Five billion Swiss francs — that is how much Switzerland plans to allocate to Ukraine’s reconstruction through 2036. CHF 1.5 billion has already been earmarked for the first phase, running through 2028. Behind these figures are not only large-scale government programmes, but also opportunities for entrepreneurs, non-governmental organisations and initiatives capable of offering practical solutions.

For many Ukrainians in Switzerland, grant funding can still seem like a complicated system accessible only to large organisations and experienced professionals. In reality, a grant is neither a stroke of luck nor a privilege reserved for a select few. It is one of the tools available for development. Making effective use of it requires an understanding of where to find opportunities, how to present an idea and what criteria determine funding decisions.

We spoke about this with Svitlana Olieinikova, founder of Synergy Universe, Ukraine’s first fundraising ecosystem. Over more than twenty years in the field, she has helped secure over €40 million in funding. Today, she explains how to take a promising idea and turn it into a project that funders are prepared to trust with their money.

Svitlana, today you are known as an international expert in strategic development, grant funding and project scaling. But where did your journey begin? When did you realise this was what you wanted to devote your life to?

It all started with the Donbas Regional Development Agency. At the time, I wasn’t thinking in grand terms like “my life’s work”. I simply saw people around me with strong ideas who had no idea how to turn them into real projects, while resources existed somewhere nearby but never reached those who needed them most. My job was to connect the two: an idea with funding, a person with an opportunity, a community with its future.

The moment I realised this was truly my path was very specific. I saw a project we had worked on through the night, rewriting the application yet again, actually come to life — and change the lives of real people rather than simply filling paragraphs in a document. That was when I understood that funding is not really about money. It is about trust — the trust someone is willing to place in another person’s dream.

Over time, that journey took me to a programme at Stanford University and international leadership programmes, to my work as a national consultant for the Council of Europe in Ukraine and, eventually, to building my own organisations: Synergy Universe, Ukraine’s first fundraising ecosystem, and the NGO International Agency for Change.

More than twenty years have passed since then, yet that original feeling has never changed.

Over more than twenty years, you have helped secure over €40 million in international funding. Which achievement are you most proud of? Is it the amount raised, the projects that were implemented, or the people whose lives changed because of your work?

Honestly? Forty million euros is an important figure, and I am proud of it, because behind every million there were sleepless nights, negotiations and rejections that forced us to get back up and try again. But numbers are not how I measure my work. Money is a tool. It only matters when there are people behind it whose lives have genuinely changed.

So if we are talking about what truly makes me proud, there are two things.

The first is seeing my mission become reality: hundreds of people and teams who came to believe they were capable of working at an international level — and proved it. That is exactly why I created Synergy Academy. I wanted to do more than write applications myself; I wanted to build an entire professional community that would continue doing this work for Ukraine long after me.

I even came up with a term for a new profession: the “grant architect” — someone who combines analytics, technology, strategy and management.

The second — and probably the most important — is my children. Because everything I do professionally is also about helping create a world in which they grow up seeing “Ukrainian” as synonymous with quality, ambition and trust. I want them to see that you can remain true to yourself and your roots while building something that stands alongside the best in the world.

If you had to describe your professional mission in three words, what would they be?

I would choose three words: Connect. Scale. Develop.

Connect — because my work has always been about building bridges: between an idea and a resource, between a person and an opportunity, between Ukraine and the world.

Scale — because I am not interested in one-off successes. I am interested in things that continue to grow even after I step away. That is exactly why I built an ecosystem rather than simply a consultancy.

And develop — because people are at the heart of everything, and one of the most valuable things you can do is help someone become stronger than they ever imagined they could be.

You have analysed thousands of projects. Can you tell after the first meeting whether an idea has the potential to succeed internationally? What do you look at first?

Yes, and quite often it becomes clear within the first fifteen minutes. After years of working with donors such as USAID, the World Bank, the EU, KfW, the Council of Europe and UNDP, you develop a trained eye.

But I am not primarily looking at the idea itself. There are plenty of ideas, and almost all of them sound good on paper. I look at the person behind the idea.

There are three things I focus on first.

The first is whether the founder understands the problem they are solving more deeply than anyone else in the room. If someone talks about “the market in general”, that raises a red flag. If they can describe a specific problem affecting specific people, I listen much more closely.

The second is their willingness to listen and adapt. International success rarely comes to people who are in love with the first version of their idea. It comes to people who are committed to solving the problem and flexible about the solution.

The third is resilience. The path to international funding is a marathon that includes rejection, and I can usually sense quite quickly who will stop after the third “no” and who will keep going until they reach the “yes” that changes everything.

Why do some projects receive international funding while others do not, even when the idea itself seems strong? What mistakes do you see most often in grant applications?

The most common misconception is that people think the best idea gets funded. In reality, funding goes to the project that is best prepared and easiest for the donor to understand. Those are two different things.

A strong idea that is poorly presented can lose to an average idea that is explained clearly, logically and with evidence. I see this every day — which is exactly why I built an entire school around the process of preparing grant applications.

The mistakes I see again and again are fairly typical.

The first is writing the application from the applicant’s perspective instead of the donor’s. The founder explains what they want, rather than showing how their project will help the donor achieve its own objectives.

