From Relief to Rehabilitation: NATAN’s work in Ukraine moves to the next level

February 2023

NATAN named recipient of Genesis Prize

Honoring Jewish activists working to uphold Ukraine’s independence and alleviate the suffering of the people of Ukraine

This year’s Genesis Prize was awarded to Jewish activists working to uphold Ukraine’s independence and alleviate the suffering of the people of Ukraine. This prize, known as ”the Jewish Nobel” is generally awarded to one winner per year. But this time, the committee chose to honor a group of organizations for their work, including NATAN Worldwide Disaster Relief, honored for its role in aiding refugees at the Przemysl Refugee Center near the Poland-Ukraine border.

Read more about NATAN’s recognition and awards.

Establishing Resilience Centers inside Ukraine

NATAN has been chosen by the Ukrainian government to create a group of innovative Resilience Centers inside Ukraine. These centers will serve local populations as well as Internally Displaced Persons. The Centers will adapt the Israeli model of psychological first aid. This project is led by Olena Zelenska  the First Lady of Ukraine together with Israel’s First Lady Michal Herzog. The Ukrainian First Lady’s office is currently working on the National Resilience Project guidelines, an exceptional commitment to the population’s wellbeing in a country at war. NATAN is ready.

Training Frontline Caregivers

NATAN is answering the authorities call in the rural region of Yavoriv and the city of Lviv in West Ukraine. Since July 2022, 60 Ukrainian caregivers received training to address the trauma of refugees and the local population, all of whom are affected by the war. This project will continue as long as the war continues, in the caregivers’ hometowns. The WHO (UN World Health Organization) has chosen NATAN to partner for a similar project for the caregivers to refugees in Poland.

Refugees’ Stories
reported by our volunteers in the field

NATAN team steps in to save a young mother and her newborn

Late one night, a 21-year-old woman came to the NATAN clinic in Przemysl with a newborn in her arms. The young mother had given birth in harrowing circumstances, in a town under heavy Russian bombardment. Trapped with her infant in a basement, it was 10 days before she could escape…  Click here to read how NATAN team members saved this mother and child   

Empowering Teens through Volunteerism

Setting up a youth space for teenagers at the Refugee Center in Przemysl provided a safe place for them to share their experiences and simply be young adults again. Giving the teens a lead role in organizing and running the space, empowered them, restoring their hope and dignity. “We turned the youth into volunteers, giving them some control over the chaos in their lives,” reports NATAN volunteer Tali Prilutski.  Read Tali’s story here 

NATAN’s Ukrainian Refugee Relief Operation in Numbers

• 200 volunteers, from

• 3 continents, in

• 15 multidisciplinary teams

• 6 months operating a 24/7 medical clinic at refugee transit center

• 30,000 medical patients treated  and many more beneficiaries of psychosocial support

• 60 Ukrainian professionals trained by NATAN psychosocial experts

• 110 children attending summer camps

• Countless smiles and reassuring hugs dispelling trauma and despair

• NATAN received the Medal of Appreciation from the Polish Red Cross

  Read more about this operation here 

Our Partners: Folkowisko Foundation

Our Sponsors: JDC-GRID,  UJA-Federation of NY and many individuals and Jewish foundations,  as well as Israeli private sector companies