Inspiring Acts of Kindness Happening in Ukraine

Russia recently launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine, displacing over 650,000 civilians who fled to the border. Neighbouring countries have welcomed them with open arms, but the logistics of helping that many people at once have been challenging for local authorities.

Declining necessities, ranging from medical supplies to introductory food provisions, have made it challenging for people to leave Ukraine to avoid the war.

Despite the challenges, the world has come together with a massive outpouring of support for Ukrainians. Here are just a few of the many inspiring acts of kindness happening right now.

Ukrainian-Canadian journalist Christian Borys launched Saint Javelin through Shopify. The available inventory is all based on Ukrainian designs. The site's goal is to raise money to send funds to the orphans of deceased war veterans.“I put our Shopify store up in like 30 minutes,” Borys said, “and the next day, I woke up to a thousand orders. I printed 100 stickers and thought I’d give $500 and be done.”Over $650,000 has been generated since the storefront opened. The entire collection is found here: https://www.saintjavelin.com/collections/all.

Chef José Andrés is active at the Ukrainian border with Poland, feeding the refugees currently fleeing the war. His nonprofit agency, World Central Kitchen, uses the $100 million that came with the Bezos Award to stop hunger from being a global problem.“We’re going to make sure that nobody’s going hungry, and we show the respect they deserve,” said Andrés. “We need to be a force of good.” [[1]]Andrés is often credited with bringing the tapas concept to the American continent. Since the Russian invasion, he’s been spotted delivering flour and other essentials directly to Ukrainians. [[2]]

Airbnb announced in late February that it would offer free temporary housing for up to 100,000 Ukrainian refugees fleeing the country. The cost of the stays will be covered by hosts offering free or discounted accommodation, donors to Airbnb’s refugee fund, and the company itself. [[3]]“We know that hosts on Airbnb and guests around the world will be eager to stand up and assist this massive effort,” Airbnb announced in its press release.The home rental platform plans to partner with resettlement agencies as part of this process to ensure everyone has the chance to find a new home while waiting to return to Ukraine.

Binance, currently the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, is donating $10 million to help with any humanitarian efforts that benefit the people of Ukraine.The firm also announced that it would be freezing the accounts of Russian clients that the world’s governments are targeting with sanctions. [[4]]“We’re blocking accounts of those on the sanctions list if they have Binance accounts and ensuring that all sanctions are met in full,” said a representative for the company.Anonymous donors have already committed over $13 million to the Ukrainian war effort, providing a funding alternative to payments and crowdfunding companies.Not only has Binance sent generous donations to Ukraine, but other crypto companies have followed suit.