The new phase of the war between Ukraine and Russia, the occupation of territories, the destruction of infrastructure and housing, the loss of human capital force the Ukrainian academic community to reconsider the role of universities, to determine their purpose (mission) and functions (directions of activity) during the war and post-war recovery in the broader context of the formation and development of a knowledge society.
In the state of war unleashed by Russia against Ukraine, not only the liquidation of Ukrainian statehood, but also the physical destruction of the Ukrainian people and their identity was under threat. Ukrainian society is consolidating, as this is the basic guarantee of its self-preservation. The demand for social responsibility in it is significantly increasing. This requires domestic universities to strengthen proactive and reactive social responsibility. In the conditions of the war, the need for the implementation of social projects and programs is sharply increasing, both to preserve the integrity and ensure the functioning of HEIs , and to maintain the vital activities of the communities to which they belong. The state of war in society deeply worsens the conditions for ensuring the proper quality of HE, which is a basic component of the social responsibility of universities. It is also obvious that in conditions of crisis, in periods when society is undergoing significant trials and transformations, the social role of HEIs is growing. This is especially clearly visible now in Ukraine, in the conditions of war. The social role of Ukrainian universities is no less critical at the stage of post-war reconstruction of Ukraine (Балджи, Власова, Калашнікова, Ковтунець, Литовченко, Оржель, Рябченко, та ін., 2022, p.28-30).
Since February 24, 2022, more than 7.2 million Ukrainians have left the country as refugees, and a third of the population has been internally displaced. Among the internally displaced persons are many teachers and students of higher education institutions. These people could become victims of various terrible events that seriously affected their mental and/or physical health, they could lose relatives or loved ones, housing, all their material savings, work, place of study. IDPs need material, financial, socio-pedagogical and psychological help and support. At the same time, they face complex challenges, as they have to cope with the stress of being forced to relocate and adapt their lifestyles to new conditions in an environment of uncertainty.
This report presents an overview of the capabilities of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in overcoming the humanitarian and social crisis, which is accompanied by the forced mass displacement of the population inside the country from dangerous regions close to the contact line to more protected places far from the front. Universities contribute to the social adaptation and social inclusion of IDPs by increasing the social responsibility of universities, which, in turn, represents an opportunity for social development in all its diversity of spheres of influence, such as organizational, educational, research, social, etc. The conducted activities and research were carried out within the framework of work package 4, Activity 6, aimed at expanding existing knowledge and practices regarding how Ukrainian higher education institutions contribute to overcoming the humanitarian and social crisis.

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