“Testimony Across History”: An Oral History International Conference in Uzhhorod

The Kule Folklore Centre, together with partners from Canada and Ukraine, co-organized an important event in the humanities, particularly in oral history — the international conference “Testimony Across History,” held in Uzhhorod, Ukraine, on August 10–12, 2026. The conference was initiated and organized by Natalia Khanenko-Friesen, Huculak Chair in Ukrainian Culture and Ethnography, and the Director of the Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies with KuFC Research Assistant Anna Olenenko serving as conference coordinator.

The conference marked the 20th anniversary of the Ukrainian Oral History Association and brought together scholars and practitioners from Ukraine and abroad to reflect on two decades of oral history research in Ukraine, its methodological development, and new challenges facing the field. Particular attention was devoted to the role of oral testimony in documenting Russia’s full-scale war against Ukraine, as well as to questions of memory, forced displacement, trauma, silence, research ethics, and responsibility when working with testimonies of ongoing and conflictual experiences.

Over three days, the participants discussed a wide range of topics, from the Holodomor, the Holocaust, and Chornobyl to contemporary war experiences, oral history archives, digital methods, community-based research, and intersections between oral history, folklore, media, and diaspora studies. The conference also provided an important space for professional exchange and for strengthening cooperation among Ukrainian and international scholars and institutions.

The event was organized in partnership with the Ukrainian Oral History Association, Ukrainian Institute of National Memory, Uzhhorod National University, the Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies at the University of Alberta, and Heinrich Böll Stiftung, Kyiv.

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