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Psychological First Aid. A guide for Field Workers | WHO 2011

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Psychological First Aid. A guide for Field Workers | WHO 2011

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Psychological First Aid (PFA) equips its readers with knowledge about how to conduct a conversation and provides information on how to approach a new situation safely for yourself and others, and not to cause harm by your actions. "It gives a framework for supporting people in ways that respect their dignity, culture and abilities." (p.ii)

Psychological first aid: Guide for field workers (World Health Organization, War Trauma Foundation and World Vision International, 2011).

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Psychological First Aid. Pocket Guide | WHO 2011 

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Psychological First Aid. Pocket Guide | WHO 2011 

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A two page summary of the main guidelines and principles of psychological first aid. For your pocket!

Source: Psychological first aid: Guide for field workers (World Health Organization, War Trauma Foundation and World Vision International, 2011, p.53/54).

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Psychological First Aid - Pocket Guide [who2011]

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Look – Listen – Link | Psychological First Aid

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Look – Listen – Link | Psychological First Aid

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Look - Listen - Link | Psychological First Aid - michael kimmig

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Psychological first aid aims at ensuring feeling safe and connected to others, providing access to support and encouraging self-help.

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Learn to provide psychological first aid to people in an emergency by employing the RAPID model: Reflective listening, Assessment of needs, Prioritization, Intervention, and Disposition.
***

University: Johns Hopkins University / Coursera

Course Instructor: George Everly, Jr., PhD
Time: 6 hours
Information and enrolment

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Offered by Johns Hopkins University. Learn to provide psychological first aid to people in an emergency by employing the RAPID model: ... Enroll for free.

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For individuals

Psychological First Aid (PFA)

For organisations

Trauma-informed approach

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If you are working with children and kids...

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If you are working with children and kids...

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Make time and listen when your child wants to talk

Tailor the conversation to the child

Validate their feelings

Reassure them that adults all over the world are working hard to resolve this

Give them a practical way to help

Source: savethechildren.org

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As hostilities in Ukraine escalate, children may see and hear things about the crisis in the news, leading to feelings of uncertainty, anxiety and fear, which parents and caregivers need to address, Save the Children's psychologists warn.

Ane Lemche, a psychologist and child counselor with Save the Children, said children around the world might not fully understand what is happening in Ukraine and may have questions about the images, stories and conversations they are exposed to.

Previous Save the Children research in conflicts such as Iraq and Syria has revealed heartbreaking accounts of children terrified by the shelling and airstrikes, anxious about the future, and distraught at not being able to go to school. The majority of children showed signs of severe emotional distress.

"What is happening in Ukraine can be frightening for both children and adults. Ignoring or avoiding the topic can lead to children feeling lost, alone and more scared, which can affect their health and well-being. It is essential to have open and honest conversations with children to help them process what is happening," said Lemche.

Below, experts at Save the Children share five tools and tips that caregivers can use to approach the conversation with children:

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How to Talk About War and Conflict with Kids, According to a Child Counselor

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As hostilities in Ukraine escalate, children may see and hear things about the crisis in the news, leading to feelings of uncertainty, anxiety and fear, which parents and caregivers need to address, Save the Children's psychologists warn.

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Listen and don’t avoid difficult conversations.

Explain why it is important to pay attention to such events.

Be prepared to answer questions, give information and context that helps their understanding.

Be aware of young people at risk who experienced trauma or loss. Check-in with them regularly.

Develop with them small specific things they can do about this situation.

Source: theconversation.com

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Russia's invasion of Ukraine is dominating our screens and conversations. Children and young people are constantly being exposed to images and information about the devastation there.

This kind of exposure can lead to heightened stress and anxiety in both adults and young people. In such times, a classroom can provide a safe space for students to express their fears and concerns.

Teachers can inspire children and young people to feel hopeful and promote a sense of agency through thoughtful, honest discussion and developmentally appropriate activities.

