56: Agile and Inspiring Responses: Ukrainian Refugee Crisis with Zuzanna Tamas and Karolina Bisping-Adamik

Donate to Karolina (Fine NGO):
https://fine.ngo/en/make-a-donation

Donate to Zuzanna (Salam NGO):
https://paypal.me/salamlab

In this podcast Zuzanna and Karolina tell their stories of how
they responded to the outbreak of war on the Polish border, and
to the sudden influx of millions of refugees, mostly women and
children fleeing war.

Their individual responses were driven by empathy and a deep
humanitarian impulse.  Each share how they utilised and
transferred existing skillsets, and drew on their networks to
offer extraordinary responses.  Karolina managed to set up a
kindergarten within two weeks of the outbreak of war, providing
support for 100 children, employing Ukrainian women and
establishing a charity to support this work.   Zuzanna’s
small NGO had been working on the Belarusian border with refugees
and pivoted their focus to immediately provide a help centre and
homeless shelter to support the thousands of homeless war
refugees flooding into Krakow.   

One year after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, over 9 million
border crossings have taken place, and approximately 2 million
refugees remain in Poland. Karolina and Zuzanna’s organisations
have organically grown and adapted to meet changing needs. 
Now their focus is more on integration, building civil society,
education and psychological support. They work directly with
refugees and also with teachers and others who support
them.

Their work is being replicated throughout Poland. Small start-up
initiatives alongside existing NGOs have innovated, adapted and
worked tirelessly to accommodate and support refugees. These
inspiring stories have lessons for the wider humanitarian
organisations and for all of us engaged in leading change. 
This is also a story of how women’s leadership, which dominates
the NGO sector in Poland and beyond, can deliver amazing
results.

I met Zuzanna and Karolina and many other NGOs in Poland as part
of a new initiative sponsored by the Humanitarian Leadership
Academy.  The Eco-Leadership Institute is partnering with
the HLA to pioneer new ways to deliver humanitarian aid we call
Eco-Mutualism

This approach challenges paternalistic and centralised
approaches, offering alternatives that engage people mutually and
harvesting the resources in their wider ecosystems.  Zuzanna
and Karolina offer excellent case studies of Eco-Mutualism in
action.  Their task now is to help make their initial urgent
responses more sustainable.  The Humanitarian Leadership
Academy and the Eco-Leadership Institute will be working mutually
with them, and you can help by donating directly.

Donate to Karolina (Fine NGO):
https://fine.ngo/en/make-a-donation

Donate to Zuzanna (Salam NGO):
https://paypal.me/salamlab

Bios

Zuzanna Tamas Co-Founder of Salam Lab; Board Member,
Director of Humanitarian Aid and Fundraising. Salam Lab is an NGO
working for human rights, inclusion and against discrimination.
Zuzanna worked for 7 years in Qatar, with people from all over
the world, and brings that experience to create an inclusive and
diverse workplace at Salam Lab. She specialises in humanitarian
aid, diversity and inclusion. Zuzanna is certified in Management,
Humanitarian Standards, Inclusive Humanitarian Programming, as
well as Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging.

Karolina Bisping-Adamik President of the FINE NGO
Foundation. Professionally involved in the organization of
production and promotion of cultural events, film and music
festivals, concerts, art exhibitions, and young art and design
fairs for many years. Academic teacher at the Pedagogical
University in Krakow and at the School of Computer Graphics.
Master of Sociology at the Philosophy Faculty of the Jagiellonian
University in Krakow, and postgraduate studies in Cultural
Diplomacy at Collegium Civitas in Warsaw