The second is vague outcomes. “We will improve the situation” is not an outcome. An outcome means numbers, timelines and specific changes that can be measured.

The third is the absence of a realistic budget and a clear sustainability plan. A donor wants to know what will happen to the project after their funding ends.

And the fourth — the most subtle — is whether the application inspires confidence. Donors read between the lines to assess whether the team is genuinely capable of delivering what it promises. If an application is careless, contradictory or full of exaggeration, that trust disappears, however attractive the idea itself may be.

What matters most to international donors today? Which criteria have become decisive when projects are evaluated?

The donor landscape has changed significantly in recent years, and several criteria have become much more prominent.

The most important is genuine, measurable impact. The era of attractive concepts alone is over. Today, donors want to see a theory of change, clear indicators and evidence that a project can actually deliver the change it promises.

The second criterion that has become almost essential is sustainability and scalability. Donors are increasingly reluctant to fund something that will disappear the moment the money runs out. They want to understand how the work can continue and whether the model can be replicated in other contexts.

The third is transparency and sound governance: how a team manages money, how it reports, and how honestly it acknowledges risks. As a strategic management consultant working according to the ISO 20700 standard, I see how much donors now value the maturity of an organisation’s processes.

Cross-cutting priorities are also becoming increasingly important: engagement with local communities, gender equality, environmental responsibility and digitalisation.

Partnerships matter greatly as well. A project backed by a coalition tends to inspire more confidence than one driven by a single player.

Put simply, success goes to those who can demonstrate both a strong idea and the mature, responsible capacity required to deliver it.

How has the attitude of international foundations towards Ukraine and Ukrainian projects changed since the start of the full-scale war? Do you see new opportunities for Ukrainians?

The change has been enormous, and it has two dimensions.

On the one hand, there has been unprecedented attention and solidarity. Ukraine has found itself at the centre of global attention, bringing with it resources, programmes and partnerships that simply did not exist before. Doors that had remained only slightly open for years suddenly opened wide.

At the same time, expectations have also risen. Ukrainian projects are now scrutinised more closely because the stakes are high, and every donor wants to know that their support is genuinely delivering results.

I see an enormous number of opportunities, and my main advice is to make the most of this historic moment.

There are currently programmes supporting reconstruction, entrepreneurship, digital solutions, cultural and educational initiatives, relocation and business integration. The Ukrainian context today inspires respect rather than pity. The world has seen our resilience, creativity and ability to work under seemingly impossible conditions. That is an asset.

We have experienced this ourselves at Synergy. Our events have expanded beyond Ukraine to Vienna, Warsaw, Zurich and Bern because there is demand for Ukrainian expertise everywhere.

I always tell fellow Ukrainians: do not approach a donor saying, “Things are difficult for us, please help.” Approach them saying, “We are strong, we have solutions — let’s become partners.” That mindset is what opens the door to genuinely significant opportunities.

If a Ukrainian entrepreneur, start-up or NGO in Switzerland approached you today and said, “We want to secure an international grant, but we have no idea where to begin,” what first steps would you recommend?

The first thing I would tell them is: do not start by searching for grants. That is the most common mistake.

Start by answering three questions clearly: What problem are you solving? Who are you solving it for? And what measurable result will you be able to demonstrate?

As long as those answers remain vague, any attempt to secure a grant is likely to become a waste of time and energy.

From there, I recommend following a specific sequence.

First, develop the project properly: formulate a theory of change, build a realistic budget and gather evidence that your team is capable of delivering it.

Then research the donor landscape specifically for your project. Switzerland offers excellent opportunities in this respect: there are mechanisms through SECO and Swiss development cooperation, projects such as UCORD focusing on cohesion and regional development, cantonal and federal programmes, and funds supporting entrepreneurship.

The key is to stay focused and identify donors whose priorities genuinely align with your own.

The third step is to build relationships, rather than simply submitting applications. The strongest grant opportunities often grow out of conversations rather than cold applications. Attend relevant industry events, find partners and speak to people who have already been through the process.

And fourth, do not be afraid to seek expert support at the beginning. One well-structured application can often be worth ten applications submitted at random. I always say: submit fewer applications, but make them stronger.

Living in Switzerland and working internationally, you are exposed to many opportunities. Which ones do you think Ukrainians underestimate the most today?

There are two things Ukrainians underestimate most.

The first is the value of their own expertise and experience. Ukrainians who have lived through the past few years have developed an extraordinary ability to operate in uncertainty, make decisions quickly and build something from nothing. Those are precisely the skills that are highly valued in the West and are often in short supply here.

We sometimes downplay that experience and see it as “just surviving”, when in reality it has given us a rare professional superpower.

The second underestimated opportunity is networking and partnership-building.

Ukrainians abroad often tend to work alone, rely only on themselves, avoid asking for help and fail to build enough connections. Yet in Switzerland, and in the Western world more broadly, so much is built on relationships and reputation. People open doors.

Whenever we held events in Zurich and Bern, I saw the same thing: as soon as Ukrainians started working together, exchanging contacts and recommending one another, the range of opportunities expanded dramatically.

