First of all, I must thank the organizers of this event. And the most important thing to say is that this event was organized by very many people. On the back of your brochures, you have an organizing committee listed. And they’ve put in tons of hours into making this event happen. There are many others that have also worked very hard – some organized transportation from other cities, some helped arrange lodging, others have given us ideas for speakers and sponsors. So this is the event made by very many people, and I think that’s a very good thing that shows that it is something that a lot of people are interested in.

I also would like to say that it’s interesting why there are so many people interested in such an event. What’s interesting is that we live in America. We have problems, American problems: gasoline prices are rising, presidential elections are on the horizon – and yet we are thinking today about a country that’s thousands of miles away. Why is that? Well, for some of us, we just visited Ukraine, we heard about Ukraine and we are fascinated. And I think for most of us that will be understandable – we have a beautiful country. For others, they may be interested in working in Ukraine or working in a field that would require either Ukrainian, or Russian, or Polish language. And so that’s why they may be interested. But for most of us, I think it’s difficult to explain, but it’s just that whenever we hear «Ще не вмерла Україна» (Shche ne vmerla Ukrayina), our heart beats so much faster. And that’s why we keep being interested in events that are related to Ukraine and issues that are happening in Ukraine right now.

So that’s why I think our being here is validated and we should just continue the conversation. We should talk about Ukraine, we should talk about its progress over the last 15 years, and we should talk about its future. We should see how the Diaspora will play a role in this future, how the students will play a role in this future. Will students, Ukrainian students in America, have a role in Ukraine’s development? And if so, what role will that be? And why should non-Ukrainian students be interested in Ukraine as well?

So you see – there is a lot to talk about. So let’s just go ahead.