You're listening to TED Talks Daily. I'm Elise Hugh. The Russian invasion of Ukraine has destroyed so much, including hundreds of schools, where the next generation of Ukrainians were chasing their curiosities.

In her talk from the TED 2020 stage, Ukrainian education pioneer Zoya Litvin draws the important link between knowledge and the freedom Ukrainians are fighting for.

On the 24th of February, my daughter spoke for the first time.

First word was Babach, which means the sound of a great explosion. That night we walked to the concussive sound of bombs as our windows came crashing in.

It was the bombardment of Kiev.

I am someone who didn't believe it would happen.

I was born just a few days before the Chernobyl disaster

and a few years before the collapse of the Soviet Union.

I grew up in an independent Ukraine,

struggling to overcome the legacy of the Soviet system.

My mother and my grandmother worked very hard so that I could have a good education because they believe my generation

would build the country. And we have. Until six weeks ago, Ukraine was on an upward path, becoming more prosperous, more fair, more free.

In 2004 and 2013, we marched for democracy and we defeated autocracy.

So I was stunned when the windows crashed in. I froze,

speechless, motionless, absolutely helpless. That was my first lesson of war. What you cherish can be taken from you in a moment. Even your peace of mind.

My hands were still shaking as I fled to the west of Ukraine with my children and then over the border

to Slovakia. My husband and my parents remain in Kiev, help in our country.

As we traveled further from our family, I imagined all that was being destroyed, our homes, our

hospitals, our critical infrastructure, and so much more.

For 40 million people in my country and for billions around the globe,

February 24th is the day Russia invaded Ukraine.

For 7 million Ukrainian children, it is also the day Russia tried to take their future.

...