What teachers need to think about

As with all difficult topics, educators should be keenly aware of the emotional impact these events have on students. Teachers should pay close attention to students who may have family members in the regions and who might be worried about how this crisis might impact them here.

Teachers should also be aware some of their students may have lived through war or have family in other active conflict zones. For children and young people with a trauma or refugee background, images and talk of war and violence can be triggering. Conversations about the conflict and constant media exposure can exacerbate this experience.

Previous experiences with major global crises such as the September 11 attacks in the United States and bushfires in Australia have provided insight into children's possible reactions to an event such as this.

Students will come to teachers with concerns. Answering questions may be tricky but we can give them a safe place to discuss things.

The first you can do is acknowledge and validate the students' concerns: wars are scary, and it's OK to feel scared. Start by asking what they have heard and address any misinformation.

Read more: Fake viral footage is spreading alongside the real horror in Ukraine. Here are 5 ways to spot it

Explain why it is important to pay attention to other parts of the world. Research shows that including discussion of global issues increases empathy and helps students develop more of an understanding for people around them who may have different backgrounds and experiences.

Listen and don't avoid difficult conversations. Be prepared to answer the questions the student may have, and answer with facts which will provide context to aid their understanding.

Be aware of your class and monitor children at risk, as young people with a background of trauma or loss are at higher risk of experiencing distress.

While it is important to be honest, the level of detail needed for an eight-year-old will be very different to that of a 12-year-old.

Primary school children

Primary school children have active imaginations and might not understand the situation as well as their older peers. But they will still sense the mood of the adults around them, which can impact their behaviour.

As a result they could experience an increase in stress and anxiety, distress at being separated from parents, or experience nightmares, sleep disturbances, or behavioural disruptions ("acting out").

Read more: How to talk to children about the invasion of Ukraine, and why those conversations are important

You can use picture and story books to help these children understand relevant concepts and to think about their treatment of others. For instance, "Paulie Pastrami Achieves World Peace" by Jaimes Proimos is about an a boy who plans to achieve world peace before his eighth birthday. He does this through acts of kindness such as reading to the trees and helping his little sister.

Books like this can help children understand altruism, and that even children can make the world better through kindness.

Use movies or cartoons to help children understand how they can make changes and improve their own community. Agency is a skill that can be taught from a young age, and can play a role in reducing feelings of helplessness, particularly during times of uncertainty.

Help students create artwork to express their feelings. We have seen even children in Ukraine doing this.

Instil hope. Show maps of locations and distances to help children understand their safety. You can remind children the war is very far away and they are safe here, while encouraging them to feel empathy for Ukrainian children.

Be prepared to answer student's questions. If you do not know the answer, you should say so.

Children might ask you how you are feeling, such as "are you scared?" You should respond honestly, as this is an opportunity to encourage open and transparent conversations about tricky topics.

Secondary school children

Secondary school children have higher levels of emotional regulation than their primary school peers. While they may be more curious, they may also have visualisations of possible attacks, and concerns about the implications for their future - including being sent to war or being conscripted if the war in Ukraine becomes a larger conflict.

You can share stories of what regular people are doing and experiencing to humanise the event. Lead with a positive tone, offering stories of people persevering in Ukraine and people in Russia who are challenging their government's actions. It is useful to point students to independent media in the Ukraine such as The Kyiv Independent and The New Voice of Ukraine. Radio Liberty in Russia is also a useful source of news.

Help older students build critical thinking skills and see the conflict in a wider historical and political context. The Netflix documentary "Winter on Fire" may be a useful discussion starter.

You could encourage students to start a fundraising project where funds will go directly to the Ukrainian community such as Ukranian Red Cross and Nova Ukraine.

You can encourage students to become global citizens and think about how they can start making changes in the world, both here and abroad. Provide information on how they can volunteer with local groups that focus on peace and community-building. Linking them to online platforms such as Global Citizen will help build feelings of solidarity with Ukraine.

Read more: A familiar place among the chaos: how schools can help students cope after the bushfires

Other ways to demonstrate solidarity would be to hold a vigil or an awareness-raising activity at school. You could also teach students how to write letters to a local MP.

