Olena Zelenska

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In this Eastern Slavic naming convention, the patronymic is Volodymyrivna and the family name is Zelenska.
Olena Zelenska
Олена Зеленська
Олена Зеленська.jpg
Zelenska in 2019
First Lady of Ukraine
Assumed role
20 May 2019[1]
PresidentVolodymyr Zelensky
Preceded byMaryna Poroshenko
Personal details
Born
Olena Volodymyrivna Kiyashko

(1978-02-06) 6 February 1978 (age 43)
Kryvyi Rih, Ukrainian SSR, Soviet Union (now Ukraine)
Spouse(s)
​
(m. 2003)​
Children2
Alma materKryvyi Rih National University
Occupation
  • Writer
  • architect

Olena Volodymyrivna Zelenska (Ukrainian: Олена Володимирівна Зеленська; née Kiyashko, Кіяшко; born 6 February 1978) is the current First Lady of Ukraine as the wife of President Volodymyr Zelensky.[2]

Life and work[]

Olena Kiyashko (maiden name) was born in Kryvyi Rih on 6 February 1978.[3] She and her future husband were schoolmates, but they were not acquainted. Zelensky once said that he knew many of her classmates, but not Olena. They got acquainted much later — when Olena was studying at the Faculty of Civil Engineering at Kryvyi Rih National University.

The relationship between the couple developed gradually — they dated for eight years before getting married on 6 September 2003. On 15 July 2004, their daughter Oleksandra was born. On 21 January 2013, Zelenska gave birth to their son Kyrylo.[4]

Zelenska did not do much work as an architect. Instead, she wrote texts for Kvartal 95. In her youth, she often accompanied Zelensky at performances and rehearsals, then gradually helped in the preparation of team acts. Later she became a full-fledged writer.[5]

In December 2019, Zelenska was included in the list of the 100 most influential Ukrainians by Focus magazine, taking 30th place.[6]

On 12 June 2020, Zelenska announced that she had tested positive for COVID-19.[7] Four days later, she was admitted to hospital for observation with the COVID-19 infection being described as "moderate severity" that did not need mechanical ventilation.[8] Zelenska was dismissed from hospital on 3 July 2020 with continued domestic treatment for bilateral pneumonia.[9]

First Lady of Ukraine[]

On May 20, 2019, Zelenska became the first lady of Ukraine. On November 18, she appeared on the cover of the December issue of the Ukrainian edition of Vogue (magazine). In an interview with the magazine, she spoke about her first initiative - nutrition reform in Ukrainian schools.[10][11]

At the initiative of Olena Zelenska, the reform of the school nutrition system started with a new school menu developed by chef Ievgen Klopotenko of CultFood. The reform is a complex program: from improving the quality, nutrition of food, and food safety to the provision of resources to schools. The updated school menu has 160 items: it includes both traditional Ukrainian dishes and popular dishes from different cuisines of the world.[12][13] The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine has approved new food standards, which will take effect on September 1, 2021.[14]

In December 2019, during a speech at the third Ukrainian Women's Congress, Zelenskaya initiated Ukraine's accession to the G7 international initiative on gender equality - the Biarritz Partnership.[15] As a result, in September 2020, Ukraine received the official status of a member of the Biarritz Partnership,[16] which combines the efforts of states to establish equal rights and opportunities for men and women.[17]

On January 13, 2020, Zelensky included Olena on the board of the Art Arsenal, headed by Minister of Culture Volodymyr Borodiansky.[18]

On May 6, 2020, Olena Zelenska initiated a long conversation with Ukrainians about being barrier-free.[19] The project partners were the Ministry of Digital Transformation and the Ministry of Social Policy of Ukraine. The main goal of the initiative is to make the barriers that exist in Ukrainian society visible, and their removal - a priority at the state level.[20]

On June 1, 2020, Zelenska and UNICEF in Ukraine signed a Memorandum of Understanding.[21]

On June 12, 2020, it was announced that Zelenskaya had contracted COVID-19. On June 16, she was hospitalized due to complications. On July 3, 2020, she was discharged from the hospital.[22]

In June 2020, Olena Zelenska started an initiative to spread the Ukrainian language in the world and the introduction of Ukrainian-language audio guides in the most iconic places, in particular - in the largest museums in the world.[23] As part of the initiative, 11 audio guides in Ukrainian were launched in 2020 in museums in Azerbaijan,[24] Austria,[25][26] Italy,[27][28] Latvia, Turkey,[29] and Montenegro,[30] as well as in two bus routes of Lithuania. In 2021, First Lady Olena Zelenska presented her Ukrainian-language audio guide initiative to the museum of Mount Vernon (the home of the first U.S. President),[31] and to the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco in California.[32]

On November 26, 2020, she spoke at the Fourth Ukrainian Women's Congress,[33] a platform that brings together Ukrainian and international public figures, politicians, government officials, experts, and opinion leaders for equal rights for women and men.

