In 2026, Professor of the K.Niemets Department of Human Geography and Regional Studies Sergiy KOSTRIKOV became one of the ten finalists of the prestigious international technical assistance program BridgeUSA: Exchange Program for the Resilience and Restoration of Ukraine (BridgeUSA UPRR).

The program is administered by the American Councils for International Education (ACTR/ACCELS) with the support of the US Embassy in Ukraine and with additional funding from American partner universities. More information about the organization can be found on the official website of the American Councils for International Education (http://www.americancouncils.org) and on the corresponding Ukrainian portal (http://www.americancouncils.org.ua).

BridgeUSA UPRR is aimed at establishing long-term partnerships between Ukrainian and American scientists in the field of joint research, development of educational programs, and exchange of pedagogical experience. Its key goal is to train specialists who are critically needed for the reconstruction and recovery of Ukraine.

The selection process for this year’s program, as in previous years, was extremely competitive: out of nearly a thousand applicants in various subject areas — Engineering, Medicine and Mental Health, Urban Planning and Urban Development, Biology, and Environmental Science and Conservation — only ten finalists were selected. They formed two cohorts: the BridgeUSA UPRR Spring-Summer Cohort (4 specialists) and the BridgeUSA UPRR Fall Cohort (6 specialists).

Professor S. Kostrikov passed the nationwide selection (in several stages – 1) “mandate commission”: autobiography, CV, list of publications, 2) assessment of the submitted subject Project, as a semi-finalist for 1)-2) got to 3) – interview) in the subject area “Urban Studies and City Planning”. This is not his first, so to speak, “American experience” – S. Kostrikov has already worked as a faculty fellow at Rutgers State University (NJ, USA) for almost the entire 2001-2002 academic year.

From September 14 to October 12, 2026, Professor Sergiy Kostrikov will work under the program at Miami University in Ohio (Oxford, Ohio, USA). His program of stay includes active cooperation with two key academic departments of the university:

• Department of Geography: lectures and seminars for students and faculty, joint work on research projects, exchange of pedagogical experience in the field of GIS and remote urban sensing.

• Havighurst Center for Russian and Post-Soviet Studies: a series of public lectures on the topic “Ukraine and Karazin University: Resilience and Education Despite the War”, participation in the center’s events, discussion of joint research projects on urban resilience, war consequences and post-war reconstruction of Ukraine.

In addition, the program of stay includes:

• visit to Ohio University to deliver a lecture on GIS and remote urban sensing

• meetings with the Governor of Ohio, mayors of several medium-sized cities in the state, and urban planning specialists in various locations;

• leading (together with an American colleague) a student expedition (field trip) within the framework of the discipline “Urban Planning and Regional Development” to Chicago, where for several days students will collect various data on the current state of the urban environment.

The BridgeUSA UPRR program is an important tool for supporting Ukrainian higher education and science in wartime. It not only opens up new horizons for Ukrainian researchers, but also contributes to the country’s recovery through the development of human potential and integration into the global academic space..