Supported projects
#LeaveNoOneBehind offers a platform for local and solidarity projects – fast support guaranteed. Thanks to your donations, we have been able to support over 100 partner organizations in their important work since 2020. The projects are often actively run by refugees themselves or the organizations actively support those seeking protection in solidarity.
On this page you can find all the initiatives and organizations that have been supported so far.
All projects
BASE UA
BASE UA was founded by activists and journalists in the wake of the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine and focuses primarily on evacuation from the most heavily embattled areas of the country. BASE UA is one of the last organizations to bring people threatened by the Russian invasion to safety from Bachmut, Lysychansk or Severodonetsk. But BASE's work does not stop at evacuation: People should receive sustainable support. Among other things, two camps were organized with children and young people who had to flee the war. There they received art and trauma work.
Aegean Boat Report
Illegal pushbacks are a daily occurrence at European borders. In order to take action against them, they need to be well documented and collated. The Aegean Boat Report reports 24/7 about incidents at the borders and thus enables quick help and monitoring of "border officials''. One practice the Aegean Boat Report has been able to highlight many times: Refugees who had already reached the bottom of Lesbos are picked up by masked men, often abused, kidnapped and abandoned in the open sea on maneuverless "life rafts." There they drift until the Turkish coast guard picks them up and brings them back to Turkey. Documenting them and gathering the information is critical. Because good information not only ensures that helpers can be on the scene faster in emergencies, good information is also the best weapon against cover-up attempts by governments and their coast guards. The Aegean Boat Report has thus become an essential building block in the work of NGOs in the Aegean. Through its work, emergencies are noticed more quickly and people are rescued.
Blindspots
Blindspots helps wherever people are forgotten by the media, politics and the public. They bring the "invisible spots" of Europe into the focus of social discourse and strengthen existing aid structures. On the Bosnian-Croatian border, in the Velika Kladuša region, refugees are stuck in patched-up improvised shelters, where they are exposed and unprotected from the wind and weather. This means life-threatening cold in winter, with temperatures as low as -20 degrees. In addition, they are often robbed, beaten up and illegally pushed back by border officials. Blindspots therefore organizes stoves and firewood for the people. They build doors, windows and solar panels on the provisional huts and provide access to drinking water and hygiene facilities. They also document the inhumane and illegal violence at the borders to raise public awareness. Their work is more important now than ever in winter and can save many people from dying of cold.
Wir Packen’s an
Wherever refugees suffer under the European border regime and have to sleep on park benches, under tarpaulins or in the woods, you can find the pink boxes full of relief supplies from "Wir Packen's an". Many people have almost forgotten the pictures from the Polish-Belarusian border last year. Refugees stuck in the forest between two border strips and in the face of thousands of officers of the Polish border police. At the time, “Wir Packen's an” was one of the few organizations that managed to deliver relief supplies to the people on the ground. People are still stuck at the border, and “Wir Packen's an” is still delivering relief goods: Hand warmers, sleeping bags, thermal pants and much more. Not only on the Belarusian border, but also, for example, on the Ukrainian border with Moldova. In a feat of strength, reception stations including six sanitary containers with showers and toilets were provided in this forgotten region within a very short time.
Liebe im Karton
"Liebe im Karton" e.V. or Lovebox is a volunteer Christmas package delivery campaign that has been distributing gifts to vulnerable children in Germany, Europe and the so-called Middle East since 2016. In addition, they organize year-round deliveries of relief supplies to crisis regions, including Ukraine, to support local people and rebuild destroyed structures. Together with their active network partner "Netzwerk Ziviler Krisenstab", they have been managing the coordination and logistics of more than 6,500 pallets of urgently needed relief supplies to Ukraine since February 2022.
Human Rights Legal Project
The Human Rights Legal Project (HRLP) is a legal aid organisation that combats human rights violations against refugees in Greece through legal representation, advocacy and public relations work and takes action against the criminalisation of refugees at the EU's external border.
Ukraine Aid Berlin
A group of Ukrainians and supporters of Ukraine in Berlin thought about how they could support Ukraine in 2014, years before the escalation to a large-scale war of aggression, and has been active in solidarity ever since. Ukraine Aid Berlin provides medical and humanitarian aid to people in need, war victims and their families. Through good local contacts with medical and nursing institutions, they can check donations in kind and forward them to trusted clinics and field hospitals.
