Taawon is a non-profit launched in Geneva in 1983. Taawon has become one of the largest organizations operating in Palestine & Leb

Taawon (Welfare Association) is a non-profit, civic organization launched in Geneva in the year 1983, upon the initiative of a group of Palestinian and Arab economists and intellectuals. Taawon has become one of the largest organizations operating in Palestine and the diaspora camps in Lebanon, whereby it touches the lives of more than one million Palestinians on an annual basis, with half of these beneficiaries being women. Since its establishment, Taawon has invested funds reaching nearly US $900 million, dedicated to development and relief programs.

Taawon’s record over the past 40 years reflects a journey full of achievements reinforced by strong partnerships. Taawon’s long and rich experience has enabled it to overcome obstacles and difficult conditions that the country faces as a result of the Israeli occupation and also, has enabled it to find innovative and creative solutions to these challenges, particularly in times of crises – thereby making Taawon’s programs more responsive to needs despite social and economic instability. Taawon maintains a presence in Palestine, Jordan, Lebanon, Switzerland, and in Great Britain through its sister organization; interventions are implemented to reinforce the steadfastness of Palestinian citizens in Palestine and the refugee camps in Lebanon.

Taawon aims to empower Palestinian individuals and civil society institutions both socially and economically, in addition to strengthening their identity, the values of freedom and democracy as well as all human values. The organization works to preserve the cultural heritage, highlighting its unique position, and unleashing the creative energies of youth, women, and children. Taawon provides equal opportunities for various segments of Palestinian society to unleash all their capabilities with excellence and creativity, even despite the most difficult circumstances.

Taawon works to achieve these goals in partnership with various civil society organizations through purposeful planning and outlining policies that hold high professional standards; this process is guided by the policies that are achieved in its field of expertise, particularly the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other relevant international laws issued by the United Nations Educational and Scientific Organization Relevant Culture (UNESCO) and its Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity.

Taawon (Welfare Association)

The Rapid Response Fund will fill critical time-sensitive funding gaps created by the suspension of US foreign aid.

The U.S. government's cuts to foreign aid have created an urgent crisis — high-impact, evidence-based programs in global health, extreme poverty, and humanitarian aid are suddenly at risk. Organizations delivering lifesaving interventions now face unexpected shortfalls that could cost lives. We can’t afford to let that happen.

Times of crisis require swift and decisive action. That’s why The Life You Can Save and Founders Pledge have jointly launched the Rapid Response Fund — a fast, strategic way to bridge gaps in funding and keep the most effective programs running at full capacity open for donations from all who care about the impact of this crisis.

We’ve already done the hard work of identifying and supporting the most cost-effective interventions in global health & development. Our recommended partners are among the best in the world at turning dollars into impact, but they now face an unprecedented funding crunch.

This fund will provide urgent bridge support and sustain essential services for our current recommended funding opportunities while also allowing us the agility to seize new high-impact opportunities as they arise in this rapidly shifting landscape. Every dollar you donate goes where it’s needed most — help us act now before it’s too late.

Founders Pledge & The Life You Can Save: Rapid Response Fund

Working to end poverty, inequality, and climate change and helping countries achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.

UNDP works in about 170 countries and territories, helping to eradicate poverty, reduce inequalities and exclusion, and build resilience so countries can sustain progress. As the UN’s development agency, UNDP plays a critical role in helping countries achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.

Donations made here to United Nations Development Programme (UNDP/PNUD) are made on an unrestricted basis.

United Nations Development Programme (UNDP/PNUD)

LifeStraw operates the Safe Water Fund, a 501(c)3 project, to support the provision of safe water where it is needed most.  

The Safe Water Fund operates as a 501(c)(3) project, supporting the implementation of long-term, sustainable safe water programs worldwide. We partner with grassroots organizations and local leaders to identify and reach communities and families most in need.

In addition to our retail-funded Give-Back program, the Safe Water Fund provides safe water during humanitarian emergencies and natural disasters. We also lead special initiatives in the cities where our employees live, including at our headquarters in Baltimore City, and participate in Giving Tuesday efforts each year.

**100% of donated funds go directly toward products and the distribution of safe water supplies. Vestergaard Frandsen, Inc. (d/b/a “LifeStraw”) does not profit from your donation.**

*The Safe Water Fund operates through a fiscal sponsorship with Players Philanthropy Fund, a Texas nonprofit recognized by the IRS as a tax-exempt public charity under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code (Federal Tax ID: 27-6601178, ppf.org/pp). Contributions to the Safe Water Fund qualify as tax-deductible.*

Your contribution helps us bring safe drinking water to more families. 

Thank you for your support!

LifeStraw Safe Water Fund

UWC makes education a force to unite people, nations and cultures for peace and a sustainable future

Thanks to the generosity of our supporters, over 80% of national committee-selected UWC students receive a scholarship. This support allows UWC to continue to select students based on their potential and merit regardless of their background, race, gender or ability to pay. Our students enter as idealists and graduate equipped to succeed and create lasting, positive change in the world.

Most UWC national committees across the globe are run by volunteers. This volunteer network ensures that UWC’s unique selection process is possible. With selection activities taking place in over 150 countries and territories, we actively look for promising young students, many of whom would otherwise never dream of the opportunity that a UWC education can provide.

**Why Support UWC**

UWC is committed to ensuring that as many students as possible have the opportunity to experience a UWC education regardless of national, socioeconomic, cultural, racial or religious background. UWC achieves this through selection based on potential and merit and through the provision of scholarships. To continue this work, UWC relies on donations from alumni and other individuals, trusts, foundations, companies and governments.

*"A UWC scholarship is a great investment in society. We are developing a global community of leaders who are aware of the world’s needs, steeped in the nuances and dynamics of international and intercultural cooperation and equipped with the mindset, skills, sense of agency and the global network to make a tangible difference in the world."* - Faith Abiodun, Executive Director of UWC International

If you are a US taxpayer, you can donate to any UWC institution of your choosing by clicking on the “*Donate*” button above and indicating your intended recipient (School/College/National Committee/Campaign) under “*Add a note for The United World Colleges (International)*”.

If you are not a US taxpayer, you can also donate via [uwc.org/donate](https://uwc.org/donate).

The United World Colleges (International)

IRC responds to the world’s worst humanitarian crises & helps people to survive, recover & gain control of their future.

The International Rescue Committee responds to the world’s worst humanitarian crises and helps people whose lives and livelihoods are shattered by conflict and disaster to survive, recover and gain control of their future. In more than 40 countries and in 26 U.S. cities, our dedicated teams provide clean water, shelter, health care, education and empowerment support to refugees and displaced people.

International Rescue Committee

InReach is a trans-led tech nonprofit building the world's first open source verified LGBTQ+ resource platform. 🏳️‍⚧️🏳️‍🌈💚

InReach (fka AsylumConnect) is a trans-led 501(c)(3) tech nonprofit building the world's first open source verified LGBTQ+ resource platform. At scale, InReach will provide every trans and queer person with on-demand access to the safe resources they need to thrive.

The InReach platform connects users to independently verified services, including safe housing, medical and mental health care, legal help, abortion care, meal assistance, education and employment opportunities, translation, community and spiritual support, and more. Available on web (desktop and mobile), native iOS, and Android, over 9,000 services across the U.S. are currently listed with new verified services added daily by trained volunteers.

Designed to meet intersectional community needs, InReach lists vetted service providers focused on LGBTQ+ asylum seekers/refugees/other immigrants, BIPOC communities, transgender and gender nonconforming (TGNC) folks, youth and caregivers, and more LGBTQ+ communities in need. The platform is free for everyone, including lawyers, case managers, teachers, community organizers and other providers searching for affirming referrals for LGBTQ+ clients.

To date, InReach has helped over 420,000 people access safe, verified services.

InReach

Since 1958, Children of the Mekong supports children’s education in Southeast Asia. 

In Vietnam, Cambodia, the Philippines, Thailand, Laos, and Myanmar, we help children grow through [child sponsorship](https://www.childrenofthemekong.org/sponsor-a-child/) and [education projects](https://www.childrenofthemekong.org/get-involved/support-a-project/).

Our priorities of action are early childhood, girls' education, slums, rural populations, refugees, children with disability, and ethnic minorities.

Children of the Mekong

KWO is an indigenous women’s organisation serving women and girls in our community in Burma and in refugee camps in Thailand.  

The Karen Women’s Organisation (KWO) currently has a membership of more than 70,000 women living in Karen State, Burma and in refugee camps along the Thai-Burma border. KWO is a leading indigenous women’s organisation working in protection and our programs directly serve women, girls, children, and the most vulnerable people in our community. We promote women’s leadership, gender equality and community ownership in all aspects of our work. KWO is active in four main sectors: Organising and Information Sharing Program, Education Program, Health Program and Social Welfare Program.  KWO is led and staffed entirely by women in our community. KWO participates in the struggle to stop all kinds of oppression of women and of children. We believe in a federal Burma, where all communities have gender equality, the protection and promotion of indigenous people’s rights, human rights, and justice. 


WHAT WE DO

Within our 4 program areas we provide: service delivery, advocacy, awareness raising, and capacity building threaded throughout our daily work and our funded projects. Our work varies from the delivery of hygiene kits for mothers with new-borns, conducting community health and nutrition education, to ensuring safe accommodation for women suffering violence, developing Women’s Protection Laws, to training young women from our Communities to become leaders. 

KWO believes that empowering women will help reduce human rights abuses and encourage an end to discrimination against women. We believe that women have a right to be properly represented in politics and society at large. And we believe that the whole community is better off when women play an equal role with men in decision-making. The 17 individually funded Projects which KWO currently implements in refugee camps and Karen State, run under our 4 programs, and have over 100,500 beneficiaries.

WHERE WE WORK
KWO lives and works in the 7 districts of Karen State, Burma which is in Southeastern Burma and in 7 refugee camps along the Thai-Burma border.

