We are pleased to share the transformation of the Bachmach School bomb shelter! This video documents both our initial evaluation of the school basement during summer 2023 and the celebration of the final renovation late last year.
In 2022, the Ukrainian government issued a requirement for in-person learning that all schools must have a functional bomb shelter. GER3 rehabilitated the Bachmach School’s basement into a safe and effective bomb shelter, outfitted with accommodations for classroom learning and students with disabilities. The in-person learning enabled by these bomb shelters not only furthers students’ education, but allows families to return to their communities, parents to return to work, and children to return to their friends.
Thank you for all the support to our operations in Ukraine 2023 and beyond!
Winterization Project Update
The GER3 Ukraine team has repaired and winterized 24 war-damaged homes in the last three weeks! This crucial work keeps people in their homes and out of the dangerously cold winter temperatures. Our strong local team members, like Construction Supervisor Dmytro, make this work possible as we continue to scale up and expand operations in Ukraine.
Ukraine Winterization Project in Zahaltsi
As winter sets in, GER3 continues to scale up our response to meet growing needs in affected communities. Here, the GER3 team meets with residents who will receive lifesaving winterization support in the village of Zahaltsi, NW of Kyiv.
Ukraine Assessment with Field Ready
Last week, GER3 and its partner Field Ready conducted assessments in affected communities outside Kyiv to better understand current needs, challenges and gaps in the response effort. The team met with community members, volunteers and village council representatives. They also met with OCHA representatives and local NGOs District 1 and For My Ukraine, during which humanitarian response challenges were discussed and ideas were shared. GER3 remains focused on supporting winterization efforts in north central Ukraine and looks forward to growing its partnership with Field Ready in Ukraine.
Island Innovation Award Finalist
In April, GER3 was a finalist for the Innovative Island Research Award. The Island Innovation Awards, run in partnership with the Clinton Foundation, recognize individuals, organizations and projects driving positive change for remote and island communities globally. GER3 was recognized for its ash up-cycling work in St. Vincent: incorporating ash into organic compost and piloting the use of ash in concrete blocks. Learn more about the organic composting project here.
InterAction Forum
GER3 is connecting with the NGO community in-person at InterAction's Forum this week. We are grateful to participate in this powerful platform where we can engage with NGOs, foundations, governments, global industries, the U.N., and national civil society organizations. It’s a great opportunity for our sector to forge common solutions to pressing global challenges.
Ukraine Debris Removal
GER3 is supporting debris removal this week. At the request of the city, GER3 delivered PPE and tools to equip a crew of 110 local volunteers organized by the City Council of Kharkiv. Equipment includes construction glasses, construction bags, gloves, helmets, respirators, shovels, chisels, crowbars, and sledgehammers. The supplies will enable Kharkiv’s local volunteers to undertake essential debris removal in the coming weeks.
Ukraine Response
The GER3 team is operational in Ukraine in Lviv and Kyiv. The team began its assessment mission in early June, meeting with local and international partners and assessing where GER3 can best support those affected by the conflict. GER3 is currently focused on bringing early recovery efforts to communities outside of Kyiv.
New Project: Lewis Punnett Emergency Shelter and Geriatric Facility
GER3 is excited to announce a new project that continues our work helping St. Vincent recover from the volcanic eruption last April: the Lewis Punnett Retrofit Project. Funded by the Government of Japan and USAID - via the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) - the IOM-administered initiative will retrofit an abandoned building to serve as an emergency shelter and geriatric facility for displaced persons in the Red Zone of the island. Working with the Government of St. Vincent, IOM, and other stakeholders, GER3 will manage the retrofitting of the facility along with capacity building and community engagement activities.
The video below (from St. Vincent’s Agency for Public Information) provides additional information on the project and our partners.
Up-cycling “Waste” into Organic Compost in St. Vincent
Over the last two months, GER3’s team in St. Vincent has led an innovative organic composting workshop alongside Luke Punnett of Chatoyer Gardens and St. Vincent’s Richmond Vale Academy. The workshop included practical lessons on the science and technique of organic composing paired with hands-on, guided demonstrations using locally-available inputs.
The initiative grew out of GER3’s commitment to sustainable, green recovery practices, one of which seeks to repurpose and, when possible, up-cycle materials and resources that otherwise would be discarded. In addition to conventional composting inputs – detritus from the forests, leftover plant material from agriculture, and manure from local farms – GER3 incorporated volcanic ash and sargassum – a type of seaweed – into the compost in a novel approach tailored to the specificities of St. Vincent and the Caribbean. In doing so, the workshop aims to shift how volcanic ash and sargassum are viewed in St. Vincent – not as nuisances to be burned or buried but as resources with positive value.
Throughout the 18-day composting cycle, the team collected data and closely monitored the progress of each pile, which varied in terms of the ratios of inputs. Samples of the rich soil produced by the composting process are now being analyzed to assess the optimal compost blend for the local climate and available resources. In harnessing the power of technical research methodologies and local knowledge, we can innovate towards more sustainable, greener recoveries.