Clowns without Borders
Clowns without Borders regularly visit Lesvos for a few days and try to improve the situation of the children on site. The volunteer Clowns without Borders take into account the special situation of the children with refugee experience and consider both the respective cultural backgrounds and the difficult living situation in the refugee camps on Lesvos.
Action for Women
The Pomegranate Project is a women-led initiative designed and implemented by, for and with women. They provide a holistic protection and empowerment model for women who have fled to Europe, prioritizing women at risk of and survivors of gender-based violence. Further they offer a women-only safe space, secure housing, mental health and psychosocial support, case management, and income-generating opportunities to develop and strengthen the skills, resources, and resilience of women who have fled to Europe. Their mostly Greek team helps build networks of support and solidarity between displaced women and the Greek community. This holistic model helps women regain their power - both individually and collectively.
Civilian Crisis Unit Network
The Civilian Crisis Unit Network is an association of more than 30 NGOs from all over Germany. The people behind these NGOs are currently transporting over 150 pallets full of furnishings to set up a children's rehab in Ukraine to support children who have been through the worst. This is just one of many examples of the work being done by the Civilian Crisis Unit Network. The initiative brings together food, medical supplies, blankets and many other urgently needed relief items in warehouses and ships them to Ukraine in close cooperation with Ukrainian organizations.
Support of smaller NGOs with consumables
We have set up a fund on Lesvos in cooperation with a Greek NGO (Lesvos Solidarity), where small NGOs can use the original receipts to claim money for consumables (for example food and hygiene products), so that they can focus on the work on the ground and expand their capacities there.
Little Lotus
The Little Lotus Learning Center is an unusual educational institution. They work with refugee children in the town of Mytilene and follow the approach of learning through play, interaction and creativity. Daily activities are provided to give the children not only structure, but also something to look forward to each day. Little Lotus Learning Center is a safe place for children and a place of kindness, support, encouragement and joy. Since the opening of our Community Center, Little Lotus has been running the kindergarten in it.
Wefugees
Wefugees answers questions from refugees with an online community and is now organizing on short notice online support for refugees from Ukraine.
FENIX Humanitarian Legal Aid
The violence against refugees at Europe's external borders escalates further and further. Human rights violations have become a daily occurrence, and refugees almost never have access to lawyers or information about their rights. Fenix challenges this through their work: Refugees receive free legal advice and representation as well as protection and support for mental health issues. Fenix works with a holistic approach: All those seeking advice receive holistic legal assistance, addressing their individual legal protection as well as mental health needs. Their special needs are taken into account and they are offered tools to cope with the very complicated procedures. The goal is to empower refugees and overcome barricades between them and their access to the legal system. In addition, Fenix brings cases to the Greek and European Courts to demand for compliance with human rights.
SOS Bihać
Through first aid, food and clothing distributions, SOS Bihać supports people on the move who do not have access to food, clothing, sanitation and emergency medical assistance. In addition to refugees, SOS Bihać also supported the poverty-stricken population of the Una Sana region, for example by distributing free sanitizers and protective masks. The peaceful and respectful coexistence of all people is as important to SOS Bihać as the acute help in emergency situations. The situation of the refugees is constantly deteriorating. Several thousands of people are dependent on medical aid, clothing, sleeping bags, water and food provided by NGOs. Winter and cold make life unbearable in the forests around Bihać. Closed or overcrowded camps and push-backs at the Croatian borders further complicate the situation.
N-Ost
As a transnational network that exists in times of increasing polarization and the increasing divergence of the media, N-Ost is breaking new ground in foreign journalism. As journalists in Ukraine are in great danger, N-Ost provides equipment necessary for survival, tries to provide psychological care and to support them in the field as well as in exile in their increasingly challenging work.