ORGANISING AND INFORMATION SHARING PROGRAM  - KWO’s Organising and Information Sharing Program provides services, advocacy and capacity building to support women’s empowerment, mobilize the community, and sustain the organisation. KWO believes that broad community and organisational education contributes to building a fair and tolerant civil society. We conduct training, events and activities around: women’s rights, indigenous rights, democracy, political awareness, a Federal system for Burma, child protection, human rights, project management, leadership skills, public speaking, financial policy and procedures, KWO policy, landmine awareness, etc.

The Organising and Information Sharing Program Co-ordinators are all Karen women who live in their communities. Work under this Program includes: to conduct community consultations to identify needs, share information in the community about the current situation, including through KWO publications, update KWO’s membership list, co-ordinate with the KWO Social Welfare Program to organize the distribution of humanitarian aid (food and materials) in emergency situations, oversee and monitor all funded KWO projects implemented in the area, arrange and attend meetings for KWO and our network, coordinate with other agencies on issues that affect the community, assist researchers and field trips for visiting individuals, advocate on behalf of vulnerable groups in the community, conduct individual and joint advocacy efforts on the local, national, regional, and international stage.  We currently implement 4 funded projects under this program.

EDUCATION PROGRAM 
KWO’s Education Program provides services, advocacy and capacity building to promote education in our community. We provide schooling where there are gaps in existing education mainstream services in the refugee camps, and in areas in Karen State. We particularly target girls in the community to ensure they have equal access to education, protection, development and care. We also place a significant emphasis on education that promotes and preserves Karen indigenous culture.

Our Education Program Co-ordinators are all Karen women and are part of the community. Every day they work to promote education, to identify children struggling at schools or at home and provide support to the family, and assist with school fees when possible. They monitor and support KWO’s funded education projects in their areas, visit all community schools and give encouragement to students and teachers. They conduct home visits and encourage parents to send children to school, and assist the poorest of the poor children to get into schools. They attend events organized by schools to share positive messages about the benefits of education for all. They meet with education leaders at all levels and advocate for inclusive education, improved child protection mechanisms, and the importance of girls education. We currently implement 7 funded education projects under this program.

SOCIAL WELFARE PROGRAM 
KWO Social Welfare Program provides services, advocacy and capacity building in all sectors of Karen society. We provide direct care and assistance to community members and we work to solve social problems in our community, particularly those that affect women. Due to the failure of Burma’s successive governments to provide care and security for the people, many ethnic groups, like the Karen, have established well-organised and high-functioning social systems. The KWO Social Welfare Program does a lot of the work that a free and democratic national government would normally be offering to the people.

Our Social Welfare Program Co-ordinators are all Karen women and live in their community. Their duties include: identifying and providing care to the most vulnerable members of the community including the elderly, people with disability or chronic illness, and families in trouble; providing assistance in emergencies; help to organize community events and ceremonies; home visits; build capacity and opportunity for women to earn income especially through traditional crafts; be advocates for the best interests of women in justice cases; fight for improvements in laws relating to women and child protection, justice system reform and better enforcement mechanisms both in the refugee camps and within Southeast Burma.

Overall our Program’s main area of focus is to prevent, and respond to Violence Against Women. Under the Social Welfare Program, and its funded project, we provide an enormous amount of training for women, for KWO leaders and staff, for local community leaders, and for the broader community. We currently implement 4 funded projects under this program.

HEALTH PROGRAM 
KWO’s Health Program provides services, advocacy and capacity building to promote better health in our community. Our Health Program activities address common community health issues, like nutrition and hygiene, and we focus on the health needs of women and of children. KWO collaborates with existing community health organisations to support local health workers, to care for patients and the community. We do not offer medical or clinic-based services ourselves.

Our Health Program Co-ordinators are Karen women who live in their communities. Their work includes: to advocate for better access to health services, accompany patients to hospitals or clinics, organise village and stream clean ups, identify health needs of the most vulnerable people and provide support in the home, conduct health education campaigns in the community, share information with families about good health practices, encourage communities to set up kitchen gardens, organise access to clean drinking water, improve village sanitation and the use of built toilets, promote KWO’s key health messages for women’s reproductive health, improve access to safe sanitary materials for all women and girls, monitor any funded KWO Health projects being implemented in their area, educate parents about good nutrition and childcare, advocate for recognition of skilled Traditional Birth Attendants, and for birth registration and birth certificates for all children. We currently implement 2 funded projects under this program.

Karen Women's Organization

Promoting and protecting human rights for all

At UN Human Rights, we’re dedicated to making human rights a reality for everyone. Our mission is to empower individuals to claim their rights and support those responsible for upholding them.

Your support is crucial in making a real difference. Here’s how your donation will help:

1. **Promoting Universal Values**: Your gift helps us promote the values of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, ensuring everyone knows their rights and can stand up for them.
2. **Uplifting Voices**: You empower human rights defenders worldwide, giving them the platform and support they need to fight for justice and equality.
3. **Increasing Accountability**: By spotlighting social movements, your support helps hold those in power accountable and brings about justice for communities in need.
4. **Driving Change**: With your help, we rally partners globally to achieve transformative changes that benefit both people and the planet.
5. **Shaping Policy**: Your contribution enables us to work closely with states, embedding human rights into policies and real-world achievements.

Together, we are building a world where everyone can live with dignity, freedom, and hope.

Join us in making a meaningful impact today!

UN Human Rights

Delivering medical aid where it's needed most — independent, neutral, impartial.

Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) is an international medical humanitarian organization created by doctors and journalists in France in 1971.

In over 70 countries around the world, MSF saves lives by providing medical aid where it is needed most—in armed conflicts, epidemics, natural disasters, and other crises.  The people who work for MSF are doctors, nurses, midwives, epidemiologists, water-and-sanitation experts and many others who combine their professional expertise with a commitment to the world’s most vulnerable people.  Each year, these medical teams run close to 470 projects where they care for millions of people.  

As an organization, MSF is neutral and operates independently of any political, military, or religious agendas. It does not take sides in armed conflicts, provides care based on needs alone, and advocates for increased independent access to victims of conflict and disaster as required under international humanitarian law. Medical teams conduct evaluations on the ground to determine a population's medical needs before opening programs, aiming to fill gaps that exist (rather than replicating services that are already offered) or reach communities that are not being assisted.  Over the years, the organization has been the recipient of several awards that recognize its work, including the 1998 Conrad N. Hilton Humanitarian Prize, the 1999 Nobel Peace Prize, the 2012 J. William Fulbright Prize for International Understanding, the 2015 Lasker-Bloomberg Public Service Award, and the 2017 Pardes Humanitarian Prize for Mental Health.

Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) 

Provides culturally sensitive support to help Haitian immigrants in the US thrive. It received its nonprofit status in 2024

**VANSE** is dedicated to **empowering** newly arrived immigrants from Haiti to navigate the complexities of life in the United States. Its mission is to provide culturally appropriate, personalized support that **fosters cultural integration, educational advancement, and financial stability**. Through tailored resources, career pathways, and community-driven programs, **VANSE** aims to **help immigrants thrive and achieve long-term success.**

Vanse

A non-profit organization working across the globe to strengthen humanity’s fight against  hunger and poverty.

Through the provision of immediate relief and the establishment of self-sustaining development programs, we aim to invest in real, effective solutions. 

We work year-round to establish healthcare, education, and livelihood programs that pave the way for empowered, self-serving communities. We also provide food, medical aid, and disaster relief during emergencies, a critical intervention that saves lives. 

Our skilled local teams are able to access some of the most hard-to-reach places in the world, at their most vulnerable of times. 



Human Appeal Inc

Human Concern USA focuses on refugees and internally displaced people around the world.

In 1983, a group of compassionate individuals founded one of the first Muslim relief organizations in North America, setting the stage for our impactful journey. Having disbursed hundreds of millions in aid, sponsored thousands of orphans, and saved countless lives during catastrophes, we take pride in our accomplishments. Yet, we recognize that our mission is far from complete. Guided by our core vision, mission, and values, we remain steadfast in our pursuit of a more just and equitable world.

Human Concern USA

Our mission is dedicated to delivering life-saving services in Syria, neighboring countries and beyond. 

The Syrian American Medical Society Foundation (SAMS) is a non-political, non-religious global medical relief organization. SAMS is one of the most active and trusted international NGOs on the ground in Syria. 

Since 2011, SAMS has supported the healthcare needs of conflict-affected populations, delivering more than 28 million medical services free of charge to people in Syria and beyond. One year after the catastrophic 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck Syria/Türkiye, SAMS continues to address the special health needs of earthquake survivors, including ongoing medical care, long-term physical therapy, rehabilitation, prosthetics, dialysis, and mental health services.  

Inside Syria, SAMS provides a full range of healthcare services, including emergency and trauma care, ICU services, reproductive healthcare, cancer treatment, mental health services, dialysis, physical rehabilitation, and much more. SAMS medical teams are delivering an average of 250,000 medical services per month, while also launching specialized medical missions, dispatching mobile medical clinics to displacement camps, training medical personnel, and delivering vital humanitarian aid to displaced families.

In addition to our work in Syria, SAMS is delivering essential medical care, free of charge to refugees and vulnerable populations in Türkiye, Jordan, Iraq, Lebanon, Greece, Ukraine, and the USA, while also coordinating with partners to deliver humanitarian assistance and medical support to civilians in Gaza.  

Syrian American Medical Society Foundation

Keelworks Foundation is a 501c3; we get people to work. We've helped people get to work since 2009 with resume and job experience.

Everywhere we look, we see the unemployed and the economically disadvantaged. Some we look at and say, they get what they deserve, they did work hard and I did. You can look at this problem with compassion, understanding that it isn't that simple or you can look at it from the selfish perspective: their lack of contribution affects us. 

KeelWorks helps students transition to employment, others with some education practice in area related to experience to gain qualifications for greater responsibility. In both of these, thousands have come and left with paying jobs.

