Global Clearance Solutions (GCS)’ Ukraine team were moved by our visit to the UNDP photo exhibition in Kyiv’s St Sophia’s Square "Defining Futures: People, Tech and Teams for a Mine-Free Ukraine” by photographer Giles Duley MBE , the United Nations Global Advocate for people with disabilities in conflict and peacebuilding situations.

The exhibition, which is a joint project by the UNDP and the Legacy Of War Foundation, is dedicated to the International Day for Mine Awareness and Assistance, marked annually on April 4. Available until 19 April 2024, the exhibition aims to raise awareness about mine action and mine victim assistance in Ukraine.

Photographer Giles Duley has for over 20 years been documenting the impact on landmines and UXOs globally on civilians, often decades after wars have ended, in countries such as Angola, Cambodia, Laos, Colombia, Lebanon, Iraq and Vietnam. Since 2015, he has been documenting the contamination of land in Ukraine. Speaking at the opening of the exhibition, Duley said its purpose was to inspire action to improve the mine-contamination situation in Ukraine.

“With this exhibition I hope to bring home the realities of landmine and unexploded ordnance contamination in Ukraine. All I ask is that as governments, NGOs, business, and individuals, we all ask ourselves this question: Are we doing all we can to make sure the legacy for future generations is one of peace and safety in a landmine free Ukraine?”

You can find out more about the exhibition, as well as the work of the UNDP and Giles’ Legacy of War Foundation here: UNDP-supported photo exhibition in Kyiv aims to raise awareness of landmine contamination in Ukraine | United Nations Development Programme