Zlatopil: the community is holding on, the community is changing

The story of the transformation of a frontline community in Kharkiv Oblast with support from UNDP and its partners

March 17, 2026

Desire to stay in the community Community needs to unite Nadiia’s warm routes Not to break The brave learn to take care of themselves Restoring strength to those who went through war Challenges don’t allow for stopping

When the night passes quietly, Zlatopil wakes slowly: a pink dawn spreads across the rooftops, and the old railway station sighs. It was the first locomotives that brought the idea of this small settlement one day becoming a city. Two local rivers, the Bereka and the Orilka, surround Zlatopil on both sides, like gentle arms.

This city in Kharkiv Oblast sits just 30 kilometres from the front line. Occupation bypassed it. Following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, it became a sanctuary for those in need of help. Consequently, Zlatopil began searching for ways to see opportunities for positive change, even under these conditions.

Through cooperation with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Ukraine and its partners, a series of initiatives has been implemented here.

Desire to stay in the community

Although people had settled in the steppe long ago, the settlement truly expanded in the 1930s, particularly around the railway station on the Kursk — Kharkiv — Sevastopol route. Modern Zlatopil was developed in the 1970s and became a city following the independence of Ukraine. Until recently, it was named Pervomaiskyi; however, residents wanted to shed the Soviet name and emphasize their identity. Thus, it became Zlatopil, a city among golden grain fields [zolote pole (золоте поле) Ukrainian for “golden field” — Ed.], but also a city of farmers and industrialists. It boasts a large number of grain elevators, and until recently, the station in Zlatopil shipped the largest volume of grain in Ukraine. To this day, much of its economy revolves around grain processing.

Today, this city where everyone knows one another is overcoming its challenges, large and small, fighting for peace, order, and its usual pace of life.

Deputy Mayor Anton Oriekhov grew up here, studied here, built a family, and worked in local government. For him, Zlatopil is more than a city. It is a living organism where every street and every house remembers the stories of its residents. In the first months of the full-scale invasion, over 15,000 displaced persons found temporary refuge here: most moved on, but some stayed. Of the 30,000 population before 2022, there are now 28,000 in the city, including nearly 8,000 displaced persons.

Anton recalls that the most destructive event for Zlatopil was a missile strike in July 2023. An Iskander missile hit a residential district: more than 40 people were injured, including children, and 50 houses were left without windows and doors. The city still suffers from Russian attacks, now increasingly by drones. Yet, it lives on.

“Community shapes a person. If we provide young people here with a community that fulfils them and offers opportunities to grow, they may want to stay,” the Deputy Mayor believes.

The “Literary Gazebo” Youth Space was the first project supported by UNDP and the Government of Denmark in Zlatopil. It was also the first initiative of the Community Security and Social Cohesion Working Group, established with UNDP assistance to develop ideas to help the city recover and improve.

Representatives of local government, entrepreneurs, law enforcement, State Emergency Service (SES) specialists, and activists meet at least once a quarter. This serves as a consultative and advisory body for local authorities, working on assessing community resources and needs, strengthening trust and cohesion, advocating for the rights and empowerment of vulnerable groups, and raising funds for security and cohesion projects.

The gazebo was named “literary” to preserve the history of the transformation of the space next to the library. Before the invasion, Oleksii Shapovalov, then-curator of the “Komora Hub” [komora (комора) Ukrainian for “larder” — Ed.] Youth Centre, submitted a project proposal using the participatory budget (a competition for community initiatives financed from the community budget) to create an outdoor location: a book-sharing cabinet, benches, and Wi-Fi access. However, the pandemic halted those plans.

Amidst blackouts, a need for an autonomous shelter arose. The premises were insulated, windows and ventilation were installed, a solid-fuel stove was added, electricity was connected, and a generator was prepared. The gazebo also serves as a venue for events.

“One small space can change a person as much as their surroundings,” said the centre’s current curator, Arsenii Shopin.

