THE NATIONAL UNION OF
JOURNALISTS OF UKRAINE
Viyacheslav Tverdokhlib is a Mariupol television journalist who, in March 2023, left his hometown, temporarily occupied by the russians, on foot for Zaporizhzhia, settled there, found friends, work, and support from colleagues. And the Zaporizhzhia Journalists’ Solidarity Center (JSC) of the National Union of Journalists of Ukraine (NUJU) helped him with this. The coworking space, which has been operating at the JSC since the beginning of the large-scale invasion, has become, for him as well as for many journalists from the occupied and frontline territories and local media workers, a creative space that helped him return to his beloved profession.
Viyacheslav Tverdokhlib is always in the middle of events in Zaporizhzhia. He writes a lot and actively for several online media outlets, for the Trudova Slava newspaper, so he enjoys working in the coworking space.
“There is everything you need for work here – a computer, printer, scanner, camera – please! If you need a consultation on any issues, they always organize it in the coworking space,” he says. “In addition, I have repeatedly participated in educational and security trainings, in meetings with frontline press officers, with lawyers, with volunteers, and public figures. My colleagues, accredited to work in combat zones, receive protective equipment in the coworking space before traveling to such hot spots. And most importantly, which is very valuable to me, here you can always chat with colleagues, exchange news, discuss creative ideas, and relax with a cup of coffee or tea. This is a really necessary creative space for all of us, where you always feel comfortable,” concludes Viyacheslav.
The JSC network is an initiative of the NUJU, implemented in collaboration with the International and European Federations of Journalists and UNESCO, and with the support of the People of Japan. Our primary goal is to assist media professionals working in Ukraine during the war. The Centers are active in Kyiv, Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhia, Dnipro, Lviv, and Ivano-Frankivsk. The project is part of UNESCO’s broader efforts to support the Safety of Journalists and Freedom of Expression in Ukraine.
Contact the Zaporizhzhia JSC at 096 277 5352 (Nataliya Kuzmenko and Valentyna Manzhura, the coordinators of the Zaporizhzhia JSC). The Center’s address is 15 Sobornyi Avenue.
Valentyna Bystrova
Photo by Dariya Zyrianova
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