Regranting actions due to COVID-19 pandemic

In coordination with the hospital nursing aid unit, HumanRights360 has been providing support through the provision of medical supplies & electric equipment throughout the course of the pandemic.

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Ithaca laundry continued to be active throughout the pandemic, aiding and caring for Athens’ homeless population with care and sensitivity. As the pandemic shifted the mobility of the homeless population, the organization was called to search, identify, and aid the homeless population to maintain a basic hygiene level. With the support of the Global Whole Being Fund that they received, they managed to increase the personnel working in the mobile laundry van and the shelter, summing up three employees in total. With the upcoming year, they will hire another person working as administrative support in their office. Ithaca laundry considers the difficulties that the homeless population has when it comes to travelling to access services and therefore coordinates with another NGO providing food to be in the same location twice a week. Overall, hoping to cover as much ground as possible, they have designated three specific areas per assigned day, and through their website, they publish their location for each day.

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GIVMED is an NGO aimed at collecting and distributing medicine from the public or pharmaceutical companies, to those in need. As GIVMED explained, a significant amount of medication is thrown out each year, which could have been distributed and provided to those in need instead of ending up in a landfill where they do not get adequately disposed. Part of their goal is to redistribute medicine, which would otherwise be thrown out, educate the public, and advocate for legislative protection towards the proper distribution of medicines for those in need. GIVMED has collaborated with nursing homes, NGOs and social pharmacies throughout the pandemic to provide the necessary medication and protective gear against the spread of COVID-19. Additionally, GIVMED has conducted web training to NGO and health professionals on how to donate and find the necessary medicines in the market for free. It has created a platform where vulnerable groups and NGO workers can advise to find the medication they seek, directing them in the locations where they can find them. This platform is available in five languages to support all vulnerable groups despite their country of origin. This website has included a function that allows for the medicines to be delivered to one’s house.

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Steps is a non-profit initiative from people, for people. Approaching those in need and giving them access to food, counselling, entertainment, first aid, clothing, and personal hygiene by strengthening and helping them develop their skills and become autonomous. The funding was utilized to get necessary supplies and provisions for persons on the streets like ingredients to cook meals, bottled water and sanitary products.

Also, HumanRights360 implements its Street Lawyering project in co-operation with Steps; with Street Work team was one of the few that remained active throughout the course of the pandemic.

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Colour Youth is an NGO dedicated to combating discrimination against LGBTQ people and advocates towards enhancing their rights through public awareness, political pressures, and mobilization for protective legal structures. One of the organization’s core elements is to build a community of LGBTQ people to enhance visibility, feelings of safety, and support. Colour Youth faced substantial obstacles with the pandemic, as the majority of their community activities are based on in-person meetings and gatherings aimed at providing a safe place for the LGBTQ youth of Athens. Those meetings were essential for the recruitment of funds and volunteers, who themselves are crucial for the functioning of the organization. Throughout the summer of 2020, they organized three meetings in the National Garden, with almost fifty people attending each gathering. Since the second lockdown, they managed to transfer certain activities online, with a small number of Empowerment Group meetings have taken place already.

Additionally, all of the general team meetings and some community meetings online have also taken place online. Some of their concerns with the second lockdown were related to their members’ protection since online space can easily jeopardize their privacy and security. With the support of the donation received, Colour Youth managed to keep running, by paying rent and the income of its members, continuing programs like Transcare (educating doctors for the proper care of trans people), Pharos (educational programs for university personnel), Choice (educational programs for school teachers), as well as focus groups with members of the LGBTQ community.

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Hands Up is an agency that offers accessibility services to deaf and hard of hearing people. They undertake subtitling services and web designing, providing sign language interpretation and lip-reading, to make the platforms in concern accessible and user-friendly for the deaf and hard of hearing. Simultaneously they raise awareness about the right ways to approach the deaf and hard of hearing people. Due to Covid-19, an immediate change had to be made regarding the implementation of their services. Thanks to the Kahane Foundation’s donation, Hands Up was able to create educational videos and online seminars. All videos were promoted on social media and their webpage, making them easily accessible to all. In total, 25 educational videos in sign language were launched in September and have been doing very well ever since. These videos had a positive response has been a great assurance for Hands up, who plan to continue to work on creating, editing and uploading ten more videos, with similar content, even after the completion of the funding.

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This organization strives to protect and enhance every human’s fundamental right to live freely, without discrimination, in an inclusive society, where everyone feels accepted and useful in an environment of equal rights and opportunities. The organization’s primary goal is to fight ignorance and prejudice by empowering young people with disabilities. During this hostile period, social inclusion of people with disabilities, vulnerable and marginalized groups is essential. The funding explicitly targeted the need to educate the public by creating disability and diversity awareness programs. The programs were usually conducted with motivational speakers’ physical presence to enhance visibility and normalization of difference. Due to the pandemic Skep had to adapt to the current circumstances by enforcing social distancing and protection measures against the spread of the pandemic. The biggest problem that needed to be addressed was how to keep that type of visibility accessible even through online workshops.

