Assistant Professor of Architecture Ashley Bigham was interviewed by The Architect’s Newspaper about the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Bigham, who was a Fulbright Fellow in Ukraine in 2014, talks about the immediate need for safety, the buildings and cities that may be lost to the invasion, and how architects and students are responding.

One colleague from the Kharkiv School said they “dream of returning to rebuild Kharkiv,” but for now, their focus is on their immediate safety. Every day of this war is bringing new challenges for citizens. There will be a time when architects will play a role in rebuilding Ukraine, but right now practitioners are doing what all Ukrainians are doing: volunteering to defend their cities, cooking food for displaced people, learning first-aid skills, sheltering children or the elderly… simply trying to survive.