Panel

2 July | Ognisko Polskie and the Lady Ryder of Warsaw Memorial Trust a talk by Prof. Arkady Rzegocki: ‘Charity and Humanitarian Aid’

• Date: Wednesday, July 2, 2025
• Time: 7:00pm for 7:30pm

With wars continually being waged, and urgent crises needing to be resolved, the role of ‘Charity and Humanitarian Aid’ is constantly being reassessed. The Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022 for example led to several million Ukrainians fleeing to Poland and receiving help from the government, local institutions, and the vast majority of Polish civilians.

Arkady Rzegocki, Professor at the Faculty of International and Political Studies, Jagiellonian University in Kraków, is eminently qualified to speak on such an emotive and vital subject. He was Ambassador of the Republic of Poland to London (2016–2021), Head of the Foreign Service (2021–2023), and Ambassador of the Republic of Poland to Dublin (2023–2024). These postings have given him a rare expertise that includes Polish and British political thought, the concept of raison d’état, soft power, and diplomacy.

The Lady Ryder of Warsaw Memorial Trust was set up by Baroness Ryder of Warsaw CMG OBE, shortly before her death in 2000, to ensure the continuation of her humanitarian work. The Trust provides grants to organisations engaged in the relief of suffering, particularly those charitable bodies established by Sue Ryder.

The Trust is also working with Bristol and Newcastle Universities to help train more doctors. Although medical students are eligible for grants and student loans whilst training, those who come from disadvantaged backgrounds often face financial difficulties and may even be discouraged from embarking on such a career.

Margaret Susan Cheshire, Baroness Ryder of Warsaw, Baroness Cheshire, CMG, OBE (3 July 1924 - 2 November 2000), typically known as Sue Ryder, was a British volunteer with Special Operations Executive during the Second World War, and a member of the First Aid Nursing Yeomanry, which subsequently established charitable organisations.

After the war, Ryder volunteered for relief work in Europe, including Poland, where much of her time was spent with Polish forces. Her work was even more vital once relief organisations withdrew from Poland, and Ryder decided to stay visiting prisons and hospitals.

Sue Ryder became a household name in the UK in the 1950s thanks to the homes she founded, and the help she gave survivors of Nazi concentration camps, together with the disabled and anyone in need of long-term care. She was made a life peer on 31st January, 1979, taking the name Baroness Ryder of Warsaw.