Creating the video “Ask to Learn” was the first step towards digitalizing those educational programs. Skep made two (2) long-length videos, and ten (10) short length videos shared 446 times and received 1200 likes. On average, close to 20,000 students are trained each year by Skep, but, with those video and online training sessions, that number is expected to be greater. More than 500 schools showed the video to their students. The children had the opportunity to write down their questions and then have a live discussion with one of the motivational speakers using a digital platform. All partner organizations in the country and abroad, including UNESCO and the United Nations, have received the videos to give ideas of how such visibility can be achieved in other places. The feedback has been very positive and has motivated other organizations to contact SKEP for future partnerships.

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Generation2.0 (G2RED) promotes equal participation in a diverse society by empowering the local communities. As migrants, and other socially vulnerable groups, have been disregarded during this hostile period of the COVID-19 pandemic, (G2RED) utilized the funding donated by the Open Society Foundation, to respond to specific needs generated to the presence of the pandemic. Some of the need concerned public health information, monitoring rights violations, and covering basic needs, including, food distribution, housing support, and legal aid. G2RED acknowledged that marginalized groups faced severe difficulties when trying to access public health care, putting themselves at risk of potential exposure to the virus and legal persecutions due to racial profiling during COVID-related lockdowns. Furthermore, G2RED recognized that these groups face limited working opportunities, most of which are under dangerous working conditions, due to their irregular migration background. To tackle that, G2RED designed a meaningful intervention strategy by focusing on the proper dissemination of information, the effective monitoring of COVID-19 protective measures, and the intervention and support of cases where rights violations have taken place.

Additionally, G2RED provided general information to the population concerning health guidelines, store operations, and assistance on applying for social benefits, residence permits, access to services operations, etc. During the first lockdown, G2RED worked hard to monitor the law regulations and government policies to provide valid information for the local communities and avoid fake news. Interestingly enough just in May, the authorities underwent forty-four (44) administrative amendments to protect against the spread of the pandemic. Finally, G2RED provided support and legal aid to those who approached the organization in seeking assistance, a way through which the organization has kept informed of the needs that the marginalized communities of Athens required.

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Archipelagos is a cooperative social enterprise that aims to create jobs for people with mental health problems, migrants, refugees, asylum seekers and other socially vulnerable people. With the funding provided by the Open society foundation, Archipelagos was able to create jobs for the socio-economic integration of people who are excluded from the labour market. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a significant increase in demand for cleaning services, enhancing the opportunities for previously outcasted individuals to join the job market. Arxipelagos developed a program aiming to secure jobs by bringing together people who struggle to find a job due to the pandemic’s effects.

With the funding provided, Archipelagos managed to hire new people in its team to recruit new jobs for its beneficiaries and protection from unhealthy or dangerous working conditions. The addition of a social worker to the group was necessary for the employees’ psychological well-being to have someone to communicate and help face their daily fears and concerns through counselling. Due to the increased workload, the labour force needed to be enhanced and fully equipped with all the necessary cleaning and protective material (personal and specialized protective equipment, gloves, masks, uniforms for use in confirmed case areas). Archipelagos collaborated with private and public sectors regarding the cleaning of residential and commercial buildings and sites, which was vital to building the program’s sustainability.

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Syneirmos – BABEL is a non-governmental organization focusing on promoting mental and social health care by operating psychosocial rehabilitation units, providing psychosocial support and social care to population groups subject to/threatened by social exclusion.

COVID-19 has created a hostile environment, creating an immediate threat to the mental health of individuals that have already suffered traumas or have experienced significant adversities. Syneirmos, in collaboration with HumanRights360, implemented a three-level intervention to assist those in need by informing, identifying, and helping those in need. To prevent the lack of information, and misinformation, an online platform that includes all available information with the relevant updates concerning COVID-19 was created, assisting vulnerable groups’ needs to stay informed.

Furthermore, Syneirmos created a psychoeducational support project on a pilot basis, including one-to-one counselling sessions and group sessions, to support and empower the individuals in need and identify any personal, family, and work-related factors influencing their mental health. The number of participants in the webinars was 120 in total, mostly professionals who worked with refugees in the camps and 25 people volunteering in organizations (Steps, Positive Voice).

Finally, Syneirmos conducted evidence-based advocacy and strategic communication scheme to raise awareness regarding the contribution of all frontline workers in society during the pandemic.

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MSF continued its efforts towards protecting the migrant population both in the mainland and the islands of Greece. Upon the beginning of the pandemic, MSF had a designated area for the protection of the ill and vulnerable in the camp of Moria, yet it faced legal persecutions from the municipality forcing the closure of this area. MSF had to continuously change its practices and strategies as the measures against the spread of the virus also altered day by day. In collaboration with the National Public Health Organization (EODY), they have tried to keep track of the coronavirus’s spread by providing their services to the newcomers and those in the country’s camps.

