WORLD UNITED IN SONG FOR UKRAINE
Just about 2 and one half weeks ago, I arrived in Warsaw, Poland. The motivating vision for this is to unite the world behind Ukrainian youth by creating a virtual marketplace on the new Internet for them to learn, earn and bring trust back to our online world.
Here’s an update on the different aspects of the project beginning with the solar/hand crake instant power. The power is essential but it is needed back in Ukraine as many of the refugees who have arrived are already dispersed into homes and other locations. I’ll be meeting with some Ukrainian activists on Sunday and Monday (World Refugee Day) and Ukrainian teachers and lawyers after that to ascertain where the immediate needs are.
The creation of a legal empowerment network is also moving ahead. The first step was to determine the type of legal needs which Ukrainians are facing in order to make certain that lawyers wanting to offer their services pro bono could meet that need. There are legal needs I’ve identified of individuals in family law and employment matters, real estate matters, business matters and more. The local Polish attorneys in many cases have brought Ukrainian lawyers on board to help. They are overwhelmed with work and the traditional law firm model of face to face meetings can not keep up with the demand. As I was fortunate to have attended a legal hackathon my first week here, I can report that there is an opportunity to set up a virtual lawyer referral and virtual law firm network which will begin to provide the Polish and Ukrainian lawyers with help from lawyers around the world.
As to the virtual marketplace, we have identified a music and documentary project to tell the true story of this war. As the Ukrainian military and people who have remained in Ukraine are telling their stories through pictures which document the atrocities, our approach is to tell the world this story now; eventually, those responsible will be held to account in The Hague for their war crimes. But the world of public opinion can tell that story today. Youth can bring the rule of law to the internet, restart their education and create access to opportunities for themselves and all Ukrainian citizens to tell this story. By exposing the lies of authoritarian leaders who resort to military power and destruction to truth, their lies will be stopped in their tracks.
To get this project off the ground, many people are volunteering their support. Your donations matter even more. The liberal democracy many of have taken for granted is under attack, and, is at great risk. Ukrainian men, women and children are dying and the military fight alone is not the only answer. We need your support in spirit and in financial support. Please support our efforts and we thank you in advance.