We are building the KeelMaster program to respond to the more challenged unemployed and under employed. This program requires comprehensive assessment to uncover and mitigate barriers as well as identify strengths. It then assigns to small facilitated teams where they learn eight core competencies (self-identify, critical thinking, problem-solving, communication, assertiveness, team-building, goal determination, and goal management). Teams stay together with facilitation pursuing goals and supporting each other for as long as it takes for all to be stable in employment. 

The KeelMaster program has prompted the development of a learning management system, a participant environment, a participant record, and several other applications designed and developed by volunteers. Some of these we hope to offer as a vehicle for funding the foundation and an endowment fund. 

For every life we change, we affect families, generations, communities, and nations. We all need to contribute and feel we are a part of some solution. We all deserve satisfying work. 

Keelworks Foundation

Helping vulnerable children worldwide | Returning deported Ukrainian children
💙𝙀𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮 𝘾𝙝𝙞𝙡𝙙, 𝙈𝙖𝙣𝙮 𝙁𝙪𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙚𝙨💙

At Emile Foundation, we are dedicated to creating safe spaces and opportunities for children affected by conflict, displacement, and hardship. Our mission is to ensure that every child, no matter their background, has the chance to thrive and rebuild their future.

We provide trauma recovery, education, and family support to children in need, focusing on rebuilding lives and empowering futures. Join us in making a lasting impact.

- We reunite families with their forcibly deported children

- We evacuate the vulnerable from frontline villages
- We deliver emergency humanitarian aid to the children and people in need 

Emile Foundation (formerly Orphans Feeding Foundation) was founded in the Netherlands, with a primary goal to support orphans and vulnerable communities in Western Kenya, who had to fight poverty, hunger and corruption to survive. Over the past decade, the organization has provided medicine and food to various orphanages in Asia and Africa, raised funds to fight against hunger and poverty in Europe, and built schools in various remote locations of Africa.

In February 2022, as the full-scale war on Ukraine broke out, the foundation activated its network of government members, ambassadors, pharmaceutical companies and logistics providers to deliver - in person - emergency humanitarian relief to the civilians and hospitals all along the front line, from Kharkiv to Kherson. Over the next 2 years, more than 150 tons of food, medicine, generators, stoves and warm winter clothes were personally delivered to hospitals and civilians in need, oftentimes under constant shelling.

Since May 2023, Emile Foundation works under a Memorandum of Understanding signed with the Presidential Office of Ukraine to support the return of the thousands deported children through their Bring Kids Back UA program.

Thousands of children are known to have been illegally deported away from their homes in Ukraine. And thousands more are still missing! According to the Ukrainian authorities, 19,546 Ukrainian children have been identified as illegally displaced. But this number is very likely much higher, as it is impossible to know exactly what happens beyond the front line. The opposition even claims to have “saved” 744,000 Ukrainian children from the war, while the Yale Institute estimates the number to be between 200,000 and 300,000.

In the past few months, Emile Foundation has been able to successfully return 48 children from Russian deportation. And we are in a position to return many more with your help! 

 Emile Foundation

Provides legal advocacy for refugees and displaced people in need of a safe place to call home.

IRAP’s innovative model of mobilizing legal resources to advocate for refugees and displaced people saves lives, assures safe passage to destination countries, and shapes thought and practice in the United States and around the globe to ensure fair and humane treatment of these vulnerable individuals.

IRAP’s approach is grounded in three distinct but interrelated strategies: 

1. IRAP has created a “virtual public interest law firm”—a firm that is not impeded by geographic boundaries and uses technological solutions to deliver free high-quality representation to people living in, and fleeing from, war, persecution, and political upheaval around the world. We have trained an army of volunteers—1,200 students from 30 law schools in the United States and Canada and pro bono attorneys from over 120 international law firms and multinational corporations—to assist thousands of refugees and displaced people on urgent registration, protection, and resettlement cases.

2. Through impact litigation and systemic advocacy, IRAP is bringing legal challenges to refugee rights violations in the courts, creating solutions to overcoming the legal and bureaucratic impediments in the resettlement process, and developing an enforceable system of legal and procedural rights for refugees and displaced persons worldwide. Working directly with our clients as they navigate the labyrinthine processes, IRAP is often able to identify obstacles of which other institutional players are unaware. Our unique model utilizes lessons learned in individual casework to advocate for systemic changes that benefit broader refugee populations.

3. Finally, a crucial prong of IRAP’s approach is to train the next generation of international human rights advocates. These advocates are essential to ensuring fairness, decency, and adherence to the rule of law throughout the refugee resettlement process.

International Refugee Assistance Project: IRAP

Coalition For Safe Spaces In Lebanon is focused on international issues. It received its nonprofit status in 2018. 

We foster a stabilizing presence that expands the safety, health, dreams, and possibilities of those impacted by crisis by being on the ground, listening deeply, advocating for those impacted, and connecting people and resources.

In February of 2017, a group of friends and colleagues traveled to Lebanon with one goal: to listen. They came with hearts heavy for those affected by the ongoing effects of war, particularly the nearly two million refugees who now made Lebanon their home. For a country about the size of Connecticut, Lebanon ranks first in the number of refugees per capita in the world. Their four million residents have continually made space for families forced out of Palestine, and orphans and widows fleeing Syria. (In contrast, the U.S., which is 946 times larger than Lebanon, hosts 3 million refugees, which is .009% of our population.) Within days of their first visit, this group of friends understood why: there are few forces stronger in the world than Lebanese hospitality.

While the power of Lebanese hospitality explains the why, the how is much more complicated. How can Lebanon care for the continually growing population of
neighbors who call their small country home? How can refugees best find a path toward sustained independence? And how can the global community support
Lebanon in their inspiring and generous act of welcome to these refugees? After this listening tour, the group of friends who would become Safe Spaces knew
two things: they were inspired to provide tangible support to these refugee families, and they wanted to do everything they could to come alongside the Lebanese people to help.

 

Soon, it became obvious that the most impactful need was education for refugee children. Thirty to fifty percent of school-age Syrian children are not enrolled in any formal education. As they get older, many more have to drop out of school to work and support their families. Students who do attend school face language barriers and a significant gap in skills. It’s in this gap that the Safe Spaces Center and school was born. You can learn more about our Safe Spaces Center here.

In all that we do, we rely on our relationships in these impacted communities to guide us into meaningful work. Because we are a small NGO, we have the flexibility to meet needs in moments of crisis. When Beirut experienced a debilitating explosion at their port in August of 2020, we quickly dispatched our staff and teachers to help in relief efforts. In the days and months following, we partnered to rebuild a church and help establish ongoing support for a community kitchen. You can read more about our work in Beirut here. Since that first trip, Safe Spaces has indeed become a trusted stabilizing presence in Lebanon. We feel that our power lies in the same roots that inspired us: in radical hospitality, genuine welcome, and a deep desire for all humans to flourish. For us, it always comes back to listening.
 
We invite you to support us in this work as we listen deeply to the needs of this beautiful country and each of its beloved inhabitants.

Coalition For Safe Spaces In Lebanon

BEforUkraine is a non-profit with the mission to help the people of Ukraine in the most effective way.

BEforUkraine is a citizens’ initiative to help Ukraine 

Launched in March 2022 by a group of friends and entrepreneurs appalled by the war in Ukraine. The initial mission was to bring medical & technical equipment and to help Ukrainian refugees. 

In March 2022 we facilitated the arrival in Belgium of 240 Ukrainian refugees, mainly women, and children. We identified, vetted, and matched host families for the refugees. 

As of today, we successfully purchased and transported 68 ambulances and 2 school buses to Ukraine. 

The ambulances are converted into mobile hospitals.  

We are now raising funds to buy another school bus. More than 2000 schools (incl the school buses) have been destroyed by the war. This project was founded and is led by high school students because they believe that every child deserves the right to education. For more information about the school bus project, please visit  https://www.beforua.be/school-bus 

Together we can make a difference. 

Thank you for your precious help. 

Alfred (16 yo),   Anna (16 yo), Charlie, (16 yo),  Charline (15 yo), Charlotte (16 yo), Diego (16 yo) and Jeanne (15 yo)  
The School Bus Team - BEforUkraine Youth

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U.S.-based donors can make tax deductible contributions to the  BEforUkraine US Fund  at the King Baudouin Foundation United States (KBFUS). Because KBFUS is a public charity, within the meaning of Sections 501(c)(3) and 509(a)(1) of the IRC, donors may claim the maximum tax benefits allowed by U.S. tax law for their contributions. 

BEforUkraine

We help people in crisis by providing emergency health services, and then promote self-reliance through training.

We are a global humanitarian organization dedicated to saving lives and relieving suffering. Established in 1984 by volunteer doctors and nurses, we are a nonprofit with no political or religious affiliation, and now have more than 7,500 staff members around the world, more than 97% of whom are local. Our mission is to improve the quality of life through health interventions and related activities that strengthen underserved communities worldwide. With the flexibility to respond rapidly to emergencies, we offer medical services and training to people at the highest risk, always working to strengthen local healthcare systems and promote self-reliance.

International Medical Corps

Best Seat In The House is a nonprofit organization. It is based in Sandy, UT. It received its nonprofit status at the end of 2017.

The Best Seat in the House is a 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to providing life-changing experiences for children facing challenging circumstances, including serious illnesses, poverty, disabilities, and those in foster care. What began as a birthday celebration for Ivan evolved into a dynamic nonprofit with a mission to infuse joy and hope into the lives of children and their families.

Best Seat In The House

NILA protects and expands immigrant rights by engaging in federal litigation and empowering attorneys with litigation support. 

Marc Van Der Hout is the founder of Van Der Hout LLP, a firm recognized nationally for its litigation and advocacy on cutting-edge issues. Throughout his career, Marc has challenged draconian immigration policies through impact and individual litigation. He served as lead counsel in numerous successful class actions that provided a path to legal status for tens of thousands of noncitizens and their family members and has represented thousands of noncitizens in immigration court and at all levels of the federal court system. Among his peers, Marc is known for his innovative and resourceful legal representation, his kindness and mentorship, and a laugh that is contagious.