The Ukrainian diaspora today is an enormous yet largely unstructured force. If we learned to act in a coordinated way, support one another and pool our resources, we would be capable of achieving far more than any of us could accomplish alone.

The world is changing rapidly, and you actively use artificial intelligence in your work. How do you think AI will change international grants, consulting and business development over the next few years?

AI is already transforming the field, and the pace will only accelerate.

In grant work, it is taking over much of the routine work that once consumed the majority of people’s time: identifying relevant programmes, analysing donor requirements, producing initial application drafts and checking budgets for internal logic. Work that once took weeks can now be completed in days.

This is democratising access. A small organisation without a large consulting budget can now prepare an application at a level that was once achievable only by major players.

In my own practice, I recommend structuring AI prompts around individual sections of an application, using several tools in parallel and always building in multiple layers of review. AI should be used as an assistant rather than as an autonomous member of the team.

But there is something else I would add, something that is often forgotten amid all the excitement around technology: AI can accelerate processes, but it cannot replace expertise.

It will never replace what lies at the heart of my work — trust, intuition, the ability to understand another person and build relationships.

Artificial intelligence can produce excellent text, but it cannot fully understand regional nuances, recognise a donor’s unspoken priorities or look a founder in the eye and work out whether that person will actually see the journey through to the end.

That is precisely why I talk about the emergence of a new profession: the “grant architect”, who combines data, technology, strategy and process management.

I see the future as an “expert augmented by AI”. The people who succeed will be those who learn to delegate routine tasks to machines and invest the time they save in the things that make us human: strategy, relationships and meaning.

Those who ignore these tools will simply fall behind.

Looking ahead, which skills will be most valuable for entrepreneurs and leaders five to ten years from now? What should people start preparing for today?

The paradox is that the more automated the world becomes, the more valuable distinctly human skills will become.

Machines will handle technical tasks faster than we can, which means the greatest value will lie in the things they cannot do.

First and foremost, adaptability and the ability to keep learning throughout your life. Professions, markets and tools will change so quickly that specific knowledge may become outdated within a few years. The people who succeed will be those who can learn and relearn fastest.

I would also highlight critical thinking and the ability to ask the right questions. In a world where AI can provide thousands of answers, the real value shifts towards the person who knows how to ask a precise question and distinguish a high-quality answer from something that merely sounds plausible.

Emotional intelligence will become increasingly important as well: the ability to lead, negotiate, build trust and work effectively with people from different cultures.

And then there is digital and AI literacy. You do not necessarily need to know how to code, but you absolutely need to understand what these tools can and cannot do.

In essence, these are the same four competencies that make up the “grant architect” I described earlier: analytics, technology, strategy and management.

Above all of them, however, are resilience and clarity of values. When everything around you changes from one day to the next, having a strong inner foundation and knowing why you are doing what you do ceases to be a “soft skill” and becomes a major competitive advantage.

We need to start preparing for that today — and the best way to do it is simple: never stop growing.

What do you think Ukraine will look like ten years from now? And what role can Ukrainians currently living in Switzerland and other countries play in its development?

Ten years from now, I see Ukraine as a country that has turned the greatest ordeal in its history into the foundation for a leap forward.

I see a country that has gone beyond reconstruction and reimagined itself: with a modern economy, strong institutions, world-class digital solutions and a reputation as a nation that showed the entire world what it means to fight for freedom and dignity.

I believe in a Ukraine where talented people return rather than leave, because there are more opportunities there than anywhere else. It is an ambitious vision, but after everything we have been through, I no longer know how to dream small.

And Ukrainians living abroad have an enormous role to play in that future.

We often speak about the diaspora in terms of loss. I see it differently: millions of Ukrainians around the world are our bridge to the future.

We can bring home far more than financial resources. We bring knowledge, standards, networks and experience gained from working within some of the world’s leading companies and systems.

Those living in Switzerland, the EU and the United States today can become conduits for investment, partnerships and technology — people who connect Ukraine with the rest of the world as equals.

That is why I am building Synergy Universe as an ecosystem without borders — from Kyiv to Vienna, Warsaw, Zurich and Bern.

I do not believe in dividing Ukrainians into “those who left” and “those who stayed”. We are one nation working on two fronts — at home and abroad.

And if we learn to work in a coordinated way, support one another and carry the Ukrainian name with dignity, then ten years from now the world will speak about Ukrainians not as people who needed help, but as people others look to and learn from.

That is the future I am working towards.

From the Editors

Svitlana Olieinikova’s story is a reminder that even the strongest idea needs a clear strategy, trust and people who are prepared to turn it into reality consistently and systematically. In that process, international funding is not the end goal. It is a tool that can transform an idea into tangible change.

Today, Ukrainians have access to a wide range of opportunities. Making the most of them requires the ability to articulate our own value, build partnerships and offer the world more than a story about hardship — we must also offer practical solutions. Ukrainian experience, resilience and the ability to operate in uncertainty have already become genuine competitive strengths.

Perhaps the central takeaway from this conversation is that meaningful change begins with the ability to see opportunities where others see only obstacles — and with the willingness to bring people, knowledge and resources together in pursuit of a shared result.