How to help Ukraine amid Russian attacks
Written by ABC Audio All Rights Reserved on March 20, 2022
(NEW YORK) — Hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians are displaced, on the front lines of battle with Russia or are awaiting the end of the invasion from their homes after Russia began its attack on Ukraine in the early morning of Feb. 24.
Now, many around the world are left wondering how to help Ukrainians amid the onslaught.
Here are some ways to support the effort:
The nonprofit is collecting donations for its emergency response project to provide medical supplies, humanitarian aid and support volunteers on the ground.
The group is also partnering with other Ukrainian-targeted organizations like Nova Ukraine, United Help Ukraine, Revived Soldiers Ukraine, Sunflower for Peace, and Euromaidan-Warszava, according to its website.
The organization says it will use funds to purchase “tourniquets, bandages, combat gauzes, sterile pads, and satellite phones.” It also says it is arranging “warehouses and points of delivery in Poland and Ukraine.”
The charity organization GlobalGiving has started a Ukraine Crisis Relief Fund which will provide shelter, food and water to the 500,000 refugees and counting. The money will also be used for health and psychosocial care, as well as education and economic assistance, according to the organization’s website.
“All donations to the Ukraine Crisis Relief Fund will support humanitarian assistance in impacted communities in Ukraine and surrounding regions where Ukrainian refugees have fled,” the fund page reads. “GlobalGiving’s local partners are bringing relief to terrified and displaced communities, and they need resources to continue their life-saving work.”
International Rescue Committee
The International Rescue Committee is collecting financial donations that will go toward supporting resources and aid to displaced families.
The organization specializes in helping refugees around the world who have been forced from their homes. They target communities where people lack vital resources for resettlement and recovery from crises.
They also play a role in resettlement efforts in the United States.
Doctors Without Borders, an organization that provides medical care during humanitarian crises, still has workers in Ukraine despite the ongoing conflict.
Donations to Doctors Without Borders will fund these services as well as mass casualty kits, emergency medicine and preparedness training for local hospitals and more.
“[The] teams in Ukraine are deeply worried about the consequences of the conflict for Ukrainian people and communities,” the website reads. “As hostilities continue, ensuring people’s access to health care and medicines will be critical.”
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, the refugee agency for the United Nations, is accepting donations to provide health care, legal assistance and on-the-ground supply support to refugees from Ukraine.
“UNHCR has stepped up our operations and capacity in Ukraine and neighbouring countries,” the organization’s website read. “We remain firmly committed to support all affected populations in Ukraine and countries in the region.”
The humanitarian organization is accepting donations to support its work across eastern Ukraine as it delivers emergency programs to affected children and families.
UNICEF says it is:
- Prepositioning health, hygiene and emergency education supplies as close as possible to communities near the line of contact
- Trucking safe water to conflict-affected areas
- Supporting mobile child protection teams providing psychosocial care to children traumatized by chronic insecurity, responding to cases of violence and abuse against children and assisting children separated from family
- Working with municipalities to ensure there is immediate help for children and families in need.
The U.N. World Food Programme and World Food Program USA
The UN’s leading hunger relief agency is upping its food assistance program to support the 3.1 million Ukrainians that have been affected by the war in their country. At least 400 tons of food has been delivered to the Ukrainian border, according to the organization. The group, alongside World Food Program USA, its US affiliate, is fundraising to support these emergency operations.
The nonprofit aid organization has sent a team to assess the humanitarian situation in Ukraine and bordering countries, and is accepting donations to assist in delivering aid to “the most vulnerable affected populations, including injured people, people with disabilities, elderly people and those with chronic illnesses.”
This nonprofit is working help millions of children in danger due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Donations will provide necessities including food, shelter and more.
“Nearly 200 million children are living in the most lethal war zones, experiencing unspeakable horrors with devastating and life-changing consequences,” the organization’s website reads. “They are in desperate need of care and protection.”
The animal welfare organization is working to provide emergency funding to those taking care of animals amid the attacks. The organization is working with local groups to ensure that caretakers and their animals have the resources they need.
“While HSI and the local groups with which it works are providing a welcome lifeline for animal victims who make it to safety, the organization warns of a worsening animal welfare crisis to come inside Ukraine as reaching people and animals with aid is likely to become more problematic,” the organization said in a press release.
International Fund for Animal Welfare
This animal welfare organization has a shelter partner in Berdyansk, Ukraine, that has been damaged and affected by the invasion. Emergency funds from this organization will provide food, shelter and other necessities to animals, animal shelters in the region and for animal owners.
“Since the conflict started, IFAW has supported multiple partners helping animals and people in Ukraine and the surrounding countries,” the organization said in an update on their website. “Our team has now deployed to Poland and will continue to work with local shelters and government authorities.”
The online rental company Airbnb announced that it will offer free, short-term housing to up to 100,000 refugees fleeing Ukraine via its nonprofit initiative Airbnb.org.
The organization urges anyone interested in opening up their homes to refugees to get involved: “We know that Hosts and guests on Airbnb around the world will be eager to stand up and assist this massive effort to help those fleeing Ukraine,” a statement from Airbnb.org read.
“[Airbnb.org] will work closely with governments to best support the specific needs in each country, including by providing longer-term stays,” the statement continued.
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