Shownotes:

TRIGGER WARNING: 

I have mental fatigue because I live between two countries, I feel unsettled, cannot plan too far into the future and there is a constant sense of restlessness, a journey not completed……..But, all of this I do out of choice (difficult though it may be). This is not about me but about perspective.

Most of us cannot even being to fathom the personal cost, the emotional and mental stress, the economic, social, physical cost of a never ending war forced upon peaceful people. What does it mean to not have any control over your life, not have the ability to look after yourself, your children, your elderly parents, your friends or plan for the future? 

It has been 1 year, 2 months and 3 weeks since Russia invaded Ukraine….During that period 8 million Ukrainians have registered as refugees in Europe; 5.3 million Ukrainians have displaced internally; Over 5 million children have been displaced by the war; And millions of men separated from their families………..

In the midst of this tragedy, uncertainty and strife, there are people who are trying to get on with their lives, wherever they are. One such person is Dina Nemyrovych. I met Dina Nemyrovych at the @ICCO Conference in Dubai last year where she spoke passionately about the war in Ukraine, its impact on Ukrainians (including her and her family) and the work being done by millions of Ukrainians to support the effort. Over the past couple of months Dina Nemyrovych and I have been in conversation on how I (as an individual) or the industry could support them in the difficult work they have been doing. 

The podcast is a first step to embarking on a journey to creating awareness about the scale of the task at hand. In a frank and often emotional chat Dina Nemyrovych spoke about DATTALION - a project founded and run by Ukrainian women.

The project is supported by international volunteers and is focused on collating authentic, verifiable war footage. The idea is to collect and store evidence of war crimes, environmental crimes, crimes against humanity and acts of genocide. “DATTALION is home to the largest free and independent open source database of Ukraine war footage as well as the database of verified eyewitness to the horrors of Russia’s invasion.”

We also spoke about the impact of the war on her and the family; the vision for DATTALION the challenges to running a volunteer led organisation, working in difficult circumstances; #mentalhealth health, staying resolute, what we can do to support DATTALION and Ukraine. 

For the future there are plans to help capture the stories of Ukrainian women, whose lives have been roiled by the war - to create for posterity records of the impact of conflict, war. If you would like to learn more and support the efforts: visit the DATTALION website, Donate and listen to the podcast (Link in comments) 👇🏾👇🏾👇🏾

Memorable Passages from the episode: 

👉🏾 Good afternoon. I'm in Abu Dhabi and I can say Good afternoon. 

👉🏾 First of all, I'm Dina Nemyrovych and I can say that currently, I'm in Abu Dhabi, but I'm from Ukraine because it's very important just to say I'm from Ukraine. I was born in Kiev, the capital of Ukraine. I spent all my life in Kiev. I was graduated by Kiev Economic University. I gained my professional experience in various sphere, a lot of multinational companies, very famous like Ernst & Young, Deloitte. But in Ukraine, you can see a lot of big Ukrainian companies, leaders of Ukrainian market very famous for example, in NEU. I have three daughters and I would like to continue to live in Kiev in Ukraine. I would like to grow my children. 

👉🏾 And so finally why I would like to show this xxxxxxx that I spent all my life in Ukraine, because during last year, starting from March, 2022, I'm living in Abu Dhabi. I'm living in United Arabic Emirates, and only one reason because of the Russian and Ukrainian war, or Russian invasion, my preference to say Russian invasion, which started 24th of February, 2022. I decided to leave Ukraine after five days in shelter, together with my daughter, 11 old daughter and I decided because of the safety reason together with my husband visit, we unfortunately we have to leave Kiev. And now by the way, my husband, he decided to join Ukrainian army. He's not military and he spent all his life as like a manager, facility manager, but he decided to go to Ukrainian army.

👉🏾 So as of now, I'm Dina Nemyrovych, I'm living together with my two daughters. My husband, he's a part of Ukrainian army and I say that we are still Ukrainian and we are still hope that Ukraine should win this war. Sorry for the introduction, but it's very important. 

👉🏾 Oh, one remark from me. Yeah, because for example, if we come back to Dina, which before 24th of February I have a hobby. I'm open water swimmer. What does it mean? I have done a lot of, yes, I have done a lot of long distance swimming. It's more than 10 kilometers. I'm a part of big Ukrainian swimming team. I took part in a lot of challengeable swimming marathons. But if you open my swimming map, what you can see, you can see Odesa, Kherson, Slovyansk, you can see a lot of famous cities. Which a lot of people know, but before the war. This maybe yes. But it's very interesting that our Ukrainian cities started to be famous because of this awful situation. But when I decided to think what's happened with my lovely places, with my lovely swimming places, it's awful because Kherson you know, yes, it's a big damage.

