Alina Mykhailova has been involved in the war since 2014. She is a paramedic, volunteer, civic activist, deputy of the Kyiv City Council, and student of UCU’s School of Public Administration. From the start of the full-scale invasion, she has been coordinating a medical division and involved in evacuating the wounded directly at the frontline. “I do the work that I can do; or I can quickly learn how to do something else. I always feel that I do little, because it seems that I can do more,” she said.
Asked how she keeps up her spirits in this war, she responds: “My comrades, those who perished and those still alive. Hatred of Russians. This, perhaps, is not the best emotion, but it is so strong and rooted that it has given me strength for all eight years of the war, and now even more so. When things are difficult and you want to give up, I always think: ‘I don’t have the right to give up: I’m now in this war for my friends who perished.’”
“I, unfortunately, did not manage to study much at UCU and devote as much time to study as I should have. But the value of the knowledge has not diminished because of this. We had very many useful, practical lessons, which helped me at times as a political leader. After victory, we will have much more to do. So there’s a desire to create new politics and institutions, which Ukraine today needs,” she said.