It is now a symbol of how a small idea can grow and change alongside the community.

Community needs to unite

Despite drones flying over the area almost daily, Anton Orekhov described the current situation as relatively calm.

“We don’t compare, but in some places, people have it significantly worse. Yet we are building shelters, repairing old ones, and bringing children back to schools. It isn’t perfect, but it is a step forward. The community has lived with risk before.”

Ideas in Zlatopil have specific addresses. The city operates a Recovery and Development Office, a communication platform that unites the government, civil society, international organizations, business, and media. It helps define priorities for donor proposals and coordinates the work of those involved in reconstruction.

“We were one of the first six communities in Ukraine to have such an office with assistance from UNDP, the EU, and the Government of Sweden. The conditions are transparent and simple: they provide us with equipment and methodology, and we handle the repairs at our own expense,” Anton said.

Thanks to international partners, the office was equipped with laptops, online conference kits, and everything necessary for at least 40 people to work. The Zlatopil Local Development Agency operates within these walls, an intermediary platform for attracting talent that promotes self-employment and turns even small grants into the start of large-scale changes.

Nadiia’s warm routes

As Deputy Mayor Iryna Bomko explains, Zlatopil currently lives at an accelerated pace. Nearly a third of the population are people who arrived seeking refuge and a shred of stability. The idea to create a place where older people, people with disabilities, and displaced persons could not just wait out the trouble but return to life was born in the darkest days of 2022.

“When I was tasked with overseeing the Territorial Social Service Centre, which has an inpatient department, the mayor said: ‘Make it so that people there don’t just survive but live a full life.’ Since then, we have been fired up by the idea of having a Social Adaptation Space in the department. Eventually, we secured support from international partners,” Iryna explained.

The Social Adaptation Space in Zlatopil opened in October 2024 with assistance from UNDP and the Government of Canada. An architect who heads a local NGO created a visualization of the space: a bright hall, a massage room, a psychologist’s office, a children’s corner, and rooms for creativity. The city invested in the renovation, while UNDP and Canada provided furniture, equipment, and training. Iryna Bomko says that the “synergy of budget, people, and hope created this place.”

There is a yoga section, Nordic walking, 10 hobby groups, a University of the Third Age, events for veteran families, art therapy for children, and lectures by psychologists. There are activities every day, and since the beginning of 2025, there have been 1,500 events.

One of the visitors, Nadiia, moved to Zlatopil from occupied Luhansk Oblast, her only son died at the front and is buried in the city cemetery. Nadiia’s daily route used to be from her rented accommodation to the cemetery, to her son’s portrait in the Alley of Glory, and back. But one day, she decided to visit the new Space. At first, she sat quietly, as if embarrassed, but then she began coming again and again. She took up yoga, found friends, and for the first time in a long while, began to smile. This is how the Social Adaptation Space brings life back to those who find it hardest.

Currently, the community is preparing for a new stage of cooperation with UNDP and the EU, opening a supported living home. Here, people who have spent their entire lives in institutional care will learn more independently: cooking, cleaning, caring for themselves, and sharing responsibilities. There are no supervisors, only assistants, social workers who provide guidance and help.

The philosophy of the home is simple: a person has the right to remain independent even in old age and after loss. It has eight places, eight chances. People will live here for up to a year while social services find them housing, either rented or purchased through a state programme. It will be a transit home into a new life.

Not to break

In the morning air above “Promin” [the name of the Zlatopil Central District Hospital, which means “ray” in Ukrainian — Ed.], a faint smell of bleach and instant coffee lingers. The kettle in the nurses’ station is boiling for the third time this morning. In the corridor, the swishing of gowns, the thud of walkers, and the rustle of papers can be heard. It isn’t just locals who come here, but also residents of neighbouring communities. Their footsteps mix with fragments of conversation: destroyed houses, lost property, escapes under the sound of explosions, all this takes up residence within the hospital walls.

