About Our Organization
The public organization “Ecosystem Restoration Center” traces its history back to 1994, when in the village of Zozulyntsi a youth ecological club “Pilgrim” was established, engaged in educational, training, practical, and scientific activities.

During that period, work was carried out with the international organization ISAR, the All‑Ukrainian Ecological and Cultural Center, the Ukrainian Society for Nature Conservation, the international organization BirdLife International, and nature protection societies of Mechnikov University (Odesa) and Shevchenko University (Kyiv).

The organization participated in international tree‑planting campaigns, in the development of an ecology curriculum for secondary schools together with Professor Bilyavsky, and in practical activities such as clearing springs, maintaining the channels of small rivers and the cleanliness of water banks, and mass tree planting (during the work of the “Pilgrim” club, more than 5 hectares of forest were planted in the villages of Soshanske and Zozulyntsi).

Since the 2000s, the organization has transferred its activities to the territory of Kyiv region. In cooperation with the Rzhyshchiv forestry and the company “Oksamyt Service”, scientific and practical work was carried out on an area of more than 28,000 hectares. Studies were conducted on the populations of the European beaver and European roe deer, on introduced species in the middle course of the Dnipro River and their impact on the ecosystem, and on the search and recording of species listed in the Red Book of Ukraine. The main activity consisted of ecosystem restoration through planting endemic, traditional plant species and supporting them in degraded ecosystems, as well as reintroducing lost animal species.

At this time, members of the organization undertook internships at the UN and began working in the organization’s environmental programs.

Since 2020, members of the organization have been volunteering in the UN program “Decade on Ecosystem Restoration.” The public organization “Ecosystem Restoration Center” was established to implement the goals and objectives of the UN “Decade on Ecosystem Restoration” in Ukraine.
Currently, the organization includes specialists educated at:
•     Mechnikov Odesa State University, Ukraine (specialization: Vertebrate Zoology)
•     Dragomanov State Pedagogical University, Ukraine (specialization: Biology, Chemistry)
•     Vinnytsia State Pedagogical University named after M. Kotsiubynsky (specialization: Geography)
•     Université de Genève, Switzerland (specialization: Ecosystem Services: a Method for Sustainable Development, ecological risk assessment and services)
•     University of Florida, USA (specializations: Sustainable Agricultural Land Management; Agroforestry)
•     Dartmouth College, USA (specialization: Ecological Science)

List of activities carried out by the public organization “Ecosystem Restoration Center” in the territory of the Samhorodok community within the UN program “Decade on Ecosystem Restoration” during 2024–2025:
•     The organization constantly participates in international environmental conferences, including:
Sustainability Live Net Zero 2024, COP 29, World International Conference on Environmental Science and Development (ICESD – 2024), Sustainability Live Net Zero 2025, WETEX, IV International Scientific and Practical Conference “Soil Health as a Component of the One Health Strategy,” “Green Jobs for Restoration and European Integration of Ukraine,” ICISAS 2025, and others.
•     Established the “Nick Tervin” studio for filming, editing, translation, and dubbing of environmental films.
•     Produced educational and motivational films with the participation of community residents. Over two years, more than 60 films have been released.
•     Launched the program “Red Book of the Samhorodok Community” to identify and record rare and endangered species of flora and fauna. In the past year, 28 Red Book species have been documented.
•     Delivered lectures in educational institutions of the Samhorodok community on topics such as:
•     Presentation of the UN program “Decade on Ecosystem Restoration”
•     Monitoring climate disasters and ways to address them through the UN program “Decade on Ecosystem Restoration”
•     Presentation of the scientific‑ecological project “Filter”
•     Summary of the Sustainability Live Net Zero conference held in London, March 5–6, where the “Filter” project was presented
•     Screening of environmental films dedicated to World Water Day
•     Presentation of the project “Red Book of the Samhorodok Community”
•     Lecture on “The threat of plastic pollution of the planet”
•     Screening of environmental films dedicated to Earth Day
•     Presentation on “The impact of ancient humans on representatives of mammoth fauna. Own research of recent years.”
•     Presentation on “Analysis of the development of human communities in the Southern Alps and the Dnipro‑Bug Upland during the Late Neolithic, taking into account modern anthropological findings.”
In total, more than 100 hours of lectures have been delivered for children and youth.

Practical measures:
•     Greening of the territory of Zozulyntsi Gymnasium (planting 400 plants).
•     Greening of the memorial area near the House of Culture in Zozulyntsi (planting 250 plants).
•     Design of the “Nadiya” Square in Zozulyntsi (area 0.5 ha, more than 25 plant species).
•     Planting of the “Nadiya” Square.
•     Development of the scientific‑ecological project “Filter” in Zozulyntsi (in cooperation with the Institute of Hydrobiology of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine and the State Forestry Academy).
•     Implementation of the first stage of the “Filter” project (planting 3,000 saplings) jointly with local school students to achieve educational and training effect.
•     Implementation of the second stage of the “Filter” project (planting 2,000 saplings).
•     Establishment of an oak nursery for 10,000 plants for further greening of the community.
•     Establishment of a nursery of ornamental plants for further implementation of the “Nadiya” Square project.
•     Development of the project for the regular park “Longevity” at the Center for Social Services in Samhorodok (approved by the Council of Botanical Gardens and Arboretums of Ukraine).
•     Establishment of a nursery of ornamental plants (1,500 units) for further implementation of the “Longevity” park project.
•     Large‑scale campaign in which every child of the community planted a tree. In total, more than 2,000 oaks were planted in a single day.
•     First stage of planting the “Longevity” park — more than 600 plants planted.
•     Development and creation of the protected site “Orchids on Zarichna”. The site has been included in the Red and Green Books of Ukraine.
•     In total, during this period, plants worth more than 1 million UAH were planted in the territory of the Samhorodok community.

The public organization “Ecosystem Restoration Center” possesses equipment, facilities, and land for the full cycle of growing deciduous tree saplings, with a capacity of up to 50,000 saplings per year.
All activities of the organization are carried out in close cooperation with and supported by the administration of the Samhorodok village council.

Media coverage of the organization’s work, current campaigns, projects, and activities includes:
•     Kyiv Suspilne
•     TRK Vinnychyna
•     Vinnytsia Suspilne
•     Khmilnyk Online
•     News of Vinnytsia
•     Visnyk Koziatynshchyny
•     RIA Koziatyn
•     Samhorodok Nash
•     20 Minutes News of Vinnytsia
•     SABC News
•     Sustainability Magazine
•     Government of Dubai Media Office
•     Water Online

Joint work is carried out with:

•     Association of Regenerative Agriculture of Ukraine
•     Kyiv Ecological and Cultural Center (KEKC) — identification, registration, and accounting of natural sites requiring protection and creation of necessary protected zones
•     National Agrarian University of Armenia — work on educational programs in agroforestry
•     Robert E. Fuller — translation into Ukrainian of popular science films for children and youth
•     Geoff Lawton “Permaculture Online” — cooperation in projects for restoring degraded soils and educational campaigns on regenerative agriculture methods
•     Douglas W. Tallamy — cooperation in creating micro‑protected zones
•     Afforest Institute — implementation of forest‑growing technologies using the Miyawaki method
•     One Tree Planted — cooperation worldwide with the “Ecosystem Restoration Center” to restore damaged forests and plant new ones
•     FAO — cooperation within the UN program “Decade on Ecosystem Restoration”
•     Center for Agroforestry, University of Missouri — adaptation of agroforestry methods to Ukraine’s agro‑climatic conditions, joint educational campaign
•     Rico Erano Studio — joint studio media work
•     Conservation International — joint studio media work
•     EIT Food — educational and media work
•     UNEP — cooperation within the UN program “Decade on Ecosystem Restoration”

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All directions of activity of the “Ecosystem Restoration Center” are planned to be continued and expanded. In addition, the launch of an international scientific and practical project on methods of restoring degraded soils is scheduled. Some projects, including “Filter”, will be extended to the territories of other communities.

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