The Marc Van Der Hout Litigation Fellowship is designed to advance the development of fierce and creative litigators like Marc by engaging in impact, transparency, and accountability litigation at NILA. To read more about Marc, visit the [Marc Van Der Hout Litigation Fellowship](https://immigrationlitigation.org/marc-van-der-hout-litigation-fellowship/) page of NILA's website.  

Marc Van Der Hout Litigation Fellowship at NILA

The global Learn + Earn initiative: empowering students via education, one child at a time.

When communities throughout the world are struggling, education is often the first casualty. The Learn + Earn initiative is committed to changing this narrative. By leveraging AI-driven, personalized learning, we help students catch up on years of lost education by providing them with the technology needed for remote learning and the right tools to thrive.

Our program personalizes education, ensuring that every child, regardless of their circumstances, can master essential concepts at their own pace and excel. Inspired by our ability to tailor learning for students at all levels, we decided to expand our definition of 'all'. Our aim? To provide access, tools, and motivation to students in need across the globe.

But we can't do it alone.

Learn + Earn currently serves 1,000 Ukrainian students who have been displaced to neighboring countries by helping them to catch up in English and math. We provide laptops, training, a personalized curriculum for each student, and an AI tutor that ensures the kids are engaged and achieving their maximum potential.

With a program cost of $2,000 per student per year, immediate demand from a waiting list of 5,000 more, and new program locations on the horizon, we need your help to scale our efforts.

We can bridge the education gap and give every child, everywhere, the chance to learn, grow, and succeed, regardless of circumstance.

Join us in making a difference. Together we can create change today for a better tomorrow.

Learn and Earn Awards Fund

Support humanitarian aid for people affected by the crisis in Gaza

The humanitarian crisis in Gaza continues to worsen. Since October 2023, over 30,000 people have been killed. Thousands of children are missing, likely injured or dead under the rubble of destroyed buildings. Over 1.7 million remain displaced at emergency shelters, facing severe shortages of food, water, fuel, medical supplies, and other essential resources. Dire water, sanitation, and hygiene conditions, damaged hospital infrastructure, and malnutrition are exacerbating urgent needs.

Myriad USA launched its Gaza Humanitarian Fund to pool donations for three trusted partners delivering critical aid to displaced individuals in Gaza - Taawon (Welfare Association), Medical Aid for Palestinians, and Mersal Foundation for Charity and Development.

**Taawon (Welfare Association)**

Taawon is one of the leading independent Palestinian non-profit organizations. Since the first day of the conflict, Taawon has coordinated humanitarian interventions in Gaza. They support more than 400,000 displaced individuals by providing their basic humanitarian needs such as food, water, clothing, and blankets, in addition to aiding hospitals with medicines, medical supplies, and fuel. Donate directly to [Welfare Association | Every.org](https://www.every.org/welfare-association-ch)

**Medical Aid for Palestinians**

For over 30 years, Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP) has been working to ensure that all Palestinians have access to healthcare, and the full realization of their rights to health and dignity. MAP is responding to the ongoing emergency in Gaza by providing immediate medical aid, food, and humanitarian aid, while supporting local capacity for the development of the Palestinian healthcare system in the long-term. Donate directly to [Medical Aid for Palestinians | Every.org ](https://www.every.org/medical-aid-for-palestinians-uk)

**Mersal Foundation for Charity and Development**

Based in Egypt, Mersal Foundation provides high quality healthcare to those in need. Their humanitarian program for Gaza includes medical aid convoys with supplies, equipment, medicines, and sanitary products; free remote tele-medicine and tele-therapy services; and volunteer medical personnel stationed at the border crossing in case of emergency medical evacuations. Donate directly to [Mersal Foundation for Charity and Development | Every.org ](https://www.every.org/mersal)

Gaza Humanitarian Fund

Sponsor a project close to your heart today

We support projects in Southeast Asia that operate on a grassroots level, and are committed to bringing these projects the resources they need, whether that is funds, training, and volunteers to successfully run their projects. 

We advise, we connect, we engage and we facilitate. We focus on small organisations that would otherwise be invisible to outside help. The projects we support are diverse and include education, child care, community development, health care and more.

Together with communities we work to address whatever the urgent need is. We do not have our own ideas on what communities need; instead we go to a village and listen.  If you want to be a part of what we achieve, then please support our work and make a difference.  

www.philanthropyconnections.org  |  www.facebook.com/PhilanthropyConnections

Philanthropy Connections

The nation's leading LGBTQ immigrant rights organization.

The nation's leading LGBTQ immigrant rights organization. We represent and advocate for people from around the world fleeing violence, abuse, and persecution because of their sexual orientation, gender identity, or HIV status. Our legal team has won asylum for more than 1,000 LGBTQ and HIV-positive immigrants while maintaining a 99% success rate. Your gift will make a unique difference.

Immigration Equality

African youth and refugee communities becoming social entrepreneurs through freesponsible and self-organized empowerment.

SINA (Social Innovation Academy)is a multi-award-winning model empowering marginalized youth and African refugee communities to unleash their potentials and become social entrepreneurs. By creating their own solutions to the challenges they face, participants transform from passive aid recipients to active drivers of their own futures. As SINA's model continues to scale across different African countries through a replication approach, its impact continues to grow. It has reached eight communities in four African countries (Uganda, Kenya, Democratic Republic of Congo and Zimbabwe) and has given birth to over 65 social enterprises.

Quick video introduction:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sEVhNI4tdzE

SINA (Social Innovation Academy)

Friends of Be an Angel provides humanitarian aid & civilian evacuations for the most vulnerable in Ukraine during a time of war.

Friends of Be an Angel, together with Be an Angel and the Women's For Future organization, provide for those most in need in Ukraine during a time of war. We work with in-kind donations and humanitarian aid, then organize delivery to the most severely affected regions in Ukraine. Additionally, the team coordinates the evacuation of vulnerable people from Ukraine. So far, we have managed to provide 4,700+ tons of aid and have evacuated 18,000+ civilians.

The are nearly 6.6 millions of internally displaced persons in Ukraine and over 9 million people have crossed the Ukrainian border since Russia invaded the country. Almost 2.2 millions Ukrainian citizens had to leaved their home in eastern Ukraine. Unfortunately, they currently have no place to come home to because their houses have been destroyed. Ten percent of internally displaced persons have not gotten any assistance from the Ukrainian government. They have dire needs, especially in light of winter coming soon. At least three million families are in Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhia, and Kherson regions, that are occupied by the Russian troops. They have no opportunity to buy simple everyday products such as meals, hygiene products, medical supply, and more. Even a simple cold or fever could lead to death! Also, Ukrainians are facing the coldest winter in the history of independence! The room temperatures are expected to be at 13-14°C inside homes at best during winter.

Together, we can provide for the Ukrainian people in these trying times. We can stand together in the face of this humanitarian crisis and save lives. Donate today.

Friends Of Be An Angel Inc

Kiva powers a global movement to expand financial access for a world where all people hold the power to improve their lives.

**1.4B people lack access to basic financial services. We believe financial access should not be a privilege for some, but a right for all.**

Kiva is a nonprofit that envisions an equitable world where everyone, regardless of economic circumstances, has the opportunity to thrive. Kiva helps underserved communities access and use financial services with confidence and independence while building resilience to financial shocks. With financial inclusion, alongside improved financial literacy and skills, people can start and grow businesses, invest in their local economies, and build assets that improve generational outcomes for families and communities.

**By supporting Kiva, you support someone else’s dreams.**

Learn more about [our impact](https://kiva.org/impact) and how we're reaching populations most overlooked by traditional financial institutions, including:

- [Underbanked women](https://www.kiva.org/gender-equality): Globally, over 740 million women lack access to financial services due to systemic gender biases, collateral requirements, and restrictive societal norms or laws. Kiva addresses these barriers by prioritizing women borrowers, with over 80% of our loans supporting women, and robust programs to help our partners adopt gender-forward policies and products.
- [Refugees and displaced people](https://www.kiva.org/impact/refugees): With over 100 million individuals displaced by conflict and disasters—a number expected to rise—access to capital is crucial for rebuilding lives, yet traditional financial service providers view refugees as too risky. Since 2016, Kiva has extended loans to refugees with a 97% repayment rate, dispelling myths and breaking through systemic barriers.
- [Systemically marginalized communities in the U.S.](https://www.kiva.org/impact/systemically-marginalized-communities)[ystemically marginalized communities in the U.S.](https://www.kiva.org/lp/us-impact): There are significant gaps in capital access for marginalized U.S. entrepreneurs. Since 2011, Kiva has supported 10,000 borrowers (of which 72% are BIPOC) with 0-interest, 0-fee loans. Our data shows that 76% of borrowers could not secure funding elsewhere, highlighting Kiva's role as a critical financial lifeline for small businesses. 
- [Communities impacted by climate change](https://www.kiva.org/impact/climate-affected-people): Climate change hits low-income communities hardest, exacerbating their vulnerability. Kiva supports these communities, particularly smallholder farmers, by providing resources to adapt and build resilience against environmental challenges.

Kiva

30 Birds is rebuilding pathways for Afghan girls to learn, lead, and live freely.

After the fall of Kabul, 30 Birds partnered with student leaders from Marefat High School, one of Afghanistan’s first coed schools, to evacuate the school’s most at-risk girls and their community. These girls were targeted because of their public support for democracy and human rights. Determined to continue their education, the girls played an active role in coordinating their own escape. Under duress, moving in small numbers from city to city and past Taliban checkpoints, we helped more than 450 Afghans - schoolgirls, family members and various activists for female education -  safely across the border and onwards to Canada, the United States, and other countries in Europe and South America.

Building on our success, we at 30 Birds are dedicated to ensuring that Afghan girls are able to thrive, regardless if they are calling a new country home, or if they are still in Afghanistan. To do so, we have implemented four major programs:

1. Education in Afghanistan and Pathways to Safety: Despite the challenges faced by women and girls in Afghanistan under the Taliban's education bans, we have partnered with Afghan educators to enable 3,200 girls to access education through underground schools within Afghanistan. Additionally, we are actively working on helping the top 60-90 students from these schools to safely leave Afghanistan each year, primarily via University acceptance abroad. We provide essential support, including assistance with university applications, visas, and scholarships.