The community constantly receives displaced persons, so the number of patients is growing. Simultaneously, complex diagnoses — oncology, cardiovascular diseases, strokes, and heart attacks — are appearing more frequently in medical reports.

“People live in constant anxiety,” Hospital Director Olha Hrimova explained. “It breaks down health slowly but severely.”

On 22 February 2022, she collected all the cash she had at home, as ATMs were already failing, and drove between pharmacies, buying saline and bandages. The doctor remained in Zlatopil, as did her staff. Every day they asked her: “Are you sure you aren’t leaving?” She knew that if everyone left, the hospital would not remain standing.

After the first months of the full-scale invasion, medics realized that they needed to learn how to prevent diseases. Thus, with assistance from UNDP and the Government of Canada, a Public Health and Rehabilitation Centre was established in the city in June 2023, a hub for disease prevention, training, and psychological support.

Everyone learns here: doctors, nurses, social workers, older people, young parents, and schoolchildren. Today there is a class on cardiopulmonary resuscitation, tomorrow a training session on self-help during stress, and the day after that a health school for community residents. In the evening, doctors will practice laparoscopic skills (a surgical method where intervention is performed through several small incisions) on a simulator.

“This is how our young surgeon grew up here. And it sounds like a real victory… small, but so necessary,” Olha said.

The Head of the Primary Health Care Centre of Zlatopil City Council, Raisa Horiachok, has been in medicine for 40 years. On 24 February 2022, the centre’s medical workers moved to their workplaces calmly and without panic.

“No one left. They brought their children to work with them, putting toys in the corner so they wouldn’t be afraid of the sirens. We set up such islands of safety for them in the hospital,” Raisa said.

Today, the challenges are no less significant. But the hospital now has a tool that has changed the daily routine — telemedicine: doctors and patients can communicate at a distance without a personal visit. Medical assistance is thus provided to residents of surrounding villages via a phone or video link.

The community received five identical sets of supplies from UNDP and the EU: pulse oximeters, glucometers, biochemical analysers for lipid profiles, and portable electrocardiographs. With their help, a paramedic checks patients’ indicators and, if necessary, sends them to Zlatopil doctors for accurate diagnoses. Much of what seemed impossible is now done in a single day.

The brave learn to take care of themselves

Zlatopil, like many other cities in Ukraine, suffers from strikes on residential districts and civilian structures. Rescuers here work quickly and with focus. While debris is still falling and the sky glows with flashes, they are already on their way. Broken glass crunches under wheels, and the air smells of smoke, gunpowder, and hot metal. In such conditions, support is also needed for those who do the saving.

The local SES unit, together with the Volunteer Centre NGO, applied for a UNDP competition, won a grant, and set up a psychological relief room, a bright space with furniture and technology. This was made possible with funding from the Government of Denmark. SES psychologists and guest specialists conduct training sessions here on stress resistance, emotional regulation, and team interactions. Rescuers practice self-help techniques.

Viacheslav Ilin, Deputy Head of the Lozova Civil Protection and Preventive Activity Department of the Main Directorate of the SES of Ukraine in Kharkiv Oblast, notes that he has seen a decrease in anxiety levels among his subordinates; they recover faster after difficult call-outs and more frequently seek psychological help themselves.

“One colleague said that after a training session on breathing techniques and relaxation, he was able to cope with a panic reaction during a call-out. Another case concerned a team interaction: after group work with a psychologist, communication between shift members changed, helping them make decisions during a fire more quickly and without conflict. Our people are generally reserved. It’s hard to get them to talk or engage. The guys also help mitigate the consequences of shelling in neighbouring communities. For rescuers, it isn’t just a job, it’s a duty. They need to support themselves as well,” Viacheslav noted.

Thanks to cooperation with UNDP and the EU, Zlatopil rescuers now have a quadcopter and other equipment. The quadcopter, according to Viacheslav, helps extinguish forest fires, monitor territories, and assess destruction.

