Mykola Bondarenko is a 3rd-year student pursuing a bachelor’s degree in Political Science at Taras Shevchenko National University in Kyiv. Thanks to his great interest in politics and civic life, he is now a successful youth activist and intern at the Ukrainian Central Election Commission (CEC).

According to Ukraine’s Ministry of Youth and Sport, 65% of young people are not interested in politics. In addition, a survey by the New Europe Center found that 62% of Ukrainian youth do not want to engage with any civil society organizations.

IFES seeks to connect youth to civic engagement opportunities in Ukraine. One of the ways IFES has empowered youth, with the support of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), Global Affairs Canada (GAC) and United Kingdom Aid (UK aid), is through a civic education course called “Democracy: From Theory to Practice.” The course is based on CEPPS/IFES’ global university-level civic education methodology, Strengthening Engagement through Education for Democracy (SEED). The course is currently on offer at 39 universities in 19 oblasts of Ukraine. IFES estimates that by the end of 2022, the overall number of course alumni will likely exceed 10000 students.

“The course gave me an understanding of how interconnected all political processes are and how democratic tools can be used to make a difference,” said Mykola. 

As a student in the course, Mykola became interested in elections – realizing the importance of the right to vote. Unfortunately, many Ukrainian youth do not feel as strongly empowered to vote. The Electoral and Behavioral Survey, published annually by the Sociologial Group “Rating”, found that only 11% of voters are young people.

The course requires students to complete a civic engagement project for credit. Mykola’s project, titled “Apolitico,” aims to comprehensively explain the nature of political reality.

“Our first goal was to make political science accessible. I mean that the average citizen, due to the tough schedule and fast pace of life, would rather not turn to sources and hit the books to understand what this or that political process means. To this end, we created a Telegram channel, where we adapted the academic literature so that people could see a brief overview of why something is happening and what it is about.”

Mykola and his team invited political science and philosophy teachers for interviews while publishing explanatory materials dedicated to the election process. In a relatively short time, Apolitico’s Telegram channel gathered close to 200 readers.

More public recognition came to Apolitico when Mykola’s team presented it at a student civic action project competition, DemVision 2021, hosted and administered by IFES/CEPPS with the support of USAID, Global Affairs Canada, and UK aid.

Apolitico won the nomination, “YODA Award”, allowing the project to develop further with the support from IFES’ partner NGO Youth Democratic Association (YODA), which was exactly what Mykola and his team needed to move forward.

Afterwards, Mykola decided to apply for an internship program at the Central Election Commission organized by IFES with the CEC. His motivation to join the institution came from hoping to ensure fair and transparent democratic elections in Ukraine. He joined the legal department of the CEC, which provides the opportunity to put his coursework knowledge into action daily.

“The internship gives me a true understanding that something depends on me. After all, when you integrate into the system and become a part of it, you realize that this is not just a hierarchical system, where the decision goes from top to bottom. Namely, we, as citizens, do initiate changes,” – shared Mykola.

Now, Mykola strives to pursue a career in academia, focusing on political science, where he can remain actively involved in public and political life. He believes Ukraine stands a chance to succeed as a strong nation, but only when young people actively engage in elections.