2. Mentorship Program: Our girls risked their lives for education and professional aspirations, but now face the challenge of starting over primarily in Canada, where their prior credentials are not recognized. To ensure their long-term success, we have developed a mentorship program with established leaders from prestigious institutions, offering individualized guidance to accelerate their educational and professional goals.

3. Education Program: Our refugees Education Program is designed to support Afghan girls' education through a full suite of services that follows the girls through every stage of their academic career – from identifying programs and schools, to managing every aspect of the application process, to funding scholarships for tuition, to flexible support to help them stay in school.

4. Mental Health Program: Many of our girls are just now starting to process the huge span of emotions they are feeling – from deep gratitude for being alive, to survivor’s guilt when they think of those left behind. Our Mental Health Program will help them process these complex feelings, It has four main components: (1) Small group peer support; (2) Community Centre; (3) On the ground expertise; (4) Micro-grants for maximally flexible needs;  and (5) Intentional culture of mental health. 

The 30 Birds Foundation

Building resilient communities and promoting sustainable development by empowering the most vulnerable in Sub-Sahara Africa. 

As a charitable nonprofit organization Fountain of Hope Africa is founded on non-discriminatory principles that promotes diversity, equity and inclusion that make us a beautiful example of how people who may appear so different can work together and change their communities for the better.   As humanitarians gathering efforts to thrive and change the lives of the most vulnerable in Sub-Sahara Africa, with a special focus on marginalized women and children in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Malawi. 

FOH is a community rooted development and humanitarian organization, with a broad and deep understanding of the challenges that the communities we serve must overcome and how best to do it. With local knowledge and in partnership with our communities, we remove barriers and restore the abundance of our people’s potentials.
With our dedicated team and partners, who live and work with and for our communities, we listen to the priorities of the people and together design adapted programs that lead to sustainable transformation.
We are driven by a deep love for our communities. We are there before others come, and we remain after they leave, this is the definition of continuity and sustainability.
We believe in change; we trust the process and we believe to see our communities thrive. We are the Fountain of Hope for Africa. We are the ones. 

Vision

Equal access to resources and opportunities.

Disparities in access to resources and opportunities is a complex issue in Sub-Saharan Africa. This region faces various challenges, including historical inequalities, economic disparities, and social inequalities in several ways such economic, gender, education, disability and more. 
Addressing these issues requires a multifaceted approach, including advocacy for policy changes, capacity building, improved infrastructure, social awareness, and efforts to promote equity, inclusivity, and diversity. In collaboration with various partners, local governments, and communities play crucial roles in combating discrimination and promoting equal access to resources and opportunities in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Mission

To craft adapted and long-lasting solutions for the most vulnerable via Education, Empowerment, and advocacy.

We made helping others, changing their lives our reason of living. 
We believe that watching the way people are suffering and keep complaining will worsen the situation, but standing up, doing what you are able to do, saves lives. Our Founder and Executive Director has a deep and broad understanding of the community problems we are resolving. Marcel lived in Dzaleka refugee camp Malawi for 11 years after fleeing insecurity from the Eastern of DRC his home country. Being a refugee, he knows well what it means. In DRC Marcel knows well how better life before the conflicts; this gives us have and clear understanding of the context of the current humanitarian crisis but also the ability to conceive adapted and long-lasting solutions. We do this work because of having experienced the same life in the same communities but also, we are passionate about it, brief, serving with compassion is our passion. Being part of these communities, their challenges are our challenges, we are conscious that if we do not do anything no one will do it. 

Values

Hope
Dignity
 Diversity
Integrity
Compassion
Excellence
Impartiality

SERVICES

Our current intervention has its greater attention on Education, Economic empowerment and livelihood, Food Security, and water and Sanitation (Wash).

A. EDUCATION

1. Primary and secondary school 

 Since 2015 we are running a school that provides access to primary school to over 1000 forcibly displaced children (refugee and asylum seekers) at Dzaleka refugee camp Malawi. Every year we have 40 students’ refugees and Malawians under our Secondary School Sponsorship program, 90% are girls. 

2. Take the Lead

Fountain Of Hope Africa in collaboration with Mexoxo and the eCornell University to promote education for the most disadvantaged.
Through this collaboration we provide access to skills-based instruction to refugees, asylum seekers and other underserved people especially women. Program participants complete online courses delivered through eCornell in leadership, entrepreneurship, time management, and career exploration to prepare for entrepreneurship, employment, and community involvement.
The content is designed for pairing with other social and educational programming and provides participants with a foundation for launching careers that earn a living income and promote sustainable self-sufficiency.                                                                           

3. School recovery program 

In the Eastern of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), we are running a School Recovery Program in Bukavu and the surrounding territories, that is currently serving over 500 children. This Accelerated Learning Programs provides education opportunities to out-of-school minors survivors of armed conflicts and poverty who are between the age of 12 and 17. The program compresses the equivalent of the six-year primary program into three years, allowing students to re- enter the formal education system at the secondary level or qualify for vocational training. To promote inclusion in education, this program prioritizes teen mothers due to their higher level of vulnerability due to stigma and exclusion from education while boys are all accepted even when after impregnating girls.

4. Higher education sponsorship

This program is designed to Empower girls Enhance women education in the Democratic Republic of Congo. It creates high education opportunities for marginalized girl by sponsoring their College/University learning cycle. The program supports the beneficiaries with tuition fees and learning materials and it gives a special consideration to those survivors of SGBVs. This program sponsors a number of marginalized girls in the Eastern of the DRC every year since 2021. 

B. ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT AND POVERTY ALLEVIATION

Our Economic Empowerment and poverty alleviation program aims to build a strong and long-lasting self-reliance among individuals, families, and communities. We provide business literacy to women and youth, access to capital, mentorship, and coaching; 93% of the beneficiaries supported during the last 5 years were able to sustain and grow they business, and 78% were able to employ at least one more person from their communities. I addition to this we provide vocational skills to women to boost entrepreneurship and maximize the utilization of their potentials for their economic independence. For COVID-19 response 1002 vulnerable households benefited from our unconditional social cash transfer that allowed them to overcome the socio-economic effects of the global pandemic.

C. FOOD SECURITY
Using ecology friendly methodologies, we are supporting smallholder farmers with agriculture technics through training, mentoring, and coaching, and help them access agriculture inputs.  These efforts are revitalizing farmland, improving food security, rural livelihood, and economic recovery. We mobilized the communities in cooperatives and give them access hybrid seeds and trained them in organic fertilizer production. This program is extended to a food relief Aid for in need communities that are vulnerable to food insecurity, due to armed conflicts, climate and or economic shocks.

D. WATER AND SANITATION (WASH)

Due to the water crisis and the congestion of Dzaleka refugee supply, we deliver potable water to over 1000 refugee households and 9 community schools in the camp daily on daily basis.
In the Eastern of the Democratic Republic of Congo we are actively engaged in easing the access to clean water and sanitation facilities in rural areas, schools and health facilities; according to UNICEF over 30 million people in DRC have no access to clean water and nearly 30% do not have access to sanitation facilities. This program is extended to a Fairfood Relief Aid for in need communities that are vulnerable to food insecurity, due to armed conflicts, climate and or economic shocks. FOH intention is to support families that are food insecure, especially during the lean months where the cost of food and the scarcity of food increases significantly in Malawi and the Eastern of DRC.

E. FUTURE PLANNED ACTIVITIES

We are not limited to advocacy for diversity and inclusion in the education system in the Democratic Republic of Congo where teen mothers face stigma and exclusion from the formal education regardless of the circumstances of their pregnancies while boys are fully accepted even when they have kids; same for other children who might appear physically different. 
We are also planning to promote digital inclusion in the education system in the Democratic Republic of Congo where the majority of students from primary to high school level without access to digital resources. 
For food security we are planning to include advocacy for land access and ownership in rural areas where traditionally women do not own land while they constitute over 60% of the agriculture labor. Another planned component for our school recovery program is to rescue children who are victims of child labor and exploitation in mining. 
At Dzaleka refugee camp Malawi where less than 40% of the school aged children have access to education, our projection is to double the number of refugee children who are accessing primary and secondary school by expanding our school with new classrooms, furniture and personnel by the end of 2024. In Bukavu DRC building a modern vocational training center in order to empower the thousand of young girls and boys victims of armed conflicts and who missed the opportunity to access formal education du to conflicts; the priority will be given to teen mothers, former child soldiers who were forcibly enrolled in armed groups, street children and those living with physical disabilities. 

Fountain of Hope Africa

The Taube Center is committed to strengthening the bonds between Jews and Jewish communities worldwide.

The Taube Center provides innovative educational programs and extensive resources with the aim to enrich Jewish life in Poland and to connect Jews from around the world with their Eastern European heritage. The Taube Center has developed an array of programs, which serve the Jewish communities in Poland and engage audiences from around the world. Constantly expanding its network of partner organizations, the Center has recently become a member of the European Association for the Preservation and Promotion of Jewish Culture and Heritage. Taube Jewish Heritage Tours Taube Jewish Heritage Tours is a mission-driven, on-the-ground Jewish heritage tour service based in Poland. Our professional team of academics, guides, educators, and community leaders provide meaningful and engaging customized tours of Poland's multicultural landscape, infusing each encounter with illuminating personal stories and insights from those engaged in Polish Jewish life and committed to the preservation of Polish Jewish heritage. TJHTalks Series Having suspended our flagship program, Taube Jewish Heritage Tours, we launched TJHTalks in April 2020 as an interactive way to maintain contact with past and future tour participants and to broaden the Center's audience. Yerusha: Professional Development Program The year-long program, now in its second year, distinguishes itself from other Jewish professional development opportunities in that the operative language is Polish and all workshop facilitators are based in Poland. Resource and Educational Materials The Taube Center has developed a sophisticated set of resource materials in several languages that support our educational programs and are especially valuable for our study tour program. Our publications have been disseminated at the POLIN Museum and the Galicia Jewish Museum and through Polish embassies and cultural institutions around the world.