Students want and need to talk about what they see, remember and are feeling now. They need the guidance and safety of adults in their schools to be able to navigate their own emotions and trauma in a healthy, safe and productive way.

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Teachers can offer a safe space for students to talk about the war in Ukraine and help them take action

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Russia's invasion of Ukraine is dominating our screens and conversations. Children and young people are constantly being exposed to images and information about the devastation there. This kind of exposure can lead to heightened stress and anxiety in both adults and young people.

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How to talk to your children about conflict and war. 8 tips to support and comfort your children.

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How to talk to your children about conflict and war. 8 tips to support and comfort your children.

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1. Find out what they know and how they feel

Choose a time and place when you can bring it up naturally and your child is more likely to feel comfortable talking freely, such as during a family meal. Try to avoid talking about the topic just before bedtime.

A good starting point is to ask your child what they know and how they are feeling. Some children might know little about what is happening and not be interested in talking about it, but others might be worrying in silence. With younger children, drawing, stories and other activities may help to open up a discussion.

Kids can discover the news in many ways, so it's important to check in on what they're seeing and hearing. It's an opportunity to reassure them and potentially correct any inaccurate information they might have come across whether online, on TV, at school or from friends.

A constant stream of upsetting images and headlines can make it feel like the crisis is all around us. Younger children may not distinguish between images on screen and their own personal reality and may believe they're in immediate danger, even if the conflict is happening far away. Older children might have seen worrying things on social media and be scared about how events might escalate.

It's important not to minimize or dismiss their concerns. If they ask a question that might seem extreme to you, such as "Are we all going to die?", reassure them that is not going to happen, but also try to find out what they have heard and why they are worried about that happening. If you can understand where the worry is coming from, you are more likely to be able to reassure them.

Be sure to acknowledge their feelings and assure them that whatever they are feeling is natural. Show that you're listening by giving them your full attention and remind them that they can talk to you or another trusted adult whenever they like.

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How to talk to your children about conflict and war

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8 tips to support and comfort your children

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How to recognize signs of distress in children

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How to recognize signs of distress in children

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How to recognize signs of distress in children

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What to Tell Kids about Ukraine: Recommendations from a Psychologist

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What to Tell Kids about Ukraine: Recommendations from a Psychologist

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The conflict between Russia and Ukraine has escalated: Russian troops have invaded and now control several areas in Ukraine. Heavy fighting is raging in some cities, and Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky has declared martial law. This causes fear and worry to many people in Europe, including children and other young people. But how do you answer their questions, and can war be explained at all? In an interview with Spektrum der Wissenschaft, the German-language edition of Scientific American, Torsten Andersohn, a Berlin psychologist and longtime family counselor, argues for an open approach to the topic.

