Ukrainian museum cats are conquering the world!
By Ōtepoti He Puna Auaha | Dunedin UNESCO City of Literature | Posted: Wednesday Sep 16, 2026
Vote now and help Odesa's museum cats win! Voting is open until October 10!
Incredible news to share! "Odesa. Museum Diary of War" — a project by Olena Ilyasova and Maria Odesaova of the Odesa Municipal Museum of Personal Collections named after O.V. Bleshchunov — has made the shortlist for the prestigious ICOM COMMS Awards 2026, held under the auspices of UNESCO. Often called the "Oscars" of the museum world, this award recognises the best global achievements in museum communications, marketing, and digital projects.
Here's a message from the Odesa Unesco City of Literature:
"We are the ONLY museum from Ukraine to pass the rigorous jury selection among 112 projects from 62 countries across five continents! And our graphic novella is competing for victory in TWO categories:
1. Best Storytelling — for our story of saving cultural heritage during the full-scale war in Ukraine, told through the eyes of two museum cats, Marisela and Panna Koty.
2. Best of the Year — the competition's top category, where we stand alongside leading museums from Germany, Mexico, Chile, and Palestine.
The winner isn't chosen by the jury alone — it's decided 'Eurovision-style' through open public voting. That means the outcome is in YOUR hands. Please cast your vote and help us bring this recognition home to Ukraine!"
HOW TO VOTE IN 2 MINUTES
Follow the link with participants' projects: Choose the winners - ICOM COMMS - ICOM COMMS
Scroll down the page and click the "Open the voting form" button
Enter your Email, fill out the form and check the terms of security.
Important! Mark our project in two categories (you need to vote in all 10 nominations to count your vote):
Category 4 (Best Storytelling): we choose project D — Museum Diary of War. Bleshchunov Odesa Museum (Ukraine).
Category 10 (Best of the Year): we choose project E — Museum Diary of War. Bleshchunov Odesa Museum (Ukraine).