Taube Center for Jewish Life & Learning

Protecting the most vulnerable on the front line of humanitarian emergencies

INTERSOS is a humanitarian organization on the front line of emergencies to help people affected by war, violence, natural disasters, and extreme exclusion.  
 
We guarantee access to medical care, clean water, and proper sanitation; we respond to basic needs, such as food and shelter; we identify and treat cases of malnutrition; we protect and assist victims of violence; we support children and, in particular, unaccompanied and separated children, building educational spaces and places for socialization in war zones. 

Your support of INTERSOS goes directly to the front line, where it's needed most. Thank you! 
 
"Our operators are committed to providing humanitarian aid to the victims of war and natural disasters daily. They are always ready to protect the most vulnerable and guarantee humanitarian access to the most remote zones of crisis areas, reaching an increasing number of people in need. This is the strength of INTERSOS, an organization of women and men who choose to be on the side of humanity. On the front line, always".

Kostas Moschochoritis, INTERSOS Director General 


INTERSOS Humanitarian Organization ETS

IILA provides transformative services for refugees, immigrants, survivors of human trafficking, & families in the greater LA area

The International Institute of Los Angeles (IILA) began in 1914 as a response to the needs of women and girls immigrating from Europe and East Asia in adjusting to their new lives in Los Angeles.  Our founding was part of the larger revolutionary vision of a social welfare worker named Edith Terry Bremer, who established the first International Institute in New York in 1910. The **International Institute movement** was unique for its time in its philosophy and approach to this work. It **embraced cultural pluralism by celebrating ethnic diversity** and encouraging immigrants to maintain their native languages, traditions and folk cultures, while also becoming engaged US citizens who contribute to their communities. 

**IILA has played a prominent role in every major refugee and immigrant wave since its founding.** For over a century, we have offered a wide range of services to assist limited-English proficient and low-income individuals achieve self-sufficiency and thrive. Over time, we also **expanded our services** to include a wide array of legal assistance, resettlement of refugees and asylum applicants, survivors of human trafficking, and free or low-cost child care and transportation. We employ over 150 people in 13 locations in Los Angeles County and have a budget of over 20 million dollars. We also have a long history of employing newcomers, who serve as valuable team members who can provide culturally sensitive assistance to those in need.

Our **commitment to upholding the dignity and supporting the self-sufficiency of refugees and immigrants** is as unwavering today as it was at our founding.  We know that new arrivals bring a vibrancy and richness, as well as economic strength, to Southern California and the wider United States that is vital for our continued growth and success.

International Institute Of Los Angeles

Since 1968, Anera has helped refugees and others hurt by conflicts in Palestine, Lebanon and Jordan live with purpose and hope.

Anera, which has no political or religious affiliation, works on the ground with partners in Palestine (West Bank and Gaza), Lebanon and Jordan. We mobilize resources for immediate emergency relief and for sustainable, long-term health, education, and economic development. Our staff serve in their communities, navigating the politics that constrict progress to get help where it’s needed most.

That’s how Anera received more than $112 million in support of programs in 2021 alone, and it’s how we will keep building better lives until hope finds its way in the Middle East.

Anera

Stop the arbitrary detention of migrants, refugees, and asylum seekers.

Thousands of men, women, and children are locked up every day just because they fled their countries, were trafficked overseas, or sought better lives abroad. Hidden from scrutiny, they face inhumane conditions and grave abuses. Some people die in detention, others simply disappear, and others lose hope of ever being freed—even though they are not charged with crimes. 

 Donate to the Global Detention Project today to: 
 
* End arbitrary and indefinite migration-related detention. 
* Ensure that children and other at-risk people are never detained. 
* Expose harmful detention practices. 
* Demand justice for those unjustly detained.  
* Promote the respect and dignity of all non-citizens. 
 
_____________ 

MAKING AN IMPACT: 

UNCOVERING DETENTION
We work to ensure that countries reveal how many people they detain, in what conditions, and why, which is essential information for making meaningful calls for reforms. We have successfully encouraged many countries to release data, including an early FOIA request in the US, which led to our publishing the first comprehensive map of US detention sites ,  featuring a staggering 900+ facilities. Recently, the EU's statistical office—Eurostat—announced that it would begin collecting data on member states' immigration detention statistics, which marked a milestone in efforts to promote transparency in EU deportation practices. The GDP played a leading role in helping make this happen, undertaking ground-breaking investigations like "The Uncounted," repeatedly lobbying the agency to collect and publicise better migration enforcement data, and  publishing major academic studies on the implications of the growth of unaccounted detention regimes across the region. 

"The Global Detention Project persistently unearths and publicises information about immigration detention systems so that we can build better informed societies that embrace the human rights of all migrants." Salva Lacruz (Fray Matias de Cordova Human Rights Centre, Mexico) 

ENDING THE DETENTION OF CHILDREN
We have been a leading voice highlighting the enduring harm that immigration detention has on children and have regularly provided advice on how refugee and migrant children should be treated. When officials in Geneva began seeking non-detention methods for minors in custody, they came to us looking for examples of how other countries do this. When the Swiss NGO Terres des Homme sought data to advocate  an end to Switzerland's child detention policies  at the Swiss Parliament, they came to the GDP to build the evidence for their case. Our advice and input has informed numerous global studies and reports, including those produced by the  Committee on the Rights of the Child  and the UN-mandated  Global Study on Children Deprived of Liberty . 

"It is not easy for the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (WGAD) to reach out to organisations working on the ground and the Global Detention project has been an important partner in providing a bridge. But it has been more than that: The GDP has also played an important role in assisting the WGAD to spread the message that arbitrary detention occurs outside the criminal justice context." Elina Steinerte (Former Chair, UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention) 

PROMOTING BETTER HEALTHCARE
The World Health Organisation acknowledges that immigration detention is inherently damaging   to people's health, a conclusion it was able to draw in part on the basis of GDP studies and data. In 2022, the WHO asked the GDP to undertake a global evidence of review on health indicators and outcomes in immigration detention settings as part of its series,  Global Evidence Review on Health and Migration. Our systematic review of evidence,  which builds on our multi-year reporting initiative on COVID-19 in detention, has pointed to several daunting lessons, including the apparent lack of willingness by many states to implement sustainable reforms in their health provision for detained refugees, asylum seekers, and migrants, and the devastating impact this is having on people across the globe. 

"The Global Detention Project is a strong advocacy organisation that promotes the human rights of detained migrants and contributes to global debates on relevant standards and policies that govern migration."  Felipe González Morales (UN Special Rapporteur on the Human Rights of Migrants) 

SPURRING UN ACTION
We strive to ensure that UN human rights agencies are alerted to urgent and unfolding situations involving detained asylum seekers and refugees so that they can take immediate action to address violations and ensure that states fulfil their protection obligations. Recently, we helped mobilise UN action on the plight of refugees and migrants stuck in Ukrainian detention centres amidst Russia's bombardment, the disappearances of Eritrean refugees in Egypt, and abuses of migrants trapped in border areas between Belarus and neighbouring countries. 

__________________

ABOUT THE GLOBAL DETENTION PROJECT
The Global Detention Project (GDP) is committed to ending arbitrary and harmful migration-related detention practices around the world, and to ensuring respect for the fundamental human rights of all migrants, refugees, and asylum seekers. To achieve this, we seek to:

* Increase public knowledge and awareness of immigration detention policies. 
* Expand coverage of immigration detention by human rights monitoring bodies and other international agencies. 
* Expand partnerships with local and international civil society organisations working to end arbitrary and harmful immigration detention practices. 
* Strategically target research and advocacy so that it effectively challenges arbitrary and harmful detention laws and policies. 


To learn more about our work, please visit our website:  https://www.globaldetentionproject.org/

Global Detention Project 

Re-imagining healthcare for vulnerable and underprivileged people in Athens, Greece.

**IRIS Humanitarian Response** is a health focused Christian non-profit organisation based in Athens, Greece.

We are dedicated to advancing access to healthcare and delivering high quality medical care for individuals and communities in need. Our goal is to bridge the gap in health disparities and improve health outcomes for disadvantaged and underserved people. Through our work, we strive to make a lasting impact by promoting health equity and the human right to health.

Our mission is to serve vulnerable, marginalised, underprivileged individuals and communities by improving their health and wellbeing - with the ultimate goal to alleviate suffering and restore their dignity and hope.

We are committed to achieving this through:

• upholding the right to health
• providing medical services in the areas of promotion, prevention, treatment and rehabilitation
• ensuring access to medicines and health products
• implementing public health interventions
• removing obstacles and creating innovative ways to access and navigate essential healthcare services

IRIS Humanitarian Response

Amaanah's objective is to provide long-term assistance throughout the entire lifespan of our programs.

Amaanah's objective is to provide long-term assistance throughout the entire lifespan of our programs. From the initial stages of education and scholarships, through job preparedness and entry into the workforce, culminating in the full cycle of individuals becoming Amaanah Ambassadors.

Amaanah's focus is working with women and youth in the refugee community. We have the following programs to help support the long term integration of our refugee community: Teach 360, Lions Soccer Program, Big Sister Circle, Relief services, and Scholarships.

The teach 360 program is an in school support program for refugee students to focus on social, emotional, linguistic and academic support. This is a partnership with schools or the school district while tracking different data points to measure the success of the program.

The Lions program is a free soccer youth boys program aimed at building community through mentorship and sports. We have a dedicated group of volunteer coaches who train and coach the athletes. The program has been able to support students with scholarships for higher education as well. 

The Big Sister Circle is a program geared towards women in building community and also support the women through education. The women learn fundamental English grammar alongside meeting new friends in the community. This hybrid program bridges virtual community with in person life experiences. 

