Ecocide in Ukraine

Russia's war on Ukraine has not only destroyed millions of human lives, it has also been catastrophic for the environment. Forests and fields have been burned to the ground, animal and plant species pushed to the brink of extinction, soil and water contaminated with oil products, debris, and mines. On a single day in June 2023, the breached Kakhovka Dam flooded thousands of kilometres of protected natural habitat, as well as villages, towns, and agricultural land. The devastation of biodiversity and ecosystems across Ukraine has been immeasurable, long-lasting and its consequences stretch beyond national borders. In this poignant book, Ukrainian researcher Darya Tsymbalyuk offers an intimateportraitof her beloved homelandagainst the backdrop ofRussia's war and ecocide. In elegant and moving prose, she describes the damage to thecountry'srivers,thegrasslands of the steppes,animals, insects, andcolonies of birds, as a result of Russia's ground and air operations. Alongside the everyday experiences of people in Ukraine living with the environmental consequences of the war, we share Tsymbalyuk's own reckoning with the changing nature ofcherishedplaces and the loss of familiar worlds caused by the ongoing Russian invasion.