From emergency to community: housing as care in times of displacement

Interview by Agata Maziarz Communication Advisor and Photographer at Commit gGmbH. 

About the interviewees:

Yuliia Popova – urban researcher and housing policy expert currently working at Housing Initiative for Eastern Europe (IWO). Yuliia is one of the key conceptual contributors to the Kalush project and has supported CO-HATY's efforts through her academic and policy work in Germany and Ukraine. Vidnova Placement Fellow (2024).

Iryna Yakovchuk – urban manager and researcher. Iryna joined the CO-HATY team in 2024 and is now a foundation board member. She previously co-founded the Urban Curators and brings years of experience in participatory urbanism and emergency architecture. Vidnova Lab Fellow (2025).

From displacement to housing justice

Agata: How do you relate to the CO-HATY and Vidnova initiatives?

Yuliia: I started working with METALAB in 2021, just before the full-scale invasion. My involvement was interrupted when I had to leave for Germany with my sister. Despite that, I stayed loosely connected, finalizing reports and staying in touch. Later, I joined the CO-HATY Kalush project to support fundraising and concept development.

Thanks to Vidnova Placement, I was able to return to Ivano-Frankivsk and reconnect with the team. That time was invaluable. It helped me stay aligned with the work that Metalab and CO-HATY are pioneering, especially in the area of affordable rental housing in Ukraine.

Iryna: I’ve been with CO-HATY for about six months, working primarily on the Kalush project. Previously, I led the NGO Urban Curators in Kyiv for nearly a decade. After the invasion, our work paused. My colleagues relocated, and together with Metalab, they initiated CO-HATY’s first pilot in Ivano-Frankivsk.

Yuliia’s involvement was crucial. She helped secure funding for Kalush and brought valuable insights from her work at IWO. Vidnova allowed her to rejoin the team and help us think through policy and strategy questions we’re still exploring.

Why housing?

Agata: What drew you into working on housing, specifically social or municipal models?

Yuliia: I started focusing on housing during my master’s studies in Germany, where I was exposed to the challenges of urban transition, both in Europe and the Global South. It was funny – several of my classmates who wanted to write about housing eventually gave up and focused on easier topics. My thesis was also on the “softer” side – I looked at the concept of social mix, a so-called “mantra for social integration”, in a case of municipal housing redevelopment in Stuttgart. I ended up concluding that even the social mix boils down to sustainable financing of housing, rather than social integration and community building. Writing my thesis, I realised how complex housing systems are: how they reflect rights, ownership, policy, and inequality.

When the war broke out, housing destruction became a major issue. Ukraine had a weak housing system to begin with: privatised, inefficient, and underfunded. The consequences of the Russian war of aggression exacerbated the situation. I understand housing as one of Ukraine’s most vulnerable systems, lacking resilience (adaptability and flexibility, diversified forms of housing provision, security of tenure). We can’t rebuild the country without tackling this. That’s why I stayed with the topic and consider the CO-HATY foundation, funded by my colleagues, as an amazing and much-needed initiative.

Iryna: For me, it was the urgency. During the first months of the invasion, cities in western Ukraine were overwhelmed by people fleeing violence. There was simply nowhere for them to stay. My colleagues, as architects, wanted to help.

They transformed an empty dormitory into a livable space for displaced people. Very soon, it was clear that these emergency solutions weren’t enough. Ukraine has virtually no public housing — as it is loosely estimated, well over 90% is privately owned*. The private rental market became unaffordable overnight, but remained in the shadows and insecure for the tenants. That’s how CO-HATY was born: as a response from architects and urbanists who refused to stay idle.

Kalush: a scalable model

Agata: What makes Kalush different from your projects?

Iryna: Kalush is our first long-term project where we will also manage the building for 10 years. Previously, we did renovations on buildings still owned by municipalities or other entities. We had little control over who moved in or how it was managed. 

In Kalush, we’re responsible for the full operation. That includes fundraising, leasing the building complex, full reconstruction, selecting tenants, designing community processes, and maintaining the building. We signed a long-term lease and can finally test what it means to be a responsible housing provider in Ukraine.