👉🏾 So if I would like to talk about my hobby, unfortunately, I should think about this, like damage about the war again. So, yeah, so I decided to share this, like very remarkable. I'm continue to swim in Emirates because I hope that I will be back and it's like my dream real dream, to start to swim in Ukraine because it would be like a real situation, if you can swim, what does it mean that Ukraine will be very good, very quiet place for all of people and we think that maybe we can organise some international competition

👉🏾 Yes. It's totally changed and I would like to just to continue this phrase, totally changed and the second line, it's very difficult to plan next year, for example. It's very difficult because it's impossible and maybe the biggest challenge for me, because if you come back to my background, my financing background, I spent a lot of years in audit and planning because xxxxxxx xxxxxxxx I like planning for my personal life as well.

👉🏾 But what I can do now, I can plan on the next month maximum. For example I have recognised a new issue. Because I have three daughters, so I have big family, but additionally, I have a very big dog and what I have to do, yes, I have Labrador. He is very big dog, and what I have to do immediately, I have to find opportunity how I can transfer my dog from Kiev to Abu Dhabi.

👉🏾 So what does it mean, it's like a real example of our real life, every day we have a new issue, which could be related to your, let's say, Ukrainian life. I'm living like in two different places in one time. So actually I'm living in Abu Dhabi, I'm working in management consulting. But actually I'm Ukrainian woman. I have a lot of friends, a lot of relatives. I have my dog, I have my husband, and so I'm in Ukraine. My hope with Ukraine, my head in Ukraine, I have a lot of issues which should be resolved. I should help to a lot of people, because of the situation, because of this crisis, because of a lot of problems.

👉🏾 So my just like first conclusion that Dina, you cannot plan anything for a long term. Long term, it means that more than one, two months, you should be ready to change your life immediately. After receiving of any new information from Ukraine, and yes, you should be ready to be so flexible to change your life, your country tomorrow. It's absolutely one of the biggest challenge in our personal life because I have a lot of friends. But mainly I'm talking about Ukrainian women, and we are living in different countries, Canada, Sweden, a lot of few countries with our kids. But we are ready to change our lives today just after this interview. So I'm ready for any changes after this year. 

👉🏾 Thank you for this question because really I would like to tell more about Datallion. If we come back to my story when unfortunately I decided to leave my home country. And the same time I decided that I have to find my way to struggle. It was very important for me after five days of starting the war, what I can do. Yes I should provide safety for my kids, but from another hand I would like to find my way. And I have found very interesting requests in Facebook.

👉🏾 For example, who would like to be part of volunteers project? If you have analytical skills, please join us. I decided to put like plus, you know, in like in the comments. Yes, and after three days, very interesting volunteers project xxxxxxxxxx ,they just gave me a message, said, please join us. What does it mean the xxxxxxxxxx?

👉🏾 We are talking about data plus battlion, so we are talking about like a real unit which can struggle using data. I can say the biggest database of photo, video, witnesses of Ukrainian war. The biggest we don't know because it's difficult to compare and, but we sure Dattalion team that we are the biggest open database. Mainly we are talking about photo and video, and you can see each day of Russian invasion in Ukraine, starting from 24th of February. You can find this content per each day. We are talking 406 day.

👉🏾 It means that you can find 406 days content. Which consists of information like a photo, video, interview, and why we decided to do this one year ago, let's say different reasons. First, we decided after one week of Russian invasion, we have recognised that it's very important to provide a lot of information like photo and video to different media because it's difficult for them just to have like immediate presence in Ukraine.

👉🏾 So at we decided to start from free of charge, like access to database. And first three months as it was very important for a lot of journalists, media to open to find pictures like videos, as I said, interviews and to use this material for their articles. And we decided that it would be very good way to say real true stories about what is going on in Ukraine. And the second issue that it would be very important to demonstrate how we can see the situation because it's a pictures from us.

👉🏾 It's a photo-video from us. In May, we decided to add witness database, because we received a lot of requests from media again, that guys, can you provide us some contacts of people who can tell their stories? And we decided that it would be very good idea just to compile this witness database to be ready to provide the stories to different medias. And it would be very important to understand who can speak English, who can speak German, who can speak any other languages. As of now, we have more than 150 witnesses, they are ready to speak, and we just documented each story. We have like a video, and from one side, any of nationalists can use the story, from another side we started to think about future after three, five years. I'm sure we will be winner in this world, but it would be very important to start to think about current situation again from history point of view, because. I think that when we started to be winner, the next step will be, we should tell to all of people, that guys, It's impossible to see this awful situation in any country. So what does it mean? Please use our archive, I'm talking about our archive now, starting from database to archive to history archive. Use our archive for the purposes to say we don't want to see the same situation in any country in the world.

