of course, I started seeing a psychologist—because after years in occupation, your mind starts to break under the pressure.

What struck me the most was realizing that I mattered here—that someone needed me.

And this is exactly the truth that doesn’t reach those who remain trapped in occupation. Because every single day, Russian propaganda tells them that Ukraine has abandoned us, that there are “Nazis” here who will harm us. But that is not the reality here. – boy rescued from Donetsk, 20 years old

I was afraid for my children, especially for my sons. Every night was a test — it was frightening to think, and even more frightening to speak our native language.

Everything that had been passed down through generations, everything that was a symbol of our family and our home, had to be hidden just to survive. We learned to live in fear in order to protect the past that means so much to us.

Leaving occupation with a child is a decision you carry inside for a long time. You are constantly weighing the risks — because it’s not only about you, it’s about your children, their safety, their future.

When Save Ukraine helped us leave with my son and reunite with my older children, it felt unreal. Like something we had been waiting for so long had finally happened — but at the same time, I didn’t know how to start over.

In the first days, I was overwhelmed. I didn’t understand how to rebuild my life, where to begin, how to regain stability. What made the difference was that I was not left alone with these questions.

Step by step, I received support — housing, essential things, psychological help. But more than that, there were people from Save Ukraine who stayed by my side, who helped me move forward when I didn’t have the strength myself.

Over time, I found the strength to support others who were going through the same experience. That’s how I became part of the Save Ukraine team.

Today, I continue rebuilding my life with Save Ukraine’s support and searching for my eldest son, who went missing during a combat mission.

This journey is still ongoing. But now I know — I don’t have to go through it alone. – mother and son rescued from Melitopol

The people we support come after experiencing prolonged occupation, violence, loss, and deep psychological trauma. Many have lived for years in isolation, under constant pressure, fear, and uncertainty. They arrive exhausted — emotionally, physically, and mentally — often without documents, resources, or a clear understanding of what comes next. Children show trauma through anxiety, withdrawal, and developmental difficulties. Adults carry responsibility for their families while coping with their own experiences. Many families have been separated, some have lost loved ones, and others are still searching for them. At Save Ukraine, we begin with rescue — bringing people to safety. But what follows is just as important. After rescue, we continue supporting families through care — providing safe shelter, trauma healing, psychological support, medical and physical rehabilitation, humanitarian and financial assistance, and long-term support to help them rebuild their lives. Our goal is not only to stabilize people, but to help them rebuild their lives — restore dignity, regain strength, and move forward. I am originally from the Donetsk region, from the city of Horlivka. In 2014, my family and I were forced to leave and move to Toretsk, near Bakhmut. In early 2023, the organization Save Ukraine evacuated me and my children to a safe place. After completing my rehabilitation at the Center, I was offered a job here. Today, I manage the Center and provide support to women who have experienced events similar to mine. Fourteen internally displaced persons work at our Center, and there are many such employees in our organization.

Yuliia Sydorenko

Head of Family Support Programs, Save Ukraine

The Other 2026 Winners and Finalists

Ockenden International’s five cash prizes recognise and reward innovative projects that deliver evidential self-reliance to refugees and/or displaced people, the defining principle of Ockenden International since its inception as the Ockenden Venture in 1951. The five cash awards are open to projects or programmes focused on Internally Displaced People (IDPs)/refugee self-reliance anywhere in the world. The other seven 2026 open prize contenders (with the other three open winners in italics) are:

