Serhii Sternenko, Serhiy Prytula, Tata Kepler, and Olga Rudnieva embody the very spirit of Ukrainian resilience. But as we navigate 2026, both the business community and civil society are facing a sobering reality: the sprint has become a marathon. With resources stretched thin, the question is no longer the ‘How do we start?’ — it’s ‘How do we sustain the long game?’
Where do these leaders find the drive to keep pushing?
At our winter FutureTech Meetup: United for 2026, we sat down with the architects of Ukraine’s most impactful volunteer movements. During the panel, «Finding Purpose in Challenging Times: Where to Draw Strength», we explored leadership, systemic endurance, and how the private sector’s moral commitment is evolving to meet the moment.
Meet The Panelists
- Serhii Sternenko, blogger, activist, and founder of the Sternenko Community Foundation
- Serhiy Prytula, founder of the Serhiy Prytula Charity Foundation
- Tata Kepler, volunteer, founder of the Ptakhy medical initiative
- Olga Rudnieva, CEO of Superhumans Center
Moderator: Nataliia Kryvda, PhD in Philosophy, Professor at Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv.
To dive into the whole discussion, please check our YouTube channel.
The «Why» Behind the Work
Nataliia Kryvda opened the session with a fundamental question:
What was the exact moment you committed to this path, and what keeps you on it today?
The takeaway was simple: for these leaders, standing on the sidelines was never an option. For them, the war didn’t begin in 2022, and the choice to act was less a decision and more an inevitability.
Serhii Sternenko traced his focus on FPV technology back to a conversation with his late friend, soldier Pavlo Petrychenko. The directive was clear:
Buy the drones that win.
Today, Sternenko sees FPV tech as the ultimate equalizer on the battlefield. For him, taking action is the most meaningful way to honor those we have lost.
Serhiy Prytula noted that by February 2022, his team already had eight years of operational experience. This allowed them to scale almost instantly. Serhiy believes it’s all about capability:
If you have the expertise and the network, your only job is to bring the right people together under a common goal.
Tata Kepler offered a more philosophical perspective on the roots of leadership:
The first person to pick up a tool wasn’t necessarily the strongest; they were simply the one who needed it more than anyone else.
Her initiative, which began with a single box of bandages from Israel, now sustains 85% of the tactical medicine needs for elite units like AZOV.
Beyond Motivation: The Discipline of Meaning
In a prolonged conflict, inspiration is a luxury. The panelists shifted the focus to the mechanics of endurance.
Olga Rudnieva observed:
Motivation is great for a 2-kilometer dash. For 10 kilometers, you need discipline. But for a marathon? You need meaning. And you have to find it yourself.
At the Superhumans Center, the mission is to restore faith. Rudnieva described their work as bordering on the miraculous:
When you give someone the ability to hug their family or hold their child’s hand again — that is impact on a transcendent level.
Redefining Resilience: A Professional Duty
The panel rejected the “tireless superhero” narrative, calling it a direct path to burnout. Tata Kepler believes that exhaustion is not a sign of failure:
We need to move past the ‘glossy’ image of volunteering. Sometimes, to stay in the fight tomorrow, you need to turn off your phone or visit a museum today.
Olga Rudnieva challenged leaders to view self-care as a professional obligation:
Your job isn’t to burn out in a blaze of glory. Your job is to stay functional. Pace yourself so you can be useful on the day of Victory — and every day after.
The Business Mandate: Survival is an Investment
The evening’s most urgent message to business leaders was clear: supporting Ukraine’s defense in 2026 isn’t charity but a strategic investment.
Serhiy Prytula didn’t mince words:
Supporting the Defense Forces isn’t a ‘donation.’ It is a direct investment in your company’s physical survival. Without an army, there is no state, no market, and no future.
Serhii Sternenko addressed the “neutrality” often found in global corporate offices:
Downing a drone is effectively ‘humanitarian demining’ in the sky. If you hesitate to support the Ukrainian soldier while the front is here, you will find yourself forced to support your own army when the front reaches your doorstep.
Breaking Systemic Barriers
While Ukraine’s volunteer sector has matured, significant hurdles remain when dealing with many businesses’ headquarters, wherever located. Serhiy Prytula addressed the business leaders:
Volunteers are the war’s critical service infrastructure. Don’t just come to us during a crisis. Partner with us systemically.
However, the «service infrastructure of the war» still faces friction:
- The Tax Trap: Corporate contributions are often still bogged down in red tape or treated as “capital flight.”
- The Global Office Gap: Multi-national HQs in cities like Vienna or Tokyo frequently veto “military” support, failing to realize that these donations protect their own local operations and staff.
Still, big breakthroughs also happen occasionally, as Serhiy Prytula shared: the Walmart in the US has recently allowed its customers to round up checks for the Prytula Charity Foundation.
Shared Values in Action
As the panel drew to a close, professor Natalia Kryvda quoted one of her students, now a soldier:
Today, European values are wearing Ukrainian pixel camouflage.
The final takeaway was clear: in times of turbulence, shared values and meaning are a strategic resource.
As a moderator, Natalia summed up:
Our meaning is dignity, freedom, and the rule of law. Dignity is ‘unpacked’ into antibiotics for the front; freedom is ‘unpacked’ into drones. Think about it.
