Ukraine: Ways you can help in the response

To date, the United Nations Refugee Agency reports that more than 7.5 million people have fled Ukraine since February 24, and estimates that millions more could flee from Ukraine to seek support across the region — creating overwhelming humanitarian needs. This conflict creates a mounting crisis, as the UN reports that more than one percent of the world’s population – or 1 in 95 people – is now forcibly displaced. In addition to the surge of civilians fleeing the country, many are still in Ukraine and caught in the midst of the conflict.

For those looking to learn more and support aid, relief, and evacuation efforts for Ukrainians, we’ve compiled a list of partners and organizations in the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) community providing critical care to civilians both in Ukraine and in neighboring countries.

This is a developing story. This post was first written on March 2, 2022, and updated on June 15, 2022. We will continue to update as we learn of new and developing efforts.

Afya Foundation

The Afya Foundation is partnering with US-Ukraine-Foundation and others to support the medical community in Ukraine and refugees seeking aid.

Afya’s Disaster Response Hub is preparing wound care, surgical equipment, and biomedical equipment to be shipped to Ukraine. In addition, their team is coordinating with several organizations and government agencies directly in Ukraine, including the National Coalition Supporting Eurasian Jewry and contacts at the Main Military Clinical Hospital in Kyiv to make these deliveries.

Visit their Disaster Response Hub to help Afya’s ability to respond to the crisis.

Airlink

Airlink has activated its Europe Regional Response Plan and supporting the transportation of five emergency response and assessment teams to the neighboring countries of Poland, Romania, and Moldova – with more on the way to the region.

Airlink is currently working with humanitarian, logistics, and airline partners to deliver relief supplies while assessing priority needs and response capacity – including working to secure that the requests for humanitarian cargo delivery will not cause additional congestion in surrounding countries or put a strain on local resources. Their teams are also supporting the humanitarian community to identify flight options to help organizations coordinate airlifts with supplies to deliver across the region in their network.

Airlink has supported the transportation of 200+ emergency responders to Poland, Hungary, Romania, and Moldova and have airlifted more than 130 tons of aid on behalf of their responding partners.

Click here to learn more about their response to the crisis.

Americares

The Americares Emergency Response Team is providing support to families.

With emergency response teams in Poland and Romania, the Americares team is supporting health services for families impacted by the escalating humanitarian crisis. Americares medical teams, including physicians, nurses, and other medical professionals, have expert experience coordinating large-scale shipments of medicine and relief supplies and mobilizing emergency medical teams amid crisis. Their immediate response has focused on delivering critically needed medicine and supplies. To date, Americares has shipped or delivered more than 30 tons of medicine and relief supplies to eight partners responding in Ukraine, and at least a dozen more shipments are underway or planned. In addition, their teams on the ground in Poland have successfully completed the first local procurement of 12.5 tons of supplies, valued at more than $100,000, to be distributed to local partners.

Learn more about how their teams are supporting services for refugees and creating a safe space for children and families fleeing conflict.

Community Organized Relief Effort

Community Organized Relief Effort (CORE) is on the ground in Poland and Romania working with international and local partners to support the immediate needs of refugees and those in need inside Ukraine.

CORE’s response focuses on providing flexible cash assistance to help refugee families get access to essential items, supporting community-based refugee shelters with staffing and supplies to sustain and scale their crucial operations, distributing hygiene kits with soap, hand sanitizer, toothbrushes, and other essential hygiene items, sending essential resources to collective shelters in Ukraine, and supporting mental wellness and protection services for refugees, particularly women and children.

Learn more about CORE’s work with partners to address critical needs of refugees and those within Ukraine.

Direct Relief

In partnership with Ukraine’s Ministry of Health and other partners on the ground, Direct Relief is working to provide urgent medical aid to Ukrainians. This includes emergency response packs for first responders, oxygen concentrators, critical care medicines, and much more.

