Dear students, graduate students, teachers, and employees, I sincerely congratulate each of you on the Day of Knowledge and the beginning of the new academic year!

The first days of September are always exciting, filled with inspiration, faith, and hopes for new achievements. In particular, I cordially address the first-year students who have joined our friendly family at the university, which is a recognized center of education and science in the European and world educational communities. I wish that everywhere and always you feel joy and pride for being students of the Ukrainian National Forestry University. Be patriots of Ukraine, ready to defend the sovereignty and territorial integrity of our state, worthy followers of those who glorified our university and our Ukraine with their achievements! We are proud of our graduates—outstanding scientists, politicians, and public figures who made a significant contribution to the development of our state. I hope that you too will be proud of the fact that you have joined the forestry family and won the right to preserve, develop, and multiply the academic traditions of the university, which were formed by many generations of its students, teachers, and scientists. I believe that soon your achievements will add to the treasury of the university's assets.

For the second time, unfortunately, we are starting the academic year in conditions where Ukraine is heroically resisting a large-scale invasion of the enemy on its territory. But during its 149-year history, the Ukrainian National Forestry University has always been and remains a magnificent temple of knowledge, in which glorious traditions are preserved and high ideals of spirituality, humanism, the constant search for truth, and the desire to learn about the surrounding world and make life on Earth more perfect and harmonious prevail. This is confirmed by the motto of the university: "AD NATURAM VIVERE DISCIMUS" — "Learning to live in harmony with nature".

I express my deep gratitude to the scientific and pedagogical workers, scientists, and employees of the university for their dedication to the profession and for the fact that, despite the wartime, you give all your strength, knowledge, and love to students and selflessly serve the cause of education and the education of young people, which is the basis of strengthening, development, and prosperity in our state. The new academic year promises to be difficult, but I am convinced that the university staff is capable of overcoming today's global challenges, and this year will definitely be a year of new achievements in education and science.

I wish everyone to be unbreakable. I wish for new creative achievements, educational and scientific achievements, peace, goodness, and daily success!

Victory to the Ukrainian people!

Glory to Ukraine! Glory to heroes!