On November 27, 2020, Zelenska initiated the signing of a declaration between large Ukrainian and international companies to remove barriers to business.[34]

On December 2, 2020, it was announced that within the framework of Zelenskaya's initiative "Without Barriers," the Ministry of Digital Transformation and UNDP in Ukraine will create a convenient catalog of services for vulnerable groups.[35] The catalog will be posted on the state portal "Action" in the category "Action. Without barriers."[36]

In April 2021, Olena Zelenska initiated the creation of the Barrier-Free Council.[37]

References[]

  1. ^ правды», Екатерина БЕЛОКОНОВА | Сайт «Комсомольской (16 May 2019). "Инаугурация Владимира Зеленского состоится 20 мая". KP.RU - сайт «Комсомольской правды».
  2. ^ "UNIAN: Main facts about Ukraine's next first lady Olena Zelenska | KyivPost - Ukraine's Global Voice". KyivPost. 24 April 2019.
  3. ^ "СПІКЕРИ - Олена Зеленська - Перша леді України". Ukrainian Women's Congress. Retrieved 1 September 2021.
  4. ^ "ru:Зеленский Владимир" (in Russian). Archived from the original on 2 January 2019. Retrieved 19 August 2020.
  5. ^ Prengel, Kate (22 April 2019). "Olena Zelenska, Volodymyr Zelensky's Wife: 5 Fast Facts".
  6. ^ "100 самых влиятельных украинцев". Focus (Ukrainian magazine). 23 December 2019.
  7. ^ Ukraine leader cancels meetings, trips after wife tests positive for coronavirus, Reuters (12 June 2020)
  8. ^ Ukraine president's wife hospitalized with moderate COVID-19, Reuters (16 June 2020)
  9. ^ "Zelensky's wife overcame the coronavirus, but problems remain". Ukrayinska Pravda (in Ukrainian). 3 July 2020.
  10. ^ Вікторія Коломієць (18 November 2019). "Перша леді вирішила зайнятися реформою харчування у школах". Hromadske.TV.
  11. ^ "Как обезопасить школьные столовые: Зеленская приглашает присоединиться к онлайн-обучению" (in Russian). Ukrinform. 20 November 2020.
  12. ^ Презентовано План заходів з реформування системи шкільного харчування під патронатом Першої леді Олени Зеленської // Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine. — 24.05.2021.
  13. ^ Без цукру, солі та сосисок. Олена Зеленська та шеф-кухар Євген Клопотенко презентували оновлене шкільне меню // НВ. — 25.05.2021.
  14. ^ Як зміниться з вересня харчування в школах: розказують Олена Зеленська та Євген Клопотенко// 1+1 (TV channel). — 26.05.2021.
  15. ^ "Гендерна рівність: перша леді ініціює приєднання України до ініціативи G7 (фото, відео)". УНІАН. 10 December 2019.
  16. ^ "Уряд підтримав ініціативу Олени Зеленської щодо приєднання України до «Партнерства Біарріц»". Офіс Президента України. 7 May 2020.
  17. ^ Діана Ковальова (12 September 2020). "Україна отримала офіційний статус в міжнародному Партнерстві Біарріц". НВ.
  18. ^ "Зеленський ввів свою дружину до складу ради "Мистецького арсеналу"". РБК-Украина (in Russian). Retrieved 13 January 2020.
  19. ^ "Дружина Зеленського запросила українців до розмови". Українська правда. 6 May 2020.
  20. ^ Павло Калашник (6 May 2020). "Дружина Зеленського запросила українців на «велику розмову про безбар'єрність»". hromadske.ua.
  21. ^ "Зеленская и ЮНИСЕФ подписали меморандум относительно защиты прав детей" (in Russian). Укрінформ. 1 June 2020.
  22. ^ У дружини Зеленського діагностували пневмонію, її госпіталізували suspilne.media
  23. ^ "В этом году за рубежом заработали 11 украиноязычных аудиогидов – супруга Президента" (in Russian). Укрінформ. 30 December 2020.
  24. ^ "У Баку запустили аудіогід українською мовою". Gazeta.ua. 25 August 2020.
  25. ^ Дар‘я Харченко (5 June 2020). "В одному з найбільших музеїв Австрії з'явився україномовний гід". НВ.
  26. ^ Костянтин Гончаров (16 September 2020). "Ще один австрійський музей "заговорив" українською мовою (відео)". УНІАН.
  27. ^ Катерина Денісова (27 December 2020). "У римському Колізеї з'явився аудіогід українською мовою". НВ.
  28. ^ Борис Ткачук (27 December 2020). "У римському Колізеї аудіогід тепер можна послухати й українською мовою". hromadske.ua.
  29. ^ Юлія Каранковська (17 October 2020). "Повторила образ: Олена Зеленська зустрілася з першою леді Туреччини". ТСН.
  30. ^ "В Морском музее Черногории появился аудиогид на украинском" (in Russian). Укрінформ. 22 December 2020.
  31. ^ "The presidential couple visited Mount Vernon where Olena Zelenska presented a Ukrainian-language audio guide". President of Ukraine - Official website. 1 September 2021. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  32. ^ "Olena Zelenska initiates signing of memorandum on creation of Ukrainian-language audio guides with Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco". President of Ukraine - Official website. 3 September 2021. Retrieved 6 September 2021.
  33. ^ "Олена Зеленська відкрила другий день четвертого Українського жіночого конгресу". Офіс Президента України. 26 November 2020.
  34. ^ "Олена Зеленська ініціювала підписання декларації між великими українськими та міжнародними компаніями про усунення бар'єрів у бізнесі". Офіс Президента України. 27 November 2020.
  35. ^ "По инициативе Зеленской в «Дії» будет раздел для незащищенных групп населения" (in Russian). Укрінформ. 2 December 2020.
  36. ^ "За ініціативою Олени Зеленської на порталі «Дія» створять новий розділ з послугами для вразливих груп населення". Офіс Президента України. 2 December 2020.
  37. ^ "Олена Зеленська ініціювала створення Ради безбар'єрності". Офіс Президента України. 12 April 2021.


Honorary titles
Preceded by
Maryna Poroshenko 		First Lady of Ukraine
2019–present 		Succeeded by
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