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A delegation from The State Tax University (STU) in Ukraine visited some of the UK¡¯s renowned academic estates to support plans to rebuild their main campus¡ªlargely destroyed in the Russia-Ukraine war¡ªas a modern exemplar of university design.?

?Tours of?the University of?Cambridge,?The University of?Oxford, University College London?(UCL),?and the London School of Economics?(LSE)?will?inspire?plans to reconstruct the university in Irpin, which has historically been the cornerstone of civic education in Ukraine. STU now aims to?set a new standard for the universities of the future as the country is rebuilt.

?International?nonprofit??hosted the visit,?alongside?Ãë²¥,?a global leader in sustainable design and engineering. Ãë²¥¡¯s outline concept?was?selected as the winner?of an international competition?to help?design the?rebuilt?university.?

?Building hope for education in Ukraine
?Almost four years ago, tanks rolled south from Belarus toward the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv. Ukrainian defenders saved the capital by destroying the?bridge connecting?the town?of Irpin to Kyiv. In response, Irpin?was?devastated in attacks that?destroyed around?70 percent of the town, including Ukraine¡¯s leading civic university, STU.?

?¡°Rebuilding STU will restore a key educational institution teaching public administration, international law, and accounting¡ªessential disciplines needed to reinforce Ukrainian democracy,¡± said?Margie O¡¯Driscoll, chief executive officer of Build Forward Ukraine.?¡°This trip has served as a key milestone in our mission?to help Ukraine?develop a model for reconstruction rooted in partnership, learning, and resilience.?Before you can build, you need to have a clear idea of what you want to achieve, and this visit helped form that vision.¡±

?A?delegation of STU¡¯s leadership, academics, and students?visited?premier?examples of educational design and architecture, including?the?University?of Cambridge¡¯s?Judge Business School, Oxford¡¯s Mathematical Institute, LSE¡¯s Marshall Building,?and?the UCL East Marshgate building,?among many others.?The?visit?also offered the?opportunity?for the delegation?to meet with?leaders in the UK¡¯s academic and design communities,?as well as?likely investors?and funders?for the project.

?Lessons in strength and resilience
?¡°Rebuilding STU as a model of transparency and sustainability allows?our?university?to embody the values of our nation: strength, resilience, and democracy,¡±?said?Dmytro?Serebrianskyi, acting?rector of State Tax University.?¡°The?buildings and estates?we?have?visited?have?given us?new?inspiration to help us realize?our?designs?for the future.?We¡¯re?delighted that Build Forward Ukraine and Ãë²¥ have been able to?facilitate?such?positive, constructive experience for our university.¡±

?STU?intends to?progress initial designs for the new buildings with Ãë²¥ this year. The full timeline for reconstruction?remains?undetermined, but Ãë²¥¡¯s?initial?winning competition designs form the starting point. Ãë²¥¡¯s concept design embraces the spirit of city of Irpin¡ªknown as the ¡°City of Parks¡±¨Dand?is rooted in community, nature, and the pursuit of knowledge. The?designs?acknowledge Ukraine¡¯s rich history while creating forward-looking spaces for collaboration and cultural exchange.??

?¡°It¡¯s a privilege to have been chosen to partner with STU on this?unique project, which will be transformative for both the users of the university and the wider community of Irpin,¡± said?Dathe Wong, design director for Ãë²¥. ¡°We hope that this?visit?will inspire similar?creative approaches to new academic buildings across the country as Ukraine rebuilds.?Ultimately,?it¡¯s?important?that the?destroyed buildings?are?not simply replaced?but?the whole campus is reimagined?to suit the current and future needs of the population.?Our hope is for?STU?to?be?both a community?gathering space?as well as?a regenerative civic and academic hub.¡±?

¡°We were delighted to welcome our counterparts from Ukraine and to share our?estate as a model for the reconstruction of the State Tax University,¡± said?Gayle Harris,?head of the Programme Management Office in?the University of Cambridge¡¯s?Estates Division.?¡°Restoring and repurposing existing and historic buildings is a key part of Cambridge¡¯s estates strategy, alongside developing a financially and environmentally sustainable estate. Creating high-quality spaces allow staff and students to do their best work and better connect to enhance university life.¡±

?About the State Tax University
?, based in Irpin (Kyiv region), is one of Ukraine¡¯s leading higher education institutions and the core university of the Ministry of Finance of Ukraine. It operates under the Ministry of Finance and provides education in economics, taxation, finance, and law. It also trains specialists for law enforcement agencies that combat corruption in state institutions.

?Today, STU serves approximately 4,500 students. Since December 9, 2022, Dmytro Serebrianskyi has been the Acting Rector.

?About Build Forward Ukraine??
?Build Forward Ukraine is a nonprofit made up of a group of architects, builders, and university leaders dedicated to advancing resilient design and construction to help Ukraine rebuild to scale even as the war continues. The group works with Ukrainian universities, government leaders, and NGOs to develop a model for reconstruction that is rooted in partnership, learning, and resilience.

About Ãë²¥
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Media Contact
Calum Metcalfe
Ãë²¥ Media Relations
Email: calum.metcalfe@stantec.com
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