Yuliia: The project is located in a mid-sized industrial city, hardly a place that usually gets attention from donors. But we chose Kalush very deliberately: the city has 5,000 IDPs (Internally Displaced Persons), a very active IDPs Council, and a suitable building that had been abandoned for 15 years but was still reasonably well preserved by the municipality. We received crucial political support from the local government.

CO-HATY is not just creating long-term secure accommodation, but also pilots an affordable rental model for mid-sized cities. This is where scalable, affordable housing solutions are urgently needed. There is a lot of scepticism towards rental solutions in Ukraine, but most of the IDPs de facto are living in rental housing, and we believe that providing options of higher quality and affordability are necessary to demonstrate how the rental market can be improved and the social rental segment developed. The other projects of CO-HATY already demonstrate that, but in Kalush, it might be the next level.

Rethinking Selection and Community 

Agata: How do you balance fairness, urgency, and vulnerability when selecting tenants?

Yuliia: We apply three levels of criteria. First, national legislation outlines priority groups: single mothers, large families, disabled individuals, veterans and so on. Second, our donors require us to ensure a certain gender balance and basic financial sustainability. We need to make sure the building can be maintained in the long run. Third, CO-HATY emphasizes community spirit. We prioritize residents who are motivated to participate; people who want to help maintain common areas or even assist in finishing interior work. That connection to place matters. Maintenance starts the day the renovation ends.

Iryna: We try to reduce bureaucracy and keep the process transparent. It’s all based on a point system. This way, we avoid favoritizm and subjectivity. People know where they stand and why. We are developing the online application tool, which will be openly distributed among the IDPs registered in Kalush hromada (commune; basic territorial unit in Ukraine). Anyone can submit their application for residence in Zirochka. Anyways, there will also be a formal procedure with a committee, in which the key stakeholders of the project, including our donor and great supporter Habitat for Humanity International, will participate, and all the requirements must be adhered to.

The human side of architecture

Agata: How important are design and aesthetics in your projects?

Iryna: Extremely. Many of us are architects. But more importantly, we’re creating homes, not shelters. Aesthetic care is a form of dignity. We want people to feel they belong, not just survive. We use high-quality materials, minimalistic design, warm colors, and well-considered furniture layouts. People should not feel guilty about living well, even in hard times.

Yuliia: Aesthetics are also political. Ukraine’s rental market is a disaster: unregulated, unaesthetic, and unaffordable. We’re proving that even temporary or emergency housing can feel like home. That makes a difference.

Volunteers, professionals, and participation

Agata: Who actually does the renovation work?

Iryna: Initially, everything was volunteer-based. Today, we work with professional contractors, especially for major structural works. The Kalush renovation is over a million euros; it has to follow formal procurement and safety protocols.

But at the final stages, we welcome volunteers, especially future residents and community members. Painting, assembling furniture – these are great opportunities for engagement and learning.

Yuliia: Volunteering isn’t just about saving costs. It’s about ownership, about turning a housing unit into your home and community.

Policy, advocacy, and what’s next

Agata: What support do you need now – from individuals or institutions?

Iryna: We’re always fundraising. We still need resources to finish Kalush – some materials, kitchen equipment, and washing machines. Even basic donations make a difference. We also need more expertise in developing economic models for housing operators in Ukraine.

Yuliia: On the policy level, we need legal recognition of “housing providers.” The European Union requires it, and it would allow us to operate without overburdening taxation. Ukraine also needs more experts in non-ownership-based housing – lawyers, economists, and architects. Affordable rental housing isn’t a luxury. It’s becoming a necessity, and we need a pool of specialists to make the European models a reality in our context.

The role of Vidnova

Agata: What has Vidnova meant to you?

Iryna: Sometimes, you don’t need a big grant – just the chance to work together and think through a problem. Vidnova Placement gave us that space. Its flexibility allowed us to stay responsive, which is crucial in our uncertain reality.

Yuliia: I planned to stay for a month. I stayed for two. Reconnecting with the team on the ground was deeply meaningful for me, personally and professionally. I brought some policymakers to visit, hoping to bridge practice and policy. That’s my goal: to turn what we’re doing into long-term change.

*CEDOS. (2022). 37 theses about the current state, challenges, and principles of the new housing policy in Ukraine. CEDOS.