[ An edited transcript of the interview follows.]
Russia has attacked Ukraine. The term "Third World War" has already been mentioned in the news. Do I have to talk to my child about it?
I think it makes sense, especially if you are affected by the situation yourself. For example, I worry about the people in Ukraine, but I'm also afraid of what this conflict means for the security and freedom of Europe. So there are a lot of emotions in me, and my child-or, in my case, my grandson-gets all of them. As an adult, I have to take responsibility for this concern that has been triggered in me and bring it up.
So you wouldn't wait for your child to come to you and ask?
If they do, that's great. But no, I wouldn't necessarily wait for that because if the parents are not doing well, because they are worried about world events or even have relatives in Ukraine, and they don't talk about it, tensions arise. Children are quick to relate to this, thinking that they have done something wrong, even taking the blame on themselves and believing that they have to do something so that Mom or Dad will be okay again. We must not burden them with this responsibility. And we should not leave them alone with these tensions.
How can war be put into words that my child understands?
That depends on the age. Young children in particular do not yet have the same moral concepts as adults. They therefore often ask very scientificlike questions and want to understand, first and foremost. Accordingly, it makes sense to enter into a dialogue with the children and answer their questions. In doing so, adults might say, for example, "War is something that destroys life." I can also explain that, in war, weapons are often used, and houses are broken, and parents are afraid that something might happen to their children. It is also possible to explain war in a playful way, for example with building blocks. The basic attitude should be the same overall, as with all phenomena that I explain to a child: the greatest possible openness; no lectures but a joint dialogue.
So emotions tend to be left out?
Not necessarily. Authenticity is also part of openness. If I'm pretty scared myself as an adult, I should talk about it. As I said, children are aware of our feelings. It's important that I don't transfer my fear to the child but make it clear: "This scares me, but you don't have to worry about it. You are safe with me." In this way, I make it clear to my child that it is not their responsibility to worry about me. At the same time, I show them that feelings are part of it.
"I am afraid, but you are safe with me"-isn't that ambivalent?
To a certain extent, yes. But we also have to learn to deal with contradictions. It's crucial that we stay in contact. For example, if I'm not sure whether my child understands what I'm explaining or is hiding his or her fear out of consideration for me, it's worth asking, "Did you understand? How do you feel about it?" If they then say that they are not feeling so well or that they wonder how they can make me happy again or help the people in Ukraine, we can think together about what would help in the particular situation.
Do you have an example?
If my child is concerned about the people in Ukraine, we could make a poster, walk to the Russian embassy together or attend a vigil. So I show them ways to take some action and not feel powerless. If a child is afraid, I might ask if they have any ideas about what might help them. Maybe they need a hug, or maybe we build a cave, creating a place where the child feels safe. Being afraid is not a bad thing at first. What is crucial is that we create security for the feeling.
What do you mean by feeling secure?
On the one hand, [this means] the feeling of being seen and understood. On the other hand, [it also refers] to supporting and accompanying the child in their search for a suitable way of dealing with things.
The security of the child's feelings is enhanced through the interaction with an adult?
Absolutely. The worst thing is when children are afraid, feel threatened, maybe even experience violence and are left alone with it-or if maybe it's not even talked about. If that's the case, the psyche is easily damaged.
What should parents do when they are overwhelmed by their own worries or can't even get out of their anxiety spiral?
[They should] seek help, for example from a friend or parenting counselor. If my child asks a question, and I don't know the answer or feel overwhelmed, I can also say that I need a moment to think about it. It's just important not to drop the subject then but to bring it up again later. Sometimes the child also needs a corrective.
What do you mean by that?
As a family therapist, I once met a six-year-old boy. He assumed that guns would protect him from his fear. I then explained to him that you can't shoot away fear but that guns usually lead to even more fear. In the end, we thought together about what else could help him with anxiety.
How do I talk to adolescents about war?
Openly, maturely and ideally with the opportunity for discussion. Puberty in particular is about breaking away from parents and finding one's own values and developing an attitude for oneself. In this process, adolescents also examine whether the views that parents or other important caregivers have conveyed to them are coherent for them. By sharing their views with them and leaving room for contradiction, parents help them to form their own opinions. In this way, young people can also locate themselves in the world to a certain extent-and that gives them stability.
In addition to fear, there is also anger. How do I deal with it when my 14-year-old son thinks he has to arm himself and fight against Russia now?
First of all, I have to take the feeling seriously and not dismiss it as a childish or adolescent fantasy. The desire behind it, namely to protect others, is understandable. Then it's a matter of discussion: What do you want to do? Who is this supposed to help? I can also sharpen my arguments and ask what my son wants to do about bombs and tanks. Like fear, anger also needs to be contained-that is, I show my child that I understand them and that they are not alone with his anger and frustration.
How do you deal with children and young people now being inundated with images, videos and reports about the war on social networks?
This shows once again how necessary it is to have a conversation about the current situation. We cannot shield children and young people from reality under an artificial glass bell. In terms of interaction, I can ask the child where they are finding out about the war, what is being shown on Facebook and TikTok and if they have any questions about it. If I'm worried that they can't handle what's on their screen, I would ask how they are doing with it.
So we need to keep talking to our kids?
Absolutely. And we should realize that we don't have to protect them from difficult feelings. We just must not leave them alone with them.

