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Volunteer-led not-for-profit Ukraine TrustChain has facilitated the successful evacuation of more than 13,000 Ukrainians.
In February of this year, Daniil Cherkasskiy received a phone call from a friend regarding a connection in Kiev in dire need of help. Cherkasskiy, a Ukraine native and now Chicago tech executive, immediately jumped to work to get aid to the woman in need.
This is how Ukraine TrustChain was born. The entire concept of nonprofit is based around the principal of blockchain: Just as blockchain relies on sequences of hashes to validate a transaction, Ukraine TrustChain relies on chains of deep interpersonal relationships leading to Ukranians in the conflict zone to deliver aid where and when it is needed most.
In a press release, Ukraine TrustChain said that it has successfully evacuated 13,000 Ukrainian refugees. These evacuations from war torn areas of Ukraine, which primarily include women, children, the elderly and persons with disabilities, were organized by a U.S. based operations team that funds as many as seven teams on the ground in Ukraine, focused on evacuations and humanitarian needs.
In addition to evacuations, Ukraine TrustChain collects and distributes critical funds to volunteer teams in Ukraine who make urgent deliveries, including medicine, first aid, baby formula, food, clothing and hygiene products to civilians displaced by the conflict. The team also provides meals for approximately 35,000 to 50,000 Ukrainians each week depending on availability of supplies and ground conditions.
“The U.S. team delivers 100% of donated funds directly to the volunteers serving Ukrainian people impacted by the Russian invasion,” said Daniil Cherkasskiy, founder of Ukraine TrustChain. “Our teams in Ukraine are bound to our US team by personal relationships and deeply established trust. Teams we fund in Ukraine display an unwavering love for their Ukrainian homeland. They tirelessly deliver aid, at great personal risk, where it is too difficult and too dangerous for international aid organizations to venture.”
When not working to provide humanitarian aid to those in crisis, Cherkasskiy’s day job is as the Director of Analytics for ShowingTime, a Zillow Group company. His background in technology inspired the idea for Ukraine TrustChain.
“Just as blockchain relies on sequences of hashes to validate a transaction, Ukraine TrustChain relies on chains of deep interpersonal relationships leading to Ukranians in the conflict zone to deliver aid where and when it is needed most,” said Cherkasskiy. “In a more literal sense, one of our most effective forms of donations is Bitcoin. Ukraine TrustChain converts Bitcoin to real world currency that is loaded onto locally-issued Ukrainian bank cards; this gives recipients almost instant access to funds without encountering life-threatening obstacles.”
In addition to bitcoin, Ukraine TrustChain accepts donations via Zelle, Chase QuickPay, PayPal and credit card. Operating at zero overhead, 100% of all donations go directly to support volunteer efforts; a donation of as little as $3 can evacuate a person from the war zone while a donation of $15,000 or more can fund an entire team at scale for a week.