On the surface, One by One’s latest campaign featuring completed climber Irina Galay looks like one other wintry scene, but its completion required overcoming extreme circumstances.

Galay, the primary Ukrainian female to summit Mt. Everest and K2, was recruited to headline the campaign as a way to motivate people to beat their personal peaks. Along with braving subzero temperatures in a snowy Ukrainian forest for the photo shoot, the creative team needed to drive just a few hours outside of Kyiv and go through Bucha and other cities that were decimated by the Russian forces.

During a joint interview Thursday afternoon together with her boyfriend Yuri Bauer, who helped to translate a few of her responses, Galay said “the tragedy of the past” was quite evident, and he or she cried en route. Despite the frigid weather and lack of warmth, electricity, cell service and web connection, the One by One team pulled off the photo shoot, driven by their motivation to support their country. Denys Manokha handled the photography and art direction.

“That’s how Ukrainians are in the intervening time — they’re all united. It doesn’t matter how cold or how hard it gets, or what number of tragedies follow you. You set yourself together for a photograph shoot — or whatever it’s you have got to do,” Bauer said. “Supporting the country [through the economy] gives people jobs and a few money to people.”

Having ascended Mt. Everest in 2016 and K2 in 2021, the 34-year-old has climbed greater than 10 of the world’s tallest peaks. Stating that essentially all of her achievements are worthless, Galay said what she really values and respects now could be the Ukrainian army and everybody who’s fighting for the country. “You have got people from normal professions, who went to fight on the front and are really actively involved. They’re the heroes. If you happen to compare that to Everest or K2, it appears to be not an achievement in any respect.”

Like thousands and thousands of other Ukrainians, she is targeted on build up her business ventures — as Ukrainian President Volodomyr Zelensky and his wife Olena Zelenska have repeatedly encouraged residents to do every thing they’ll to attempt to bolster the economy.

For Galay, that has meant teaming with One by One and developing a collagen sport supplements product for Dermacolla. Her interest in fashion isn’t nearly style but is more about supporting Ukrainian designers to assist propel them onto the worldwide stage. The prints which are featured in the brand new line include one with motifs of the embroidered shirts of Transcarpathia, the region where Galay is from. Apart from pitching in with design and the concept, she used her knowledge about warmth — from years of climbing and skiing — to make sure wearers can withstand the weather.

The One by One campaign’s “Go Up!” slogan is supposed to assist rally Ukrainians’ opposition to Russia’s propaganda, aggression and regime. It is usually meant to be one among “not giving up, and searching toward the longer term irrespective of how hard this particular moment is now,” Bauer said. “We’ve numerous friends who own restaurants. They probably must have closed them and run away to attempt to enjoy their life elsewhere. Before people were fleeing for the States, Canada, Europe or wherever. Now you have got people who find themselves still trying and fighting for his or her professions and abilities. That’s motivating and uplifting. That’s what they’ve tried to do with the One by One [collaborative] collection.”

While European governments have been supportive of Ukraine’s efforts to fend off the Russian military, Galay acknowledged some European residents could also be questioning increasing energy costs and other essentials consequently of the war. Galay speculated that some won’t understand how the Ukrainians are fighting for freedom and democracy throughout the world. “It’s a tough query because we do feel numerous support. We’re glad and thankful for that.”

Immediately after Russian forces invaded her homeland, she served within the Ukrainian military for 4 or five months. Having attended an aviation university in Kyiv and studied the decoding of flight recorders, more commonly generally known as black boxes, Galay put those skills to make use of for the military last 12 months after temporarily relocating to her hometown Mukachevo in western Ukraine. She and Bauer proceed to travel intermittently due partially to intermittent electricity in Ukraine. But they’ve kept their apartment in central Kyiv. Noting how blackouts are inclined to last for less than just a few hours or a maximum of just a few days, they had rockets explode inside just a few blocks of their apartment on October. They noted how hours later they randomly met the American ambassador to Ukraine and exchanged messages of support.