In September 2026, the energy company DTEK, part of Rinat Akhmetov's business empire, received the international Global SABRE Awards prize for its communication campaign 'The Light Holds On' (Свет держится). According to the organizers, this is the only Ukrainian project to become a winner in the current cycle of the competition, which sets the campaign apart amid global competition.
The Sole Ukrainian Representative on the Global Shortlist
The 'The Light Holds On' campaign made it into the list of 40 winners of the Global SABRE Awards 2026. The organizers selected these projects from more than 5,500 entries submitted to the SABRE Awards from over 60 countries worldwide. For Ukraine, this is the only case of recognition at the global level this year, which underscores the competitiveness of domestic communication production on the international stage.
How the 'The Light Holds On' Campaign Is Structured
The campaign was built around the image of energy workers keeping the lights on for the population amid hostilities. It featured several high-profile elements: a choir's performance of the musical piece 'Shchedryk' on the territory of a thermal power plant destroyed by Russian shelling, a projection of a light installation onto the 'Motherland' monument, and the installation of a Christmas tree made of energy workers' forms near the 'Zavertailo' cafe on Sofiyska Street. Taken together, these initiatives turned the campaign into a multi-channel communication product combining music, light art, and the urban environment.
The Mechanics of the Global SABRE Awards
The Global SABRE Awards recognize the best communication campaigns from different regions of the world. The global list features projects that were previously presented and passed selection in the regional SABRE Awards competitions in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia-Pacific region. Thus, making the global shortlist means that the campaign has already proven its strength at the regional level and then withstood comparison with the best work from around the world.
The Trajectory of Recognition: From Regional SABRE to the Global Prize
Recognition of the campaign is not limited to a single event. Earlier, DTEK had already received two prestigious international SABRE awards for the same 'The Light Holds On' communication campaign, dedicated, in the words of the publications, to 'the hardest winter.' The 2026 global prize became a logical continuation of this trajectory: from regional and international SABRE to the pinnacle — the global list of winners.
