UKRAINIANS HONOUR OUR STAFF MEMBER – PROF. MICHAŁ PIASECKI AWARDED MULTIPLE HONORARY DOCTORATE

The distinction awarded to prof. Michał Piasecki was conferred on 26 September 2025. The decision was taken unanimously by the members of the Senate of Lesya Ukrainka Volyn National University in Lutsk. Earlier, in 2021, Uzhhorod National University (Ukraine) also honoured prof. Michał Piasecki (Institute of Physics, Faculty of Science & Technology, JDU) with the same title:
https://www.uzhnu.edu.ua/en/news/Doctor-of-Science-Professor-Micha-Piasecki-has-been-conferred.htm 

In addition, prof. Piasecki is a foreign member of the Latvian Academy of Sciences.

“Due to my extended stays abroad in autumn 2025, I was unable to travel to Lutsk earlier to receive the diploma in person, and I did not want it to be ‘delivered’ to me,” explains prof. Michał Piasecki.

The diploma was presented by Rector Prof. Anatolii Tsos during a ceremonial meeting of the Senate (Вчена Рада) on 29 January 2026. The laudation was delivered by prof. Galyna Myronchuk (Director of the Institute of Physics and Technical Sciences), who highlighted not only the effective scientific cooperation - over 60 publications in renowned journals co-authored with staff of the University in Lutsk and three research projects funded by Ukrainian institutions- but also prof. Piasecki’s engagement in promoting doctoral theses, organising numerous joint conferences, active participation in evaluation and accreditation procedures of the Institute, and the support he provides to graduates and academic staff in preparing dissertations, publications, and grant applications. Appreciation was also expressed for his assistance in obtaining internships and employment at foreign research institutions.

In turn, the Rector of Volyn National University, prof. Anatolii Tsos, highly valued prof. Piasecki’s regular presence at Ukrainian universities (a rare phenomenon amid the ongoing war), his efforts to expand cooperation into other academic disciplines, and his support in establishing contacts and organising collaboration with many universities in Ukraine and abroad.

More information can be found on the website of Volyn National University and on VNU social media (Facebook):
https://www.facebook.com/vnu.edu.ua/posts/pfbid02TrHW8yfMSB5qn7WqwnQsKhvF6Efos59iajbWME1GREmWYKWBr12wKEK8TA7aciHEl 
https://vnu.edu.ua/uk/news/profesoru-mikhalu-pyasetskomu-prysvoyeno-zvannya-doctor-honoris-causa-vnu-imeni-lesi-ukrayinky 
https://vnu.edu.ua/uk/news/profesor-mikhal-pyasetskyy-hist-vnu-imeni-lesi-ukrayinky 

Below we quote the key points from prof. Michał Piasecki’s brief speech delivered after receiving the diploma:

 
“Esteemed Senate,
Your Magnificence,

I am honoured to be personally with you on such a momentous occasion.

At the same time, more than 15 years have passed since I first came to Lutsk to your university, and today I look with joy at how rapidly it is developing.

I have always had - and still have - many friends here, from whom I cannot only learn and conduct research, but who, most importantly, have never let me down.

My cooperation with physicists and chemists, and in many cases our friendly relationships, have resulted in staff from my university and other institutions - among them physicists, chemists, pedagogues, physiotherapists, historians, philologists, and specialists in sport and physical culture - conducting joint research and participating in organised conferences.

It should be emphasised that for many years Rectors, Deans, and Heads from our universities, as well as others, have actively supported grassroots initiatives of cooperating academic staff, for which they deserve sincere thanks.

Thanks to my many years of cooperation with scientists from almost all over the world (including over 25 years with Ukraine), it has been possible to expand and intensify the cooperation of Lesya Ukrainka University, among others, with Ivan Franko University of Lviv, Uzhhorod National University, AGH University of Krakow, Koszalin University of Technology, institutes of the Polish Academy of Sciences, the University of Tartu in Estonia, and universities in France in Angers and Reims.

The tangible outcomes of these activities are monographs and highly valuable publications, joint research projects and organised conferences, as well as broad and effective exchanges of students, doctoral candidates, and staff.

In particular, the double-degree programmes I initiated additionally provide opportunities to learn about the partner country and its culture, and to establish long-lasting friendships among the young people of our countries.

I accept this distinction - the highest academic honour - not as a reward for my personal scientific and organisational work to date on behalf of your university, but as confirmation that the direction of my activities is appropriate and that there is a need for its continuation.

We meet here in a special and one of the most tragic periods in the history of your state, when our common enemy is destroying and attempting to occupy Ukraine. Despite this, while the primary goal is the defence of the country, you continue to educate young professionals and pursue scientific work.

Some of your students and staff who took up arms to fight for Ukraine’s freedom paid the highest price: they gave their lives or their health. They must never be forgotten.

Once again, I thank you all for this honour and wish for a swift end to the war on Ukrainian terms.

Glory to Ukraine! - Glory to the Heroes!”

 
Photo: archives of the University in Lutsk