This article originally appeared in Spektrum der Wissenschaft and was reproduced with permission.

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What to Tell Kids about Ukraine: Recommendations from a Psychologist

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The conflict between Russia and Ukraine has escalated: Russian troops have invaded and now control several areas in Ukraine. Heavy fighting is raging in some cities, and Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky has declared martial law. This causes fear and worry to many people in Europe, including children and other young people.

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with kids and children

with young people

with adults

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Helpers Circle offers FREE stress regulation exercise videos in German, Ukraine and Russian! A great tool!!!

German-Ukrain: https://youtu.be/EN4bNq2SOJQ

German-Russian: https://youtu.be/C_r2vpEynnI

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S-O-S вправи для зниження стресу 💛💙 S-O-S Übungen zur Stressregulation auf ukrainisch

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War in Ukraine. What you can do to help. Benchmarks for individuals and business

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War in Ukraine. What you can do to help. Benchmarks for individuals and business

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by Monika Chutnik

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A Step Ahead. Leading Change. Best Practice Portal.

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Find here a bunch of ideas and benchmarks based on what many people and organisations already do. Join in!
last updated March 5, 2022
Let me share with you a number of actions which are within your immediate reach. You can take them literally or as inspirations for your own version of what makes sense. The point is to TAKE ACTION and HELP.

Call your fellow Ukrainians

That's the most immediate support. If you have any colleagues, friends, or neighbors coming from Ukraine, that's a good moment to call and talk. Check how they are, just as people how they feel ❤, and what they need. It's perfectly all right to be personal and emotional. I've been, sometimes there is no way to stop the tears!

Even if you don't know them too much, still go and talk.

The key message is: You are not alone! Make it very clear: I am here for you, please feel free to reach out to me if you need anything.

Solutions are always possible.

It's a good idea to ask your fellow Ukrainians directly, what you can do locally to help Ukraine. They will most probably be much more informed where you can best invest your energy and support👍.

Donate money

Hundreds thousands of Ukrainians are fleeing from war. In Poland, we have already given a home to more than 500,000 fleeing Ukrainians, mostly mothers with children, and this number comes just from war day 7 (March 3rd). There are many more who have stayed in their homes, to protect their country, their families, and their belongings. All need help now, and you can donate to any of the organisations providing humanitarian help. Check this link for global recommendations or browse the same page downwards to find your country and donate according to the guidelines there.

What Ukrainians need is support for their army. Ministry of Defense of Ukraine has opened a special account for donations for this purpose. You can donate with Google Pay, SWIFT, or even cryptocurrency.

Give temporary home

You can offer free accommodation to Ukrainians who are fleeing the war. If you have a spare room at home, it might be a good place to start! The airline company Wizzair has offered 100,000 free flights to Ukrainians fleeing to various destinations, making their travel so much easier.

Please mind that just asking your colleagues "if anyone needs accommodation" is not enough.

It's best to register your place in an official database so that your place can REALLY be found by people who need it. See how it looked in Poland on March 3rd.

Today, as of March 5rd, this is so much needed. In Poland, the government arranges large-scale places where people can just lie down and sleep under the roof. Empty student houses (due to COVID, everyone was in online education) in all major cities are already almost fully populated. Hundreds, thousands of people offer their private homes as a place to stay. Even my small company has rearranged the office to offer one room for someone from Ukraine, who is in need. We have just moved some furniture to the side and arranged two mattresses. The kitchen with a cooker and bathroom with shower are there, what else do we need? You can make it simple, just help.

A few days ago, also Air Bnb has offered free accommodation for one month to 100,000 people fleeing from Ukraine. Check out whether your Air Bnb contacts might join this action.

If you can give support with your wallet, in the future do purchase goods and services coming from Poland. We are all just thinking to save lives and people now, but the longer-term economic consequences are a burden. How to recognize a product is from Poland? Check for 590 on the barcode 🇵🇱 as the starting three numbers.

