The operations of the Kyiv Archive were greatly impacted by the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, leading to the urgency to safeguard the valuable data accumulated and the risks of it being destroyed. In response, the CESSDA General Assembly has approved a special line of funding to support the Kyiv Archive. In particular the upgrade of the archive to the international standards and to provide support to its operations.

The Kyiv Archive

The Kyiv Archive is a Ukrainian social science data archive, founded and maintained by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology (KIIS). Its major purpose is to preserve the data from polls and surveys conducted by leading Ukrainian survey research organisations and make it easily and freely accessible for the use of all interested people or entities both in Ukraine and outside the country. 

The collection of the Kyiv Archive includes more than 200 surveys on a wide range of issues, from the 1990s to the present. Every year the Kyiv Archive receives over 100 requests from Ukranians and European researchers, showcasing the demand for such datasets. Though Ukraine is not yet a CESSDA member, the Kyiv Archive has actively cooperated in the CESSDA´s network and is integrated in the wider CESSDA community.

Saving the data

The operations of the Kyiv Archive were greatly impacted by the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, leading to the urgency to safeguard the valuable data accumulated and the risks of it being destroyed.

In response, the CESSDA General Assembly has approved a special line of funding to support the Kyiv Archive. In particular the upgrade of the archive to the international standards and to provide support to its operations. 

The CESSDA Service Provider in Czechia, the Czech Social Data Archive (CSDA), promptly extended its aid to the Ukrainian data archive. A collaborative effort between both archives commenced and  on the transfer, backup, and preservation of the current data collection. As part of this collaboration, the CSDA offers mentoring and assistance to enhance the institutional capabilities of the Kyiv Archive.

Ukraine in European Research Infrastructures 

In May 2023 a webinar titled "Scientific Data about Society in Ukraine - Ukraine in European Research Infrastructures in the Social Sciences and Humanities" was held, attracting significant interest. Around 100 participants registered for the event, with approximately one-third of them representing Ukraine. 

The webinar, co-organized by the ESFRI Strategy Working Group Social and Cultural Innovation (SWG SCI) and EASSH provided best practices on how to involve Ukraine in European research infrastructures and research infrastructure projects such as CESSDA, CLARIN, ESS andSHARE and GGP. 

The European Commission presented its support activities for research in Ukraine. The discussions during the webinar focused on three thematic areas: data collection, data archiving in social sciences, and data and digitization in the humanities and cultural heritage. The participants emphasised the need to provide scientific data for research in SSH disciplines in Ukraine and foster cooperation with European research infrastructures.

Current situation

The Kyiv Archive continues to work today, despite the war and financial hardships. Owing to the support received, Kyiv Archive was able not only to preserve the collected data and maintain existing data services, but also continues to be updated and proceed with creating data collections on some of the most relevant topics. 

Report from the Webinar shared

Read the report from the webinar here!