On March 27, 2026, the 4th Interregional Historical and Local Lore Conference of Student Youth “Historical Memory in the Context of Modern War” was held. The event was organised by the Department of Education and Science of the Sumy Regional State Administration and the Sumy Regional Centre for Extracurricular Education and Work with Gifted Youth.
Sumy State University was represented at the conference by Candidate of Historical Sciences, Associate Professor of the Department of History, Nataliia Lobko.
The conference brought together 152 young local historians from all regions of Ukraine, who presented the results of their research and exploratory work across four thematic areas:
- heroes of the modern Russian-Ukrainian war: the history of their feats and commemoration in the context of shaping historical memory;
- historical events and prominent figures of the native region in the national dimension and in the processes of memory preservation;
- local heritage of the small homeland: cultural and historical landmarks, monuments, memorial sites, museums, and the challenges of their preservation under current conditions;
- material and spiritual culture of the Ukrainian people as a factor of national identity: folk crafts and trades, traditional clothing and symbols, folk art, beliefs, customs, and folklore.
The participants’ presentations were distinguished by depth, relevance, and significance for the contemporary understanding of the historical memory of the Ukrainian people. Following the conference, participants will receive certificates, and their supervisors will be awarded letters of appreciation. The abstracts of the reports will be published in the conference proceedings.
We sincerely thank the young local historians for their active participation and wish them further achievements! We express our gratitude to the supervisors for the high level of preparation of the participants! Honour and gratitude to the Armed Forces of Ukraine for their protection and for making it possible to live and work!