Lesvos Solidarity
Lesvos has become a test center where EU governments and institutions test harmful asylum and migration policies and practices. It is crucial to document and denounce the harmful effects and consequences of these policies and practices on the lives of the people of Lesvos and to strengthen their voices from the root. In the current context, the Lesvos Solidarity Movement seeks to expand its advocacy and outreach efforts. This project aims to support the Lesvos Solidarity Movement in its efforts to combat these inhumane policies by ensuring better coordination between key actors on the ground and building proactive strategies and collaborations across Europe.
Contact and Counseling Center for Refugees and Migrants (KuB)
The Contact and Counseling Center for Refugees and Migrants (KuB) is a non-profit association in Berlin. The KuB supports refugees and migrants from all over the world and advises on questions regarding asylum and residence rights. Support is also provided for psychological and social problems. The funding enables the organization of German courses and leisure activities for precarious migrants.
Cadus
CADUS is a non-profit and independent aid organization that initiates innovative and sustainable projects with a focus on medical care. Their primary goal is to help people to help themselves in line with their needs. The funding was used, for example, to implement a mobile modular medical care system for the Greek islands. The medical care situation on the Greek islands has only existed at all for people on the move because small NGOs have been working tirelessly to help against all the repression on the ground. The capacities and possible medical services have always been limited, and the situation has worsened massively due to the pandemic. CADUS built on the experience of the first mobile hospital for northeast Syria to create an even more mobile concept of a modular hospital on Lesvos, which can respond quickly and flexibly to the medical emergency on the ground. Thus, testing and treatment capacities were expanded and isolation tents for infected persons were provided. CADUS is also establishing a MEDEVAC system for the hostilities in Ukraine.
Mushkila Kabira
Mushkila Kabira is the English transliteration of an Arabic phrase meaning ‘big problem’. This is the phrase its founders heard when they began volunteering in Greece, and it's the perfect way to introduce what sparked the creation of the Mobile Info Team itself. Mobile Info Team is a volunteer organization that provides information to asylum seekers, refugees and migrants in Greece and other European countries about the asylum procedure and other relevant issues. The team also supports individual cases, mainly in family reunifications, but also, for example, in the preparation for the asylum hearing or applications for integration measures. In addition, Mobile Info Team collects testimonials from asylum seekers to support their rights through public relations.
Mare Liberum
Mare Liberum documents human rights violations and border violence against people on the move in the Aegean Sea. On the life-threatening escape route between Turkey and Greece, migrants are regularly pushed back by the authorities using violent methods to prevent them from reaching Europe. By publishing testimonies, Mare Liberum makes the voices of affected people visible and fights collectively for the strengthening of basic human rights. By collecting and publishing data on the general situation in the Aegean Sea, the pressure on the relevant authorities to ensure that human rights are respected is increased.
Legal Centre Lesvos
In 2021, the practice of so-called "pushbacks", in which protection seekers are picked up either at sea or on land and forcibly repatriated, which is contrary to international law, reached a completely new quality. Refugees who had already reached the soil of Lesbos are picked up by masked men, often abused, kidnapped and abandoned on maneuverless "life rafts" on the open sea. Refugees, who are subjected to this violence rarely have access to lawyers or options to receive information about their rights. The Legal Center Lesvos fights against this and receives people directly after their arrival to provide them with legal support. This year alone, over 500 people were registered and brought into the regular asylum process. This protects refugees from further legal violations. In addition, the organization was one of the few to manage to bring two cases of human rights violations to the European Court of Justice.
One Happy Family
One Happy Family is a non-profit organization whose mission is to provide a safe space for asylum seekers, volunteers and people from different nations to meet. For this purpose, the Community Center was built on the Greek island of Lesbos. Due to its geographical proximity to Turkey, Lesvos is often a stopover for most people fleeing war and crises. Here, asylum seekers are often stuck for several months due to bureaucratic hurdles. To fill the gap caused by insufficient humanitarian aid and lack of government support, One Happy Family, together with its partner organizations and at the initiative and request of the asylum seekers, offers many different projects, such as schools, sports programs or psychological support. The range of projects varies according to capacity and need. Through the Community Center, One Happy Family aims to involve the people living in the camps in brainstorming and decision-making in order to strengthen their autonomy, self-drive and sense of responsibility.
