Patron Valeriy Syrovatskiy: Children’s Day is reminder of responsibility to adults

On the eve of the International Children’s Day, the Journalist correspondent met with the famous Ukrainian philanthropist, lawyer and human rights activist Valeriy Syrovatskiy. The Valeriy Syrovatskiy Charitable Foundation and the Valeria Medical Clinic, founded by the patron of the arts, regularly support projects for children. At the beginning of June, the clinic of Valeriy Syrovatskiy will support the charitable children’s inclusive festival “Druzi Fest” (Friends Fest), and the foundation will hold several actions in Kyiv.

– Valeriy Ivanovich, what in your opinion should be the main message of the events dedicated to the Children’s Day, in terms of the relevance of this topic for Ukraine?

– I think that the topic of adults’ responsibility to children is relevant 365 days a year and is not tied to any particular date. International Children’s Day is more likely an opportunity to be a reminder of this. The needs of children for safety, healthy development, education, and the acquisition of a valuable and cultural foundation is the task of each of us as adults. We should be fully aware of our role in the life of not only our children, but also those who lost parental care or have found themselves in difficult living conditions since childhood. Only we can form a healthy society around ourselves, if we learn not to pass by those who need our support. 

– What do you think should be the main theme for the unification of society in order to create a safe and supportive environment for children?

– To fight against indifference and cultivate empathy towards each other. In a global sense, we are all hostages of the information field, which constantly forming our thoughts. At the same time, there are hundreds of processes among which you can benefit from, not necessarily financially, but by focusing on real needs of those who around you. I am glad that many initiatives are being implemented in Ukraine and everyone can find their place in the social system. Remember your childhood – most often we remember those who taught us something by example, by deed or by word. You need periodically emerge from the hustle and bustle, look around and become the cause of good changes in the lives of others.

– Your initiatives, in particular, the Valeriy Syrovatskiy Charitable Foundation and the social responsibility of your companies, is it an internal need or an effective component of running a socially oriented business?

– This is the practical realization of the same personal responsibility. The cycle of events in our world occurs by the hands of people, it is we, it is our actions are the motive progress. If you managed to build some working systems around you, then it is important to remember that their essence is always not in technology, but in people who implement this technology. Therefore, it is always personal growth and internal progress when there is an opportunity to help a specific person, community or society as a whole. It is possible to struggle with windmills of someone else’s opinion for a very long time, and you can independently build the trajectory of your path and change the situation around for the better. It is a choice that largely determines the quality of life.