The city is also repairing basic shelters in schools and other institutions. One such shelter, for example, is in the basement of the Palace of Culture. It now has bright walls, a new bathroom, hot water, soft furniture, toys, and a changing table. This is the result of the “Mommy in the Shelter” project. It was implemented by the MOTION+ NGO with technical administration from the Vzaiemodiia Plus NGO and assistance from UNDP and the Government of France. Children from the arts school hide here during sirens, and school staff conduct workshops. Most importantly, every mother in the surrounding neighbourhoods knows that if anything happens, there is somewhere to run to. This knowledge, project manager Daryna Fendrykova shared, becomes its own form of peace.

Restoring strength to those who went through war

The city is learning to maintain a balance between war and life. Those who stayed prove through their daily actions that their home is worth fighting for. Deputy Mayor Nina Kharchenko works amidst piles of paperwork and countless phone calls. For over 13 years, she has coordinated one of the community’s most sensitive sectors — social protection. Although Nina is originally from Poltava Oblast, she has lived most of her life in Zlatopil. She worked as a teacher for over 20 years, and the children she taught have grew up. Some went to the front and have now returned to Zlatopil as veterans.

The idea to open the “Unbreakable” Veteran Space, in cooperation with UNDP and the Government of Denmark, was born at a meeting of the Community Security and Social Cohesion Working Group. The partners purchased furniture and equipment, while the community funded the renovation. In May 2025, the space began operating.

Specialists in veteran support, social workers, and psychologists work here. Almost 500 veterans live in the city, and about 200 of them are actively involved in events. The team visits every family, Nina Kharchenko shared, sometimes just to listen.

Oleksandr Kotenko also joined the army in the first days of the invasion. During a battle in Klishchiivka, Donetsk Oblast, one of his brothers-in-arms was hit. When Oleksandr rushed to save him, he stepped on a mine himself. Both were heavily wounded but managed to reach their own lines. Doctors could not save his leg. A long rehabilitation and return to civilian life awaited Oleksandr. He found support in his family and the people around him.

Together with several former soldiers, he created a veteran organization in his hometown. They help soldiers with documents, medicine, benefits, and psychological support. They unite their efforts in the veteran space, where everything is built on brotherhood, conversation, and joint events. Veterans feel like a part of a community here.

“This is a place where you can come and understand how to live further, to look at those who have already adapted. Everyone says how cool it is to be among those who understand you because they’ve been through it themselves. Documents and other small things are important, but the most important element is support; without it, you can break,” the veteran explained.

Challenges don’t allow for stopping

The city thrives on ideas that it transforms into resilience. Ideas are supported by partners that bring in investment.

“Imagine: 2024, war, shelling. An investor comes to us and installs a solar station here. Not a single hryvnia from the budget. Had it not been for UNDP, their experts, and targeted support, this initiative would have remained a dream on paper,” Deputy Mayor Anton Oriekhov admitted.

Solar panels appeared at a critical infrastructure facility, one that cannot stop for a single day. They were installed by a private Ukrainian company, while UNDP, with support from the Global Environment Facility (GEF), accompanied the project team through all stages of implementing the energy service. Although the solar station cannot provide electricity for the entire city, it can reduce costs and help survive peak loads.

With assistance from UNDP and the GEF, energy monitoring was also automated in 16 municipal buildings. Previously, meter readings were transcribed manually every day. Now the system transmits this data itself, and specialists understand exactly where resources are leaking, where costs are rising, and where they are falling.

“Not many communities have such tools. Cooperation with UNDP is not just a list of technical solutions. It is a way of thinking that changes how the community approaches development,” Anton concluded.

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Zlatopil has many ideas to realize. Community development involves constant challenges that do not allow for stopping. It is a movement in which it is important to see those walking behind you, beside you, or even ahead of you, blazing new paths.

This material was prepared as part of the flagship “EU4Recovery — Empowering Communities in Ukraine” partnership between UNDP and the EU.

Photo credit: Valentyna Polishchuk / Reporters / UNDP in Ukraine