Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan
A powerful moment in global humanitarian and space collaboration unfolded today as children’s artwork from Zambia and 13 other countries was launched aboard a Russian Soyuz-2.1a rocket. The mission marked a world first: a rocket entirely covered with drawings created by young cancer patients.
The initiative was carried out by the UNITY Foundation in partnership with Roscosmos and the Progress Rocket and Space Center. Children from 14 nations — including Zambia, the United States, Belgium, Brazil, Germany, Armenia, France, Pakistan, Iran, Switzerland, Serbia, Bolivia, the United Kingdom, and Russia — contributed illustrations that formed a vibrant collage symbolizing unity, resilience, and hope.
Africa’s first young space ambassadors
The project reached Africa in 2022 through UNITY’s collaboration with the University Teaching Hospital in Lusaka. Russian cosmonaut Sergey Kud’-Sverchkov worked closely with young oncology patients in Zambia, gathering drawings that would later be transported into space. Through this, Zambian children became the first African participants and ambassadors of the Art Rocket Project.
A message of courage lifted into the stars
Over nine years, more than 4,000 children contributed artwork to the global effort. On November 27, their drawings were launched into space after specialists from the Progress Rocket and Space Center carefully applied the extensive collage to the Soyuz rocket’s exterior.
“The Art Rocket Project is about the power of human dreams,” said UNITY President Alena Kuzmenko. “When the rocket carried the children’s drawings into the sky, part of their fear went with it. What came instead was belief — in life, in the future, and in the strength of human unity.”
Global support behind a global message
The mission received significant international backing from the Bolivian and Brazilian space agencies, MoonDAO, the Space for Art Foundation, medical institutions, embassies, NGOs, and was also endorsed by Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić.
Fifty young oncology patients from across Russia traveled with their families to witness the launch up close. Their multi-day visit included workshops, meetings with cosmonauts, tours of historic space facilities, and mural painting sessions with artists Nikita Romanov (Russia) and Pas Schaffer (Brazil).
Launch Day: A shared moment of hope
Before liftoff, mission commander Sergey Kud’-Sverchkov greeted the children with UNITY’s symbolic heart gesture — a pledge to “deliver their dreams to the Universe.” As the rocket soared skyward, children and parents from various continents watched in awe and emotion.
“Our rocket became a symbol of optimism, perseverance, and kindness,” Kud’-Sverchkov later wrote. “Each drawing carries a story of illness, courage, and hope.”
A humanitarian milestone for space exploration
The Art Rocket is the pinnacle of UNITY’s Space Art Therapy Program, which supports young cancer patients by encouraging creativity, reducing stress, and strengthening emotional resilience. The program also advances the UN Sustainable Development Goals by bridging the worlds of medicine, art, education, and space exploration.
From 2022 to 2025, the initiative generated more than 600 media publications worldwide, with over 400 articles and broadcasts produced during the Baikonur program alone.
With the launch, children from around the world sent a shared message into the cosmos: every life has value, every dream matters, and humanity is strongest when it stands together.
The mission stands not only as a technological accomplishment, but as a timeless humanitarian symbol of unity and hope — echoing UNITY’s motto: We are not alone in the Universe.