The relief program is geared at short term support. Amaanah can respond in time of natural disaster and support the community through supplies, care packages, financial support, and food support as well. We focus on holistic services to create a deeper impact.

Amaanah Refugee Services

We operate worldwide, helping people affected by conflict and armed violence and promoting the laws that protect victims of war. 

The work of the ICRC is based on the Geneva Conventions of 1949, their Additional Protocols, its Statutes – and those of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement – and the resolutions of the International Conferences of the Red Cross and Red Crescent. The ICRC is an independent, neutral organization ensuring humanitarian protection and assistance for victims of armed conflict and other situations of violence. It takes action in response to emergencies and endeavors to prevent suffering by promoting and strengthening humanitarian law and universal humanitarian principles.

Established in 1863, the ICRC is at the origin of the Geneva Conventions and the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement. It directs and coordinates the international activities conducted by the Movement in armed conflicts and other situations of violence.

the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) is a neutral, impartial, independent humanitarian organization, helping people affected by conflict and armed violence and promoting the laws that protect victims of war.  Please see our website www.icrc.org  for more information about our work.  


International Committee Of The Red Cross

Nonprofit organization dedicated to inclusion of individuals with disabilities in the Muslim community of Houston

Dar-us-Sakina is a safe space for people of all abilities and their caregivers.  We inspire the community to abandon stigmas and embrace individuals with disabilities with empathy and respect.  Together, we are better!

We are dedicated to providing inclusive opportunities for individuals with disabilities, while empowering the affected and their caregivers with social support and access to local resources.  We envision a Muslim community where individuals with disabilities are fully accepted and included, and both they and their caregivers have adequate access to support.

Dar-us-Sakina offers its services to all special needs individuals and their caregivers within the Houston community, but reserves its Zakat fund for Muslim families who are in financial need or crisis. Our mission is achieved through three key service areas: Education, Support, and Community Awareness.

Education:

Special Needs Weekend Islamic School Programs: At four locations across Houston, children with special needs come weekly to the masjid to learn about their faith using an adapted curriculum and to be included in the community.

Teen Adult Program (TAP): This program helps individuals with special needs take the first step to adulthood by teaching them independent life skills in a supportive social environment.

Support:

Caregiver Support Groups: This allows mothers, fathers, and siblings of individuals with special needs to connect with others with similar life circumstances.

Events: From inclusive family events that make all accommodations to caregiver training events, Dar-us-Sakina engages the local special needs population on a monthly basis.

Zakat Services: For special needs families in crisis, we are committed to providing comprehensive support through our Zakat Fund, including funding of emergency respite care, counseling, necessary evaluations, advocacy and durable medical equipment.

Community Awareness:

Youth Inclusion Training: We visit local Islamic schools, masaajid, and Scouts to train typical youth on accepting and including their brothers and sisters with disabilities.

Community Education: We conduct awareness events and workshops to educate the general community on disability awareness and early childhood intervention.

Sakina Internship: This is a one year commitment for college age students who dedicate one day of the week serving individuals with special needs while learning about related topics.

Volunteer Enrichment Program: This is a volunteer buddy program for High School students.

Dar-us-Sakina

StrongMinds provides life-changing mental health services to women in Africa using innovative community-based group therapy.

According to the WHO, depression is the leading cause of disability worldwide, and is a major contributor to the global burden of disease. In Africa, an estimated 66M women have depression and 85% have no access to treatment. Since 2014, StrongMinds has treated over 200,000 individuals for depression symptoms, with 80% measuring as depression-free after therapy. When a woman recovers from depression, she is more engaged in the community and her economic activity increases. Her family eats more meals and her children go to school more often. When you invest in mental health, you invest in the future of an individual, their family, and their community.

StrongMinds Inc

We enable the poor, especially women, to create a world without poverty and hunger.

Grameen Foundation

Help us heal and empower queer people and their place in the world! 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qzXj-I12Ka0

we.are.village in Berlin is creating new ways that queer communities can connect, transform and heal. For the last eight years, we have operated a unique space for queer masculinities and femininities, transgender, non-binary, genderfluid, intersex and other gender non-conforming people.


Our goal is to help queer people create and embrace healthier, better connected and purposeful lives. We do this by nourishing individual and collective growth through working with the body, mindfulness, artistic expression, consent and a range of self-empowering tools and strategies. In the process, we tackle loneliness, lack of self-esteem, intimacy and addiction issues, dealing with discrimination and other intersectional challenges that limit and impact queer lives.


We have created a diverse and continuously adapting program of weekly and monthly events, community evenings, weekend trips as well as art exhibitions, performances, salon discussions and offerings via our online platform.


Although it was never our focus, we  have become a model for other cities and countries. We regularly host visitors and participants from all over the world and have seen an increase in international interest from individuals, other organizations, activists, artists, politicians or other practitioners wanting to find out more about our innovative model and methodologies.

Please contribute to our fundraiser that will support this international vision through our Queer Bridges Berlin and Village Academy Training programs.

Download the PDF with our vision, goals and summary of our past successes here!
https://www.dropbox.com/s/66zmtyp86uub1tt/2023-WAV--KL-EN-DIN-A4%20.pdf?dl=0

We very much appreciate your time and attention!
Thank you !!
Kai Ehrhardt
Founder

we are village - queer matters

We empower refugees by helping them reclaim access to education, develop modern media skills, and pursue professional employment.

At ReFOCUS Media Labs, our mission is to empower asylum seekers and refugees by equipping them with modern media skills to overcome the challenges they face, such as limited access to education, language barriers, financial constraints, mental health support, skills training and job placement. 

US-BASED DONATIONS ARE 100% TAX DEDUCTIBLE

Through our three Media Labs (Lesvos, Athens, Krakow) workshops and original content productions on location (Amsterdam, Berlin, Athens, Krakow) we provide comprehensive education in photography, filmmaking, audio engineering, and graphic design. Moreover, we actively collaborate with our students in the production of impactful dramatic films and documentaries.

Established in 2017 in Lesvos, Greece as a pilot project when we supported the residents of the infamous Moria refugee camp. in 2019 we officially registered ReFOCUS Media Labs as a foundation in Poland, and started formalizing our work. In 2022 we expanded our efforts by adding new media labs in Athens (GR) and Krakow (PL).  Athens was established to support refugees who struggled to secure access to education and job placement in the Greek system, and Krakow was created to support the massive influx of Ukrainian refugees who fled to Poland after the full-scale Russian invasion. Our work throughout our global network of media creation labs demonstrates our commitment to empowering our community members, and ensuring they have a seat at the table in determining our present and future direction. 

Our mission is to transform lives through education, career training, and psychosocial support, and ultimately sustainable employment. 

In Greece, we primarily work with minors and young adults, who are either stuck in the asylum system or struggling to integrate after receiving minimal asylum protection.  In Poland, our focus groups are women and young adults who fled the war, and now put down roots in Poland.  A key highlight of our training is the creation of professional portfolios, an essential tool that enables our beneficiaries to effectively showcase themselves to potential employers. This part of our program is particularly important as many refugees arriving in Europe have faced educational disparities due to conflict, poverty or discrimination in their home countries. Even those who have a university degree often struggle to be recognized in Europe as education systems in their home countries often fail to meet EU standards. As a result, many higher education graduates are forced to adapt and accept employment well below their skill and education level. In most cases this leads to exploitation on the European labor market.

Our programming aims to break the cycle of disadvantage that refugees and asylum seekers encounter in the labor market. By providing a platform for our students to showcase their original work, share their stories, and employ them as teachers, lab coordinators and co-creators we empower them to become skilled professionals within the global media industry. But our work goes beyond the technical training by providing foundational support and safe spaces for people with refugee backgrounds to be accepted and flourish. Put simply, we treat the whole human being. 

Since our establishment in 2017, we have successfully certified hundreds of media students, produced feature films and music videos; internationally published original photography and graphic design, and collaborated with mainstream media partners on investigative reportage.

We've been featured in National Geographic, collaborated on investigative reports with Forensic Architecture, Human Rights Watch, BBC Newsnight, Aljazeera, the Guardian, and BBC Panorama, and also produce our own original podcast "Fractured", which focuses upon refugee issues and human rights violations in Europe and around the world.

What sets ReFOCUS apart is our dedication to mentoring students beyond the traditional classroom setting. We actively collaborate with our students to create compelling films and documentaries based on their own scripts and concepts. Since 2019 ReFOCUS has produced several films directed, filmed and edited by our students and alumni including  “Even After Death”, “Nothing About Us Without Us”, “Dancing Bells”, “Dead End”, Interview" and "Erantzun", all of which were written and directed by community members. 

“Stitches” - our latest film is currently in post production and will premiere in March 2024 at Movies that Matter Film Festival. Our films and work has been internationally recognised and showcased at prestigious film festivals worldwide, including the Human Rights Film Festival Berlin (DE), Movies that Matter Film Festival (Hague, NL), CPH:DOX (Copenhagen, DK), Melbourne International Film Festival (AU), Rotterdam International Film Festival (NL), IDFA (Amsterdam, NL), New Delhi International Film Festival (India), the World International Film Festival (Amsterdam, NL), and the (in)Justice Film Festival (Chicago, US) and many more. 

In recent years we have expanded to reach larger audiences and provide even more community members with employment and pathways to develop their own careers as freelance media creators. We also take a local approach to ensure the settled communities we work with have foundational support. A great example of this local approach is our Art Under Pressure Arts Festival, which was inaugurated in Athens, Greece (May 2023). The festival provided a platform for artists from Athens, both from within our community and the greater cultural community, to showcase their music, art, performance, design, photography, films and critical reportage on issues the community faces. In 2024 the festival will travel throughout Europe and North America in an effort to activate new local communities of artist who can learn from one another and create together. 

At the heart of our organization is a fundamental belief that individuals can make a difference in the issues they see in the world. Our extensive experience in the field working on the front line of the "refugee crisis" in Europe proves that civil actions can have a massive impact in the lives of people at risk, especially when media and governments claim otherwise. These challenges are not intractable, rather they are opportunities for us to think creatively, and work collectively to ensure we build the societies we know are possible. 

