International Society for Human Rights (ISHR) is an international non-governmental, non-profit human rights organization with Participative Status with the Council of Europe and is a member of the Liaison Committee of the Non-Governmental Organisations at the Council of Europe. ISHR also has associate status with the Department of Public Information of the United Nations and Roster Consultative Status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC).
When Ukraine was invaded in February of 2022, the Ukraine branch of ISHR became focused on providing life-saving aid to Ukrainians impacted by war.
ISHR distributes food and critical necessities like medicines, diapers, and hygiene products to people in conflict affected areas in various regions of Ukraine (Kyiv, Poltava, Zhytomyr, Ivano-Frankivsk, Rivne, Sumy, Lvov, Kharkiv, Zaporozhye, Vinnitsa, Dnepropetrovsk, Cherkasy regions). They primarily focus on helping pregnant women, small children and their families, elderly people, as well as people with disabilities. ISHR also partners with us to help hospitals, including Kyiv Maternity Hospital №5, as well as other health providors. ISHR professionals help us ensure funds are properly distributed and provide reporting with evidence of how donations are used.
Follow ISHR on Facebook to find out more about their work.
Kyiv Maternity Hospital №5 is one of the leading medical institutions in Ukraine that has been providing qualified obstetric and gynecological care for about half a century. This hospital specializes in pregnancy care, childbirth, and the postpartum period, including for women with extragenital pathology and high-risk pregnancies. In 2021, their specialists helped to give birth to 5,190 babies! One in four little Kyivans is born in this hospital, including our cofounder Anna Kovalenko and our Volunteer Coordinator Lucy Gomeniouk!
With current conditions and martial law in Ukraine the number of premature births and complications of pregnancy has increased, which is primarily due to stress factors. At the moment, the hospital staff also provides assistance in bomb shelters to ensure maximum protection of pregnant women, women in labor and young Ukrainians during airstrikes and the threat of a missile strike in the capital. The hospitals needs critical lifesaving medication and equipment to reduce the number of complications, as well as save lives.
Kyiv Maternity Hospital №5 was featured in the following articles:
Washington Post: For these expecting mothers in Kyiv, night is passed in a maternity ward bunker
The New York Times: ‘He Is a Child of War’: Giving Birth Amid Chaos in Ukraine
Reuters: Born in a war: Kyiv maternity hospital carries on under siege
Help Kids (Ukrainian Fund)
In response to the invasion, Alyona Makaradze, a Ukrainian psychologist, started the Help Kids Fund. She is an Irpen native who had to evacuate with her two sons when Russian forces occupied her hometown. As a local, she knows what Ukrainians need help with and where the best deals are to buy groceries and medicine to help those in need. Her team of volunteers worked with local authorities in Irpen and Butcha to provide immediate aid once the region was liberated from Russian occupiers. They worked with local authorities to identify which regions were demined and where it was safe to provide aid.
This team is supporting mothers and kids who evacuated war-torn hot spots. They are also ready to go to Mariupol as soon as it becomes safe to do so.
Follow this volunteer team on Instagram to see the amazing work they continue to do every day.
METALAB
On the 24th of February, Russia launched a full-scale war against Ukraine. Since then, the Russian army has bombed Ukrainian cities and villages daily, destroying both civilian and military infrastructure and killing thousands of people. Today, around 10mln Ukrainians have been displaced. Of those, 6.5mln of Ukrainians are currently in the Western part of the country. Housing supply has already run out, and there is none left for those who need it. Families, the elderly, and children are forced to remain in transit zones for weeks, without the ability to find suitable shelter and return to a semblance of normal life.
MetaLab is helping to transform abandoned buildings, like a previously run-down dormitory building in Ivano-Frankivsk, for residential use with cоmmon spaces – such as a canteen, kids room, workspace, corridors, hall, washing room, and storage.
MetaLab volunteers partner with local university professors, students, and Ivano Frankivsk’s residents, to create a new space for those impacted by war.