Taras Demyanets moved to Vienna from Ukraine 22 years ago to work at Erste Group. Today he leads the Enterprise Architecture team at Erste Digital.

In his free time, he helps Ukrainians who fled the war at the Caritas day center in the Erste Tower. He translates, advises, above all listens and encourages. He wants to be a role model for humanity for his sons and teach them critical thinking.

Taras Demyanets: “I feel connected to my country of birth and feel an obligation to help. I am using every free minute I have to answer questions in Ukrainian at the Caritas day centre – for example, about where to get support or how to fill out forms. But above all, I am listening. I am very moved by those people’s plight, their stories and what they had to go through. Many of the refugees can no longer return to their hometowns, many houses are ruined. The people I talk to are very grateful for a sympathetic ear, and I am glad that I can at least do that for them.”