Direct Relief is continuing shipments of specifically requested medical aid to Ukraine and surrounding countries to address urgent medical needs. Direct Relief has deployed more than 300 tons of medical aid and $13 million in financial assistance to Ukraine since the beginning of the conflict, including $10 million in direct cash aid to help Ukrainian refugees in Poland obtain needed medications at no cost.

Learn more about how Direct Relief is working to provide urgent medical assistance to those affected by the crisis.

International Medical Corps

The International Medical Corps (IMC) is providing urgently needed emergency and mental health care services from medical professionals, including specialist physicians, general practitioners, and nurses.

IMC is working both directly and collaboratively with local partners to expand access to medical supplies and services, mental health and psychosocial support, clean water and sanitation, and protection services for both refugees and those living in areas affected by war. In partnership with the Ukraine Ministry of Health, IMC is also helping to provide a wide range of training to health staff, including providing infection prevention and control training and promoting proper hygiene among community members. IMC is providing gender-based violence response services to increase the protection of women and children facing risks in the wake of the conflict – and providing preventive care to keep displaced communities safe from COVID-19.

Learn more about how the IMC is responding on the ground with partners.

International Rescue Committee

The International Rescue Committee (IRC) is scaling up support to government and NGO partners to help provide the basic needs of people seeking refuge from the conflict. Working together with partners, the IRC is establishing a response that will provide essential support to civilians through the launch of an emergency appeal to help displaced families with critical aid.

In Ukraine, IRC is working alongside local partners to provide emergency assistance to people displaced from their homes. On the ground in Poland, IRC is working with partners to provide support to refugees, families hosting refugees, and government refugee reception centers on the Poland/Ukraine border.

See how their teams are assisting refugees and those caught in conflict on the ground and speaking out against the crisis.

IsraAID

IsraAID is dispatching an emergency team to the neighboring country of Moldova to provide critical support to the growing numbers of Ukrainian families fleeing to the border. The primary and initial focus of their emergency team is on urgent relief distributions and protection, and mental health support for vulnerable, newly arrived Ukrainian refugees. In addition, the emergency team is assessing the needs directly on the ground in Moldova, plus additional countries surrounding the Ukrainian border, and provide continued support as needed.

UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency

UNHCR has a long-standing presence in Ukraine, as well as the neighboring countries of Poland, Hungary, Moldova, Slovakia, and Romania. Their teams are coordinating the refugee response in partnership with other UN agencies and NGO partners, expanding operations to provide basic needs including access to mental health and psychosocial support; provision of basic items including food, unrestricted cash assistance, and core relief items; education and health services, including sexual and reproductive health services. Emergency shelter and critical items like heaters, warm clothes, and shoes are a priority due to the freezing winter temperatures in the region. To provide critical aid to displaced families, UNHCR child welfare and protection teams are also preparing to provide support to national authorities.

Learn more about how they have stepped up their critical work in Ukraine and across the region.

WHO Foundation

The WHO Foundation is working with teams and partners on the ground in Ukraine to support health facilities and keep Ukraine’s health system from collapsing.

WHO is continuing to send supplies to Ukraine, including oxygen and other essential medical resources such as insulin, surgical supplies, anesthetics, and transfusion kits, as well as medical equipment, including oxygen generators, electrical generators, and defibrillators. WHO is also supporting health systems in host countries to cope with the influx of refugees and ensure that people on the move have access to health services as needed.

Learn more about the WHO Foundation’s work to provide emergency health care for those affected by the crisis.

World Central Kitchen

As thousands of Ukrainian families flee their homes in search of safety, Chef José Andrés and the team at World Central Kitchen are set up at a 24-hour pedestrian border crossing in Poland to serve nourishing meals to displaced families and refugees. In addition to activating their network in Poland, World Central Kitchen’s teams are mobilizing in Romania, Moldova, Slovakia, and Hungary to provide critical care to the Ukrainian people fleeing through the border.

World Central Kitchen is also supporting local restaurants preparing meals in cities across Ukrainian including in Odessa, Lviv, and Kyiv.

Learn more about their efforts to provide care, hot meals, and human dignity to those caught in conflict.