Wave of Hope for the Future
Wave of Hope for the Future is a network of self-organized schools - by refugees for refugees. The initiative was started by refugees in Moria camp on Lesvos and quickly expanded to other camps in Greece. In early 2019, Zekria Farzad began offering classes for children in the "olive grove" around Camp Moria. His only tool: a whiteboard on a bench. The initiative was quickly joined by other refugees. The initiative was quickly joined by other people on the move. Together, they began to build a network of schools that today offer classes in Art, English, Greek, Physical Education and other subjects to more than 4,000 students, and are even helping to rebuild a school in Afghanistan. The Wave of Hope School is an impressive example of refugees organizing themselves in the various camps and contributing to the enrichment of a diverse society.
LeaveNoOneBehind Soforthilfe
As part of the emergency relief, team members from our #LeaveNoOneBehind team on the ground in Lesvos went shopping together with the people from the new Moria camp in order to meet individual essential needs of the people in the camp while bringing maximum self-determination and dignity to the people. Together we bought a variety of goods in the form of food, hygiene products, electric heaters, blankets, clothing and the like for and with the camp residents.
Attika Human Support
Attika operates one of the largest warehouses for in-kind donations on the island of Lesvos, playing an important role in the distribution of aid to Lesvos, Samos, Chios, Kos and mainland Greece. Many refugees usually have few personal belongings when they arrive on the island and are in need of warm, dry clothing and shoes. The Attica team sorts, delivers or arranges pickup for the supporting NGOs, which distribute the in-kind donations as part of their own aid programs. In conjunction with this mass distribution, Attika also packs specifically requested items daily and delivers them directly to camp residents.
Low-Tech with Refugees
Low-Tech with Refugees was created to help refugees on the Greek island of Lesvos to develop and build creative technical solutions that are useful in everyday life. At the heart of the work is the operation of the Low-Tech Makerspace on the premises of One Happy Family, which houses a bicycle, wood, metal, and electronics workshop. In addition to providing tools and materials, the focus is on sharing knowledge and building skills. Their headquarters are in Briançon, France and they operate other sites there as well as in Marseille to work with refugees.
SOS Balkanroute
For years, the situation of people fleeing across the so-called Balkan route has been getting worse and worse. Closed borders, illegal and violent pushbacks, as well as completely inadequate conditions in the Bosnian camps deprive the protection seekers of their rights and often put them in life-threatening situations. SOS Balkanroute is committed to helping people who have almost completely disappeared from the news and has been organizing collection drives and donation transports along the Balkan route since 2019. They also provide medical care and have built up a network of helpers along the Balkan route.
Makerspace Lesvos
Camps for refugees are one of some of the worst places in the world. Some people live there for years under precarious conditions without any prospects. The goal of Makerspace Lesvos is to make life a little easier for the people by providing simple support. The people behind this small organization, many of them themselves refugees living in the camp, help repair and exchange phones, bicycles and clothes. They also teach each other how to make repairs in workshops. This solves problems - and provides small joys. The space allows people to share their technical skills, continue to develop them, and learn new ones. Being a valuable part of a team often restores the refugees' confidence. They reclaim some of the respect and dignity that is often lost through the systematic disempowerment and repression of humanity in the camps.
Be an Angel
Children in the Russian-occupied regions are often at risk of forced adoption. The association Be an Angel focuses its work in Ukraine on evacuations of more than 16,000 threatened families from the Donbass region and especially on the problem of children at risk.
No Name Kitchen
The independent movement No Name Kitchen was founded in 2017 by volunteers and people on the move and supporting people in search of a better life along the Balkan and Mediterranean routes. Since day one, the activists have placed great emphasis on ensuring that all actions are based on the needs, suggestions and feedback of the people on the move. Volunteer teams are stationed at border crossings where people fleeing face long journeys and violent rejections. There, they are trying to combine humanitarian and political measures to equip people with resources for self-protection. No Name Kitchen provides access to medical care, food, and clothing while denouncing border abuses to raise awareness and advocate for policy change.
We become active where states fail to act. But only with your support!
With our work we put pressure on German politics to take responsibility and finally change something! Your donations will be used for the #LeaveNoOneBehind campaign: For our own projects, as well as for funded projects and organizations that provide urgently needed support at the EU’s external borders and refugee routes.