👉🏾 We have started from, we would like to provide access to real stories. Currently we think that we would like to have enough documents for future archive or maybe for future Museum, Digital Museum. But anyway, so we have two different mission now because we are still very important for all people who would like to use our materials and to prepare stories and to use our materials, for example, video for films makers And so important because we can assist them, for example, if you have like the following request, xxxxxxx  can you assist me in relation to May, 2022 materials in relation to Bucha materials in relation to Mykolaiv April, 2022 materials? So finally my personal view, we are ready to give a real trust stories. And true stories about the biggest current war. 

👉🏾 Yes, really, it's difficult. But I would like to switch on to challenges. Yes. Yeah. Really? The biggest challenge I think that I'm talking about real volunteers organisation. So what does it mean? We can rely only on two assets, our time and our skills. For example, it's interesting statistic, which I can use to show what does it mean, volunteers, organisation and the biggest challenge. If you ask me how many volunteers do I have? My true answer will be like approximately 200.

👉🏾 But how many volunteers do you have in your team now? My true answer will be 60. What does it mean that a lot of people spend their time during this one year, but unfortunately, It was impossible to keep fixed team every day. Because we are talking about mainly women with kids who left Ukraine because of safety reason and in regard of the situation of us, we decided to invest any spare time. Sometimes, Nighttime to help Ukraine to win through using your time for the Datallion, for example, we have done a lot of, let's say, mini projects. And it was very popular as for example, you can be a part of our volunteers team for 1, 2, 3 months just to do this project and unfortunately leave us after like your investment.

👉🏾 So the biggest challenge are people, it's impossible to rely like on our team every day. We are relying Ukrainian people who continue to invest their time and every day we should think about new volunteers. Every day we should think how we can find them. After one year, really it's very difficult because of you know, financial situation. After one year, a lot of people, they lost their work. A lot of people, unfortunately, out of Ukraine, and it's difficult to find like real acceptable work. And so what does it mean? The biggest issue, be ready to promote your project every day for two purposes, just to find new users and to realise your mission to tell more about Ukraine. And the second one, just to ask people to join you.

👉🏾 Yes. Yeah I think of a question really starting from maybe October, November. By the way, we have like a few people like main co-founders when they're talking about fixed team, we're talking about a few people, like a main co-founders, and we are responsible for everyday activities and we are responsible for strategy, we can use this word for the Datallion. So we decided to think that women and work topic will be very important because we would like to demonstrate like Ukrainian women role, like profile and how we can continue to grow up our kids at the same time. How we can struggle against Russians. And what we started to do, really, we started to propose our materials and our team for different events. And it was done, let's say a lot of presentations and participation in different events out of Ukraine and to tell like a real story about Datallion. By the way, we have internal statistic and this is real project which driven by women. We have 85 percentage of our core team, we are talking about let's say like women team. But if we are talking about volunteers team, it's approximately 90 percentage.

👉🏾 We're talking about women's team. For example, in my case, I have received an invitation to be a main speaker in my company because diversity issue and women leadership. One of the biggest issue in this company and I'm working in big international company, it's very important for them to see leadership from women and they asked me to prepare this presentation and to tell this real story for a business woman. It was very important to hear the story and because it's like a real demonstration that you will be very powerful. You as a woman, you will be very powerful and you can do all things together, you can continue to grow your kids, you can find new job. But it's very important, you could be and you could invest your time and for example, in really very important things, which could change the world because after a lot of years it would be big recognition that current time and Ukrainians really we are changing the world because we would like to demonstrate that it's impossible to leave and such situation, and we should combine our efforts around Ukraine and we should be winner.

👉🏾 And it would be big changes the world as I believe after our real win. So finally we come back to this topic. Really we have very good coverage from different media. If you purchase Datallion women team, it would be a lot of references to articles about us. And very interesting because we have very young women and they participated in different events with their stories because approximately 40 percentage of our team currently, they living in Ukraine and really, It would be very important if you would like to know how women leadership can change situation and for example, we come back to my presentation for a lot of women from different countries, in my company. It was very like a real, not big surprise, but it was a very challengable story. You should use your leadership and you can do a lot of things, especially if you can combine your efforts. So it's like really women efforts, which you can combine and which you can use as one team can change all things.

👉🏾 Do you remember my statistics that if you ask me about how many volunteers do have I can say that more than 200, yes and currently we have 60. First of all, it's very difficult time for all of us. And the second one sometimes it's very difficult to see this contact every day. I remember my March, 2022, I started to work in the Datallion as...