Ukraine's academic potential during the war: understanding influencing factors and preservation strategies

This article offers a comprehensive analysis and strategic plan for rejuvenating Ukraine's scientific landscape in the face of a protracted full-scale war and its impact on higher education institutions and the academic community. Considering the interaction of socio-economic, socio-psychological, professional and personal factors, the study highlights the serious challenges, faced by academic staff in maintaining and developing academic potential in new realities. Recognizing the preservation and sustainability of academic potential as one of the most important problems, the article argues for the positioning of education, science, technology and innovation at the center of Ukraine's strategic recovery. The proposed roadmap emphasizes the need for systemic reforms and the development of a sustainable institutional ecosystem that integrates people-centric and infrastructure-based strategies. A detailed analysis of 18 key elements, equally divided between people-centric and infrastructure categories, identifies specific actions, needed at different levels. These measures aim to respond to urgent needs while laying the foundation for the long-term sustainability, competitiveness and inclusiveness of Ukrainian higher education and science. The plan emphasizes the importance of international support in bringing funding, technology and expertise to meet the challenges of war, and emphasizes the critical need to ensure the physical safety of scientists, adapt infrastructure to military conditions, and promote innovative research and international cooperation. This strategic approach requires active efforts to prevent the loss of academic potential and ensure the sustainable future of Ukraine as a nation with a high level of educational services and scientific research, which is integrated into the European Union. By harmonizing with European standards and the Sustainable Development Goals, supporting the development of high-tech industries necessary for the state's defense capability, and using the "Triple Helix" model of cooperation between academia, industry and government, this strategic plan defines a roadmap for the reboot and development of Ukrainian higher education and science. This roadmap is aimed not only at overcoming the immediate challenges of the war, but also at creating Ukraine as a free, independent and self-sufficient state with a vibrant and globally competitive academic community.