Make your voice count

The people of Ukraine are fighting for their right to democracy. Make the best use you can of democracy in your place! Use all measures to make your voice heard and ask the business and officials in your country to help stop the war.

here you will find a list of those which you can sign regardless of your nationality or residency. Check for more in your own country.

join a protest in your city

check for list of protests around the world. Just look at this photo or this recording of 250,000 protesting against the war in Cologne, Germany. This is really happening. This is really needed.

Make it public

There might be many people around who do not realise how serious the situation is and how global its impact. Help them get this awareness, e.g. by:

writing articles, just like I am writing mine at the moment

your social media posts. One of them might be linking to the text you are reading now, others to other sources of reliable and useful information. You can tag some people to make sure that they will surely see your post. Watch out for fake news and disinformation! Just in Poland, just on March 5th, there have been 120,000 cases of misinformation in Polish social media, which is an increase of 20000%!!! Watch out and double-check for the source. Spreading disinformation makes the situation worse.

changing your LinkedIn title, just like I have changed mine.

Why? Psychology knows the power of social proof. If others have already done it, this is the right thing to do. Have you noticed that what I am showing here are actual activities already taken by others? My role is not to convince you. The others that have done it are already the best proof.

Use correct language about Ukraine

It is perfectly ok not to know the detailed history of another country. What makes sense now is to understand how to talk about Ukraine and Ukrainians. My warmest thanks for this guidance to Susanna Romantsova.

Incorrect:Post-Soviet State. Ukraine has been an independent state for 30 years.

Correct: Further invasion. Russia's large-scale war against Ukraine.

Incorrect: Russian invasion. Russia started the war and invaded Ukraine's territory on February 20, 2014 by invading Crimea.

Incorrect: Ukrainian crisis. Ukrainian conflict. Civil war. On February 20, 2014, the Russian Federation launched its war against Ukraine, which continues to this day. By using such terms, we would allow the occupying power to call the war with Ukraine "an internal conflict".

Correct: Occupation administration, occupation authorities, so called "L/DNR" authorities Crimea.

Incorrect: Authorities in Crimea. LNR, DNR. By using this name without the prefix "so-called" and without quotation marks, we would recognize the legitimacy of the local occupying government.

Correct: Temporary occupation of Crimea.

Incorrect: Annexation of Crimea. The statement of the fact that annexation, without specifying the illegality and temporary nature of these actions, would speak of "recognition of Crimea as Russian".

Incorrect: Separatists. Terrorists. The use of such concepts allows the aggressor state (Russia) to conceal the presence of Russian troops in the temporarily occupied territories.

Incorrect: Kiev. Odessa. Donbass. These names are transliterated to English from Russian. However local names must be transliterated into another language from the language of the country, i.e. Ukrainian.

Stop business with and in Russia / Belarus

Stop supporting Russist activities with money from your purchase!

The barcode numbers 460-469 mean "made in Russia". 481 means "made in Belarus".

Multiple major businesses have already withdrawn or stopped their operations in Russia. Care for some names? Apple. Jaguar. IKEA. MasterCard. AirBnb. AMD and Intel no longer sell processors in Russia. Netflix. Spotify. Nokia. Daimler. Ford. Harley Davidson. Mercedes. Toyota. Volvo. Disney. H&M. Nike. Dell.

Multiple retail stores have withdrawn Russian and Belorussian products from their offer, with immediate result.

It needs to be stated explicitly: there are many Russians who are against the war. In this sense, there are Russians and Russists, this is how we want to differentiate the aggressive power. Let's find ways how you can give support and courage to Russians so that they can defend themselves against the brutal country regime and help Ukraine from within Russia... Differentiating and giving justice in assessing Russians is the first step towards it.

Offer jobs to Ukrainians

What an amazing opportunity for a win-win PLUS great help! Many people fleeing from Ukraine are very well qualified. They are translators, developers, office clerks, analysts, doctors, even psychotherapists. Some of