The eponymously named Daughters Rising project in Chiang Mai, Thailand empowers at-risk ethnic minority and refugee women and girls from Myanmar and Thailand through education, job training, emergency aid, and independence programs by tackling exploitation and inequality. It helps them find safety, skills, and self-sufficiency to break cycles of vulnerability and lead dignified, self-reliant lives.
Equal Legal Aid, Greece, for its project ‘Access to asylum and strategic legal aid for displaced people in northern Greece’, which the judges agreed was a “solid application providing legal clinics at five locations as well as telephone hotlines. It’s providing an essential service, doing important work for refugees including support for victims of gender violence.” Equal Legal Aid they said has “proven effective” in giving refugees a starting point in dealing with the bureaucratic and social complexities of their new lives in an area with no government support or legal infrastructure. The project, which includes 22 refugee volunteers, has so far helped 3,792 refugees.
Hope Foundation for Women and Children in Bangladesh’s project in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, ‘From Refugee to Health Worker: Building Self-Reliance among Rohingya Girls’ empowers displaced communities through healthcare, education, and training. Its Girls Health Aid Program equips young Rohingya women with medical and leadership skills, fostering self-reliance, employment, and improved community health while reducing dependence on aid.
iACT for its ‘Little Ripples’ project in the country of Chad, central Africa. The 2026 judging panel said it was heartening to see a project from the troubled, remote difficult-to-reach area of eastern Chad. They particularly liked the fact that the project was refugee-led within the refugee camp community – training the mothers to become teachers – while ensuring the camps were on board. They also noted the project’s “joyful approach” and impressive results, particularly in its work with very young children as well as the project’s built-in capacity for scale and empathy-based leadership, with 175 staff and volunteers having so far trained 1,975 teachers.
Jiyan Foundation for Human Rights’ ‘IT & Play (Toy) Bus – Mobile Support for Displaced Children and Youth’ project provides digital training, psychosocial support, and creative spaces, promoting healing, skills development, and independence, particularly for Yazidi and displaced youth recovering from conflict and trauma in Iraq and Syria.
Maya Vakfi (Foundation) in Adiyaman, Türkiye, conducts the project ‘Empowering Early Years: Enhancing Early Childhood Development for Refugee Children and Caregivers in Earthquake Affected Communities’ by empowering disadvantaged Syrian children and families through psychosocial support, education, and community programs following the devastating 2023 earthquakes.
Tumaini Letu, is a refugee-led organisation based in Dzaleka Refugee Camp, Dowa, Malawi founded in 2012. Since 2014, its flagship project, the annual Tumaini Festival has used music, dance, and the arts to promote refugee dignity, inclusion, and self-reliance. The judges singled it out for “an unapologetic celebration of refugees’ talents and contributions” as well as the fact that the festival was started by refugees.” They were also surprised that it is the only festival located in a refugee camp – and one that was once a prison. The judges said: “It plainly – and aurally – integrates community.” They noted that the event has also sparked market opportunities for the Camp’s refugees, a reliable way to develop self-reliance.” They admired its positive effect on morale of the community and the 5,400 jobs for people in the Camp the festival has generated, invoking a deep sense of pride, hope and joy by focussing its activity on the creative and practical.” The project is managed by 15 staff and 10 volunteers.

The three UK Prize finalists (in alphabetical order) and their projects, with the winner in italics:

Hopscotch Women’s Centre, Camden, London, for its ‘Hopscotch Afghan Refugee Project (HARP)’, which aids Afghan refugees, offering language learning, community building, and confidence workshops was the standout UK project this year. “An amazing initiative,” the judges said because it “promotes a thoughtful and holistic approach to supporting Afghan families – particularly, mothers, the most vulnerable among resettled Afghans.” The project’s success in fostering vital connections with local statutory and voluntary organisations benefit the whole community, while its focus on childcare allows women attending their sessions to engage more freely with the initiatives. One thousand, six hundred and forty six people have so far been helped by the project, which is run by seven staff and six volunteers.
HostNation conducts its ‘Refugee Friendship Project’ in Greater London, Greater Manchester and Tyneside (Newcastle and Gateshead). HostNation is a volunteer-led charity connecting refugees and asylum seekers with local volunteer befrienders to ease isolation, build confidence, and foster friendships. Through shared activities and social support, it helps newcomers integrate, improve English, and feel part of the community.
The Launchpad Collective (TLC)‘s project ‘Led by Lived Experience: Unlocking Potential – Pathways to Dignity and Self-Reliance’ operates UK-wide supporting refugees to rebuild their lives through training, education, and mentoring. By improving skills, confidence, and employability, TLC supports refugees to move from exclusion to empowerment – restoring dignity and creating genuine pathways to sustainable work and independence.