And so we remain committed to helping people with real lives in crisis develop the real skills needed to pursue the real futures they envision. No matter how many times the fast news frames people in need as "takers" and "burdens", we are proving every day that it is possible to cultivate givers who enhance and power our society into the future. 

Fundacja ReFOCUS Media Labs

Leftover Love, Inc. is a Baltimore-based community 501c3 committed to helping get leftover food in the hands of those in need

Leftover Love, Inc,  A Baltimore-based community 501c3 non-profit committed to helping get leftover food in the hands of those in need, located at 5000 Thayer Center, Suite C, Oakland, MD 21550.

Our purpose and mission is to connect community based businesses’ leftover food with those in need in the Baltimore area, ultimately reducing both food waste and those who go hungry.

We achieve this mission by matching volunteers in our network to businesses in their area for picking up food donations and dropping off at local shelters, wellness centers, churches and other organizations who use this to serve their community in need.

Your donation goes directly to the organization's costs such as mileage reimbursement for volunteers, food packing materials, bags, website costs and upkeep.

Leftover Love does not have any paid staff lines and all donations benefit the organization's mission.

Charity Identification Number: 51731

Leftover Love Inc

Airbnb.org’s mission is to unlock the power of sharing space, resources, and support in times of need. 

Airbnb.org opens homes in a times of crisis.  We facilitate emergency housing for people displaced by disaster or conflict, especially those from marginalized communities hardest hit by crisis.  Airbnb.org works with communities and nonprofit partners to offer emergency temporary housing.  We have housed over 250,000 guests during times of need.

We do this by providing short-term, quality and free emergency housing to people displaced by natural disasters and conflict, inspiring and empowering people to act as hosts and support their community, and staying responsive to crises by innovating and leveraging our strengths.

We amplify recovery efforts for individuals by providing safety, financial relief, psychological wellbeing, and connections to the community.   Ultimately, by making connections between hosts and guests, we strengthen and build social cohesion in communities.

Airbnb.org is an independent and publicly-supported 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that leverages Airbnb, Inc.’s technology, services, and other resources at no charge to carry out Airbnb.org’s charitable purpose.

Airbnb.org

Ladli Foundation Trust is  Fostering gender equality, promoting Indian traditional practices for sustainable living globally.

​Ladli Foundation USA, A 501 (C)(3) registered charity organization, incorporated in the 2021 as NJ non-profit organization. It is an international wing of Ladli Foundation Trust India, a well-known non-profit organization. It is an International wing of Ladli Foundation Trust, India, a grassroots level organization known for implementing incredibly impactful & innovative social initiatives to uplift vulnerable people in urban & rural slums and directly impacted over **Two Million beneficiaries** through its action-research initiatives. It was granted the Special Consultative Status in Economic and Social Council since-2020 and conferred with the National Award by the Govt of India for its effective social development non-profit works across the India & also **working with USAID for enhancing the Coverage of Routine Immunization, Covid-19 vaccination & Eradication of Tuberculosis in India**.



**​Inception- Ladli Foundation, India**

Driven by concerns of health, education &amp; equality for vulnerable women as an integral and critical dimension of human rights, Ladli Foundation became a reality in 2012 as a grassroots social catalyst. It was founded by Devendra Kumar, whose incredible journey began as a child laborer in a poverty-stricken environment. Where he faced numerous hardships and atrocities during his orphaned and challenging childhood. Born in a crime-prone slum, he endured abandonment by his parents, who left him with his three-day-old infant sister when he was just two years old. Despite these adversities, Devendra's indomitable spirit and resilience led him to find solace and purpose in serving others.

Driven by his determination to protect his sister from child marriage and dowry, Devendra founded the Ladli Foundation with the noble mission of uplifting the oppressed and disadvantaged. His personal experiences as a child laborer and his encounters with delinquents and drug addicts further fueled his commitment to making a positive impact in the lives of those facing similar challenges.

Listed as a credible public charity organization by the Niti Aayog- the highest policy-making body of the Government of India and accredited with various union, states governments It has been and is known to bring positive reformative changes in society with a mission of building gender-sensitized inclusive society with equal access to basic, essential amenities and services, healthcare, education, work-force participation etc by women- the foundation has been diligently working in 50
districts across 12 states in India.

Ladli Foundation USA

Desmos (www.desmos.org) is a Non-profit Foundation with the aim of connecting donors and foundations in need.  

“Desmos is your one stop partner for customized and impactful giving in the most transparent and reliable way”. 

We deliver meaningful results based on our know-how and the synergies we foster within the civil society network. Our accountability combined with our responsiveness lead to maximum social impact as measured and evaluated by accredited parties.

We focus our work across **four pillars**:

**Social Welfare:** we support charitable organizations nationwide that help vulnerable groups such as homeless, unemployed, elderly, special needs individuals, soup kitchens, social welfare agencies etc by covering basic needs: food relief, shelter, heating, clothing.

**Public Health:** we support hospitals, health care centers, and organizations that provide medical services nationwide.

**Building a Better Future:** we empower the young generation by supporting education, cultivating volunteerism and offering work opportunities through our programs Desmos for Schools and Desmos for Youth.

**Crisis Response & Recovery: i**n times of crisis we respond to the immediate needs of those affected, by utilizing the impulsive flow of funds during the first crucial hours and in the following period in support of recovery efforts.

Desmos Non-Profit Foundation

We provide housing and support to deprioritised asylum seekers and refugees.

**History**
From the first idea of Mazí in a kitchen in central Athens, residents have been at the heart of what we do. 

An asylum system is hostile by design. In this context, however, it was also inefficient, arbitrary and violent. As the state withdrew access to basic services (healthcare, legal, bureaucratic) in 2019, tens of thousands of people became trapped in dangerous and unsanitary overflowing camps on the Greek islands or across the mainland; stuck in cold and dirty and overcrowded basements of community centres or religious centres; or stuck in travellers’ houses: notoriously unclean, insecure spaces. Working frontline at a community centre and information point, we met people every day with an urgent need of housing for an indefinite period of time. People were stuck in the asylum system; stuck without legal status; stuck without access to healthcare; stuck without the status or tools to rent an apartment, find fulfilling work, and build their own pathways out of their situation in Greece.

We decided to use safe, stable housing as the prime lever for residents to unpick these issues, and to move on. Every day we saw young men come into the centre, up to the information point and ask for support. Typically, state and humanitarian actors distribute aid based on the vulnerability of different groups of displaced people. Someone can be “vulnerable” if they fit within a defined social group (old, young, pregnant, ill). Solo men are always bottom of this list. It is remarkable how quickly you internalise the knowledge that there are no services for a young man as he asks you for help; how quickly you internalise a belief that he will be fine: he is young, he is a man, he is strong. The unspoken thought behind this is: he will be ok sleeping on the street.

**Goals**
We are a small charity, and that enables us to provide genuinely impactful support to each resident we work with. We measure our impact in its depth as well as breadth, and aim to achieve five key goals, increasing each resident’s:

- Stability and access to safe spaces
- Feeling of ownership of living space and the city
- Ability to access services
- Ability to support himself financially
- Feeling of strong mental health

With these five keys residents leave Mazi equipped to support their own independent housing.

**Mission**
Mazí Housing exists to end homelessness and social exclusion for displaced people in Athens. In a world where displacement is a reality and resources are limited, we provide viable housing options and holistic support to those who face barriers to social inclusion. We demonstrate the potential for humane, cost-effective and inclusive housing responses to migration that facilitate positive interactions between all communities, and use our voice to advocate for better policy.

**Activities**
Mazí’s model is unique. We have three years of experience in using housing, safe community spaces and livelihoods support as a lever into inclusion in European societies. We have a strong track record of enabling residents to move on independently from our services: sixty-eight residents have arrived at Mazí without a job since 2020; fifty have left with the tools needed to work and forty-six have left in sustainable employment. Behind these figures are 113 asylum service visits; 38 positive asylum decisions or renewals; 65 legal information sessions; 303 doctor appointments; 24 referrals for psychological support; 3429 hours of language study. There are many indicators of inclusion, self-reliance and independence beyond these: including confidence speaking at house meetings, sense of ownership of living space, ability and willingness to navigate the neighbourhood and the city alone.

**Next Steps**
In three years, we have learnt a lot. We are constantly evolving our programme to reflect the changing context and the needs of our residents. We cannot anticipate the external triggers of these adaptations, but this flexibility ensures that we are making the most of our skills and resources to support residents to be self-reliant. The changes we have seen since the Athenian kitchen in 2018 have not, however, been solely driven by the context in which we work. We have pushed ourselves to become more effective, sustainable and replicable. Looking at the next two years, we have a clear vision of what Mazí looks like:

1. **STRENGTHEN**
• In 2023, to recruit a board with broader experience in different areas relevant to our work, e.g. advocacy, finance, funding, housing, lived experience
• To maintain a more stable core team: this means, in 2024, four members of staff for our current operations (average 40 residents over a year)
• Broader and deeper partnerships with other organisations to amplify impact we have

2. **CODIFY**
• We measure impact meticulously
• We communicate successes and learnings clearly, both internally and externally
• We maintain and uphold clear internal systems
• We document our approach clearly and charmingly, ensuring it is easy for others to see and understand how we work, and the impact this has

3. **GROW**
The work that we do is as needed as it has ever been.
• We will grow to support more people: we will open more apartments, sustainably (one housing manager per three houses)
• We will open up community space to non-residents to meet the shortfall in services as organisations close across Greece

4. **ADVOCATE**
• We will build on our track record to speak about housing; to articulate the weakness of camp-based solutions; and to advocate for better access to rights
• We will collaborate with existing partners, and search for unexpected partnerships, to amplify our voice and its impact
• We are a voice that people listen to about housing and integration in Europe

 Mazí Housing Project

1435915265

148788709

1766541537

We are a nonprofit, so instead of charging fees we rely on the generosity of donors like you.