AAPG Members Mobilize Support for Ukrainian Geologist Refugees

Wars and international conflicts often bring out the worst in humanity, but they also inspire acts of resilience, solidarity and generosity.

The 2022 war between Russia and Ukraine is no exception. While images shared through news broadcasts and social media posts have shocked a global audience and led many to despair, they have also served to mobilize others to reach out and do their part to relieve the suffering.

This article is the first in a two-part series about Ukrainian geologist refugees who fled the conflict in their homeland and received assistance from the geoscience community in Poland and abroad. Their stories provide a glimmer of hope and a call to action during a time of tremendous challenge and opportunity.

Yuliia’s Story: Choosing Life and Safety Over Employment

Yuliia, a 41-year-old Ukrainian geochemist, lived with her husband and 7-year-old daughter Arina in Bucha, a city located in the Kyiv province. She enjoyed stable employment with the State Information Geological Fund (Geoinform) until the Russian invasion earlier this year.

“On the morning of 24 February, Russia initiated attacks on the Kyiv province by striking with artillery and missiles. That day, the life of every Ukrainian changed, and my life changed too,” she said.

“A helicopter was shot down near our house, the air was black, and it was impossible to breathe. We ran to the basement of the house. My daughter was constantly crying, screaming, she wanted to go home to her bed, but she had to lie on the bed on the concrete floor. We spent only two days in the basement and decided to run away.”

Yuliia’s husband stayed to fight, and since her parents had passed away before the war, she and Arina made the difficult decision to leave Bucha and seek safety at her mother-in-law’s house in the Ukraine’s Cherkasy province, 160 kilometers from Kyiv.

“As many people were fleeing, the roads were crowded, cars were barely moving, the trip took nine hours. We barely had enough gasoline,” she said. “When we got to my mother-in-law’s house, there sirens blaring all the time. Many times a day we had to run to the basement, and it was very cold and humid. We could neither eat nor sleep in peace. It is difficult to describe how you feel in these moments, it can only be understood by a person who has also experienced it!”

Yuliia received word from Polish geologists offering to help her and her daughter, so they decided to travel 1,000 kilometers to the Polish border.

“We waited for two days before we were able to board a train. The train was old, with wooden seats, one toilet for five cars. There was constant darkness, the sound of sirens, shelling, but we were moving,” she said.

After disembarking the train, they crossed the border on foot, walking for six hours in the cold.

“We were very tired, but we were patient! Thanks to the great help of Polish volunteers, we arrived in Krakow,” she said. “It seems like a trifle, but we were afraid to change into pajamas at night, we always thought we had to run to the bomb shelter. My daughter does not take a step away from me when she hears the sound of a helicopter in the sky, or the noise of a train, cries, shouts. Of course, it is difficult to live in a foreign country, but the most important thing is that we are safe.”

The decision to move her family to safety ultimately cost Yuliia her job.

“Since I left Ukraine, my employer unilaterally terminated employment relations with me,” she said. “I’m trying to find a job in Krakow but it’s not easy as I have a small daughter.”

Svitlana’s Story: ‘The Most Terrible Days of My Life’

Svitlana, a soil science and general geologist and mother of two, described her story as similar to that of many Ukrainian women over the past months.

When fighting started in Kyiv, her family fled to safety in a “dacha,” a country home located outside the city. They immediately regretted the decision.

“Going to the dacha was a big mistake. In Kyiv it was safer,” she said. “Because of a massive Russian attack, we were without electricity, water and food for two weeks. Those were the most terrible days in my life!”

Russian tanks drove through their front yard and destroyed their house. Only one house on the entire street was left standing.

“My husband’s parents spent their lives building that house, and they had worked on it until last summer,” she said. “For the first time, I saw tears in the eyes of our father, the bravest man I know.”

Svitlana fled by car with her 12- and 15-year-old daughters, and they drove to the Carpathians in Western Ukraine, near the border with Romania.

“They were horrible days,” she said. A trip that should have lasted a half day took them 52 hours.