Description

Some five million people in Eastern Ukraine have suffered a humanitarian crisis as a result of recent hostilities. Shortages in food, medicine and shelter are widespread. Governments and NGOs have struggled to deliver aid effectively. As we have learned from disaster relief in other regions, there is a natural desire for residents to assist each other---however they can. And such local movements have benefited significantly from digital tools to assist organization, and we can draw on successful examples of digital mutual aid projects in Russia and United States.

SustainUkraine is a digital platform for people to to self-organize to address this crisis on a grassroots basis, and in a way that will build solidarity, rather than hostility between East and West Ukraine. This digital platform matches human needs to volunteers from active and existing grassroots humanitarian networks. We are proposing a cross-platform smart-phone accessible app to amplify and accelerate aid delivery by providing users with tools for individual needs reporting. With this tool we hope to amplify and accelerate active, locally focused mutual aid efforts in Ukraine to provide an alternative narrative to the conflict. The project will not only provide immediate relief but also mobilize cooperative activities as an alternative to conflict and build connection of solidarity across battle lines, creating the conditions for an enduring ceasefire and the eventual cessation of the conflict.

Description

Disrupt the Chain seeks to enable crowd-sourced enforcement of UNSC Resolution 2139 to uncover the Syrian barrel bomb supply chain, with a view to undermining the Assad regime's ability deny the use of barrel bombs, and to build an evidentiary base for international condemnation, sanctions, legal action, and boycott campaigns. This initiative aims to aggregate documentation to degrade the supply chain that enables the Syrian regime's barrel bombing campaigns.

Description

Data reported in the 2011 American Journal of Public Health estimates that approximately 1.8 million women across Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) have been raped in their lifetime, with 433,785 impacted annually and an average of four women every five minutes.

At Connect Her/Connectées, we're taking an innovative approach; we're harnessing the power of technology to support women and girls who have experienced sexual violence in eastern DRC--where continuing brutal conflict puts women and girls at heightened risk.

The Ministry of Health in the DRC and the World Bank reported that less than one quarter of women and girls in the DRC have access to medical care. Survivors of sexual violence face even greater barriers to obtaining medical and psychosocial services, including stigma, lack of infrastructure and lack of medical practitioners. We're attempting to break those barriers down.

The first 72 hours after sexual assault are critical to prevent HIV, unwanted pregnancy and promote survivability. Connect Her/Connectées is a free SMS and phone call based service that links sexual violence survivors in eastern DRC to community-based first responders who provide emergency medical care and support within those crucial 72 hours.

Reach Out. Connect Her. Get Help

Description

Propaganda and misinformation are evident in the current crisis in Ukraine and are impeding on conversation, accountability and perpetuating conflict. Our goal is to educate and build critical thinking skills of young individuals, who are active in binding the truth, through a game that tests photo and video verification skills.

Description

UN security council resolution 2022 endorses the Minsk Agreement, which includes a ceasefire in Ukraine. Our solution enables citizens and other rapporteurs on the ground to reliably and credibly report on conditions in the conflict zone, including ceasefire breaches. The conflict in Ukraine is a contest on competing narratives, during an information war, where each side is automatically discredited by the other and we don’t know what is reliable. We propose to build a platform that will reach all consumers of news and which they can consider trustworthy. Our tool will enable news from newsmakers on the ground to be validated and graded for credibility, thus providing media and consumers of news with confidence in the product.

Description

Chorus will facilitate the integration of on-the-ground resources to create and implement a digital platform for the remediation, prevention and protection of women from sexual violence in Syria. It will work to support survivors, and empower women and girls with knowledge to take practical steps to reduce dangers to themselves.

There is a lack of available training and expertise on the ground for medical practitioners when treating victims of sexual violence, including for both physical and psychological treatment. The information can be provided at a high level (for users with limited Internet access) and in detail (for NGOs, doctors, etc. with secure and more stable connections to the Internet).

Additionally, we aim to provide information to victims of sexual violence about what courses of action/alternatives are open to them in the long road to recovery, the status quo is no longer acceptable.