Beans on Borscht

In this episode, we shift the spotlight from Ukrainian to English — the language that rarely has to struggle to be heard. We talk about the strange privilege of travelling as a native English speaker: never really worrying whether you’ll be understood, only feeling that quiet embarrassment when your “un café con leche” is answered in flawless English. We ask whether second or third languages creat...

In this first part of our two-episode series on language, we begin with a difficult but necessary question: what role do words play before violence begins? This episode explores the idea that language is not just cultural expression or communication – it can also be a political tool, a marker of identity, and sometimes a precursor to conflict. We start with the concept of Russian insurgents operat...

In the second episode of Beans on Borscht , we talk about what happens after an attack – when the noise fades, and the power disappears. Picking up from our previous conversation about drones, this episode looks at the consequences of strikes on civilian infrastructure. Blackouts in Ukraine are not accidental outages or short-term disruptions. Since late 2022, energy systems have been deliberately...

In this episode, we speak with Hanna, who is living in Kyiv as the war intensifies. She shares what daily life looks like in an active war zone, including the growing frequency of drone attacks, how they work, and what it means to live under their constant threat. We also look at how international media covers the war – and what often gets missed. Most importantly, Hanna reflects on how people cop...