MFS has identified no set protocol for the proper treatment and management of the migrant population, often prioritizing issues related to the coronavirus and disregarding other equally severe cases. Mental health and psychological support are two areas that MSF has identified to experience extreme disregard, both for the migrant population and those involved in the provision of care against COVID-19.

MSF continues to provide services related to clean water and sanitation for the migrant population in the island of Samos and provide aid for unexpected crises, such as the earthquake in the island, with MSF assisting the local population. To support the migrant communities and those working with them, MSF provided many educational programs through digital platforms, teaching individuals and health care professionals how to use protective gear properly and protect themselves from psychological burnouts. MSF observed a significant increase in interest in attending workshops for psychological support during the second lockdown. In the first one, people focused more on immediate protections and not on the long-term effects.

MSF has been working relentlessly with the big hospitals in Greece, like Evaggelismos and Sotiria, which has helped monitor the cases of patients who have survived after contracting COVID-19, monitoring their symptoms pro and post COVID-19 recovery.

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Documatism is a civic non-profit company with the aim of educating and raising awareness of society, strengthening the importance of culture, and highlighting the role it plays in strengthening human bonds and relationships. Documatism has been active since 2009 with the aim of redefining reality through art, utilizing the true power of document as an essential starting point for an art relevant to creative social interventions.

Documatism in collaboration with HumanRights360 launched the AfroGreeks project that  aimed in the abolition of restrictions, divisions and stereotypes as they occur, the acceptance and integration of young Athenians with art as the main weapon, the ability to express African-Greek artists – who in most cases are limited- , the creative dialogue of Afro-Greeks with artists from Greece and abroad, creating a “roof” where this creative dialogue can continue and take place and finally gave access to African-Greek artists in places such as the Opera House and then spread to neighbourhoods of the city, other cities and other countries acting as an example for young second generation artists who feel marginalized.

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The Non-Profit Civil Partnership “Me Alla Matia” was established in June 2018 as the next step of meallamatia.gr, a unique and fully accessible social news portal. Its actions include: Providing welfare and advisory services to vulnerable social groups and their families • Safeguard their rights and needs • Raise public awareness regarding diversity and disability • Running meallamatia.gr, social news portal • Hosting “Dinner in the Dark” an innovative experiential action throughout Greece • Accessibility consulting • Corporate workshops on diversity.

With the support of HumanRights360, “Me alla matia” launched the “Speak Up” digital campaign with the overall goal of creating an informal code of conduct for a proper media presentation of disability. “Speak Up” campaign focuses on changing the prevailing mentality and break the deep-rooted stereotypes to improve the lives of disabled people, shedding light on all the positive possibilities with the proper accessibility features, in order to turn the public’s sense of pity into a mature reality awareness. This campaign includes: i) short videos presenting aspects of daily lives of disabled people that are mostly unknown to the public, ii) written interviews with disabled people in the form of personal portraits, iii) live transmissions during the lockdowns via social media with activists, artists and organizations as guests.

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Tandem is a non-profit organization that was established in 2007 in order to systematize the contribution of volunteers towards the children and youngsters with disabilities living inside the Rehabilitation Center for Disabled Children (former PIKPA Voulas). Tandem’s support is based on the social model of disability, in which disability is defined as the inaccessibility of the society and not the impairment of a person.

Through the support of HumanRights360, Tandem is continuing the work in these crucial times of the COVID-19 pandemic. It is essential for the children that they continue to receive educational, psychological and emotional support and guidance to constantly reinforce their learning development, intellectual stimulation, physical movement, interaction and emotional coping strategies. Stopping these lessons (in addition to the schools closing down and no home learning assistance) for them would result in resignation, deprivation, while also facing major difficulties to deal with the setbacks caused. The pandemic proved the danger of institutions, not only on a social, but also on the level of protection and health. For this reason, through an advocacy video, Tandem will create more awareness on the life inside institutions and influence policy makers to transform the system of institutional care.

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The Perpato Association for People with Mobility Problems and Friends in the Prefecture of Rhodope is an NGO which was founded in 2002 in the city of Komotini, where it is seated and carries out its activities to date. The goal and purpose of its members has always been to unite, inform and organise people with Mobility Problems in the Prefecture of Rhodope, with the hope that, through coordinated efforts, the problems facing People with Disabilities in their everyday lives could be addressed, better living conditions could be created and the Prefecture of Rhodope could become a fully accessible living environment and a societal model.

In the first wave of the pandemic in Greece, the medical services of the Association to the beneficiaries decreased dramatically up to 80%, due to their non-physical presence at the Association’s premises and the lack of knowledge and equipment. A tele-health plan, as an alternative operation was created from Perpato, with the support of HumanRights360, so the Association could still provide its services to the existing and potential beneficiaries. Through the implementation of the tele-rehabilitation and health services, disabled people will have access to services and equipment which can help them with their needs in the best possible way during the pandemic.

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