Arendalsuka: Ukrainian Victory Hub

📍 SMB Tent, Arendal
📅 Thursday, August 14
🕐 Panel discussions of 45 minutes each
Each session opens with the Ukrainian national anthem, performed by members of the Ukrainian diaspora in Kristiansand and Arendal, followed by one minute of silence for the victims of Russian aggression.

🗓 Thursday, August 14
🕐 13:00–13:45
🔹 Can SMEs Drive Innovation in the Norwegian Defence Industry?
How Small Innovators Are Shaping Big Battles
Ukraine’s wartime experience shows how small startups can deliver major technological leaps. What does it take for Norwegian SMEs to succeed as suppliers to the defense sector? The panel will lift the lid on a complex procurement and regulatory process, highlight where Norway’s support system genuinely helps and where it falls short, and discuss how Norwegian Ukrainian collaborative projects can elevate the sector. 

Beyond procurement challenges, the discussion will focus on how small and medium-sized enterprises can not only enter the Norwegian defense supply chain but also play a vital role in driving the sector’s future innovation. From agile product development and rapid prototyping to integrating cutting-edge civilian technologies into defense applications, SMEs have the flexibility and creativity needed to respond to evolving security demands. Ensuring these companies have access to markets, funding, and partnerships will be key to maintaining a competitive and forward-looking Norwegian defense industry.

Panel Participants:

Lars Petter Solås, SMB Norge (moderator)
Cathrine Lagerberg, Partner, InSilent AS
Timothy McGuire, Pentacle AS
Kjartan Tveitnes, Norwegian Ukrainian Chamber of Commerce
Ola Roch Jacobsen, Safety 24-7 Tech AS

🕐 14:00–14:45
🔹 Entrepreneurship in Exile – Ukrainian Entrepreneurs in Norway
Developing Ukrainian Business in Norway
Ukrainian Business Club Norway leads the discussion on barriers and solutions for Ukrainian entrepreneurs in the Norwegian market.
Panelists:

Association of Ukrainian employees
• NUCC (Tbc)

🕐 15:00–15:45
🔹 Mayors at War (English/Ukrainian)
Leadership, resilience, and partnership under pressure
How Ukrainian mayors became wartime leaders. The panel explores local governance in times of crisis and how Norwegian municipalities can contribute to rebuilding and cooperation.
Panelists:
• Five frontline Ukrainian mayors: Mykola Torianyk Head of Khotin Community, Anatolii Boiarchuk Head of Popivka Community Leonid Bilyk Head of Dubovyazivka Community Viktor Boroshniev Head of Bochechky Volodymyr Shtanko Head of Lypova Dolyna, Volodymyr Gordiienko Head of the Association of Lviv and Sumy regions, Mykhailo Horpenko, Head of the Employers’ Association of Sumy Region

🕐 16:00–16:45
🔹 Democracy Under Fire: Alliances for Ukraine’s Victory (English)
What does solidarity mean in practice when Ukraine is fighting for democracy? The panel examines Europe’s democratic and moral responsibilities in the face of war, how solidarity moves from rhetoric to coordinated action—through diplomacy, defense, civil engagement, and strategic alliances. We will discuss Norway’s role in shaping a principled foreign security policy to accelerate Ukraine’s victory and safeguard democratic norms across the continent. Norway can afford to lead – will it?

Panelists:
Ambassadors, politicians, defense, Norwegian political parties, NGOs, journalists, artists, volunteers, business

– Ola Elvestuen, Member of the Storting (Liberal Party)
– Ms. Amy Baker, Ambassador of Canada to Norway
– Mikael Eriksson, Ambassador of Sweden to Norway (tbc)
– Bård Vegar Solhjell, CEO of Renewable Norway; Former Director of Norad; board member of Fritt Ord
– Idar Kreutzer, Director, NHO
– Thorstein Korsvold, Director of Communications, NAMMO
– Aliona Yatsyna, Executive Director and Co-Founder, Kordon.Media (Sumy Region)
– Oystein Djupedahl, Founder of Arendalsuke, Former Minister of Education of Norway
• Dr. Liliya Honcharevych, Chair of Carpathian Sea Democracy Week, Former Acting Ambassador of Ukraine to Norway

Charity Auction

🕐 17:00–17:45
🔹 Civil Society as Ukraine’s Backbone: From Resistance to Reconstruction
When democracy bleeds, it is civil society that stitches the wound. In Ukraine and abroad, NGOs, volunteers have evolved into a powerful force — often more agile, innovative, and effective than state institutions – to react, unite, help, heel, restore.
When democracy is under siege, army and civil society becomes its strongest shield at the front and in the rear.
Highlight the evolving and indispensable role of civil society in Ukraine and Norway —not just as a support system during wartime, but as a driving force for democratic resilience and post-war recovery.
Marathon of ideas – how to make the cooperation between the state, civil society, business more effective.

Panelists:

CSDW, Ukrainian freedom convoys, Fritt Ord, Ukrainian Venneforening, SMB, Association of Lviv and Sumy cities, Association of Ukrainian business, Tor Utsogn (Kristiansand).

– Dr. Liliya Honcharevych, CSDW Chair, founder of Ukrainian Victory hub at Arendalsuke
– Oystein Djupedahl, Founder of Arendalsuke, Former Minister of Education of Norway
– Kjartan Svaland Tveitnes, Managing Director, Norwegian-Ukrainian Chamber of Commerce (NUCC)
– Lars Solås, UFC
– Roger Schjerva, Board member of Norsk Ukrainsk Venneforening, Rud Pedersen Public Affairs
– Åsmund Prytz, Head of International Affairs, SMB Norway
– Mykhailo Horpenko, Head of the Employers’ Association of Sumy Region
Shveina Rota, a social Ukrainian project in Arendal to sew and send adaptive clothing and equipment to Ukraine.
Public Policy Development Office – PPDO (moderator)

Charity auction

 Closing Artistic Performance
“America, Europe, Don’t Bury Your Head in the Sand”
A symbolic artistic performance from the Ukrainian diaspora in Norway – a powerful cultural statement for freedom and solidarity.

Ukrainian sweets, coffee, tea will be served

Welcome to the Ukrainian Victory Hub at Arendalsuka 2025!
📍 SMB Norway’s tent, Arendal city center
📆 August 14, 2025
Organized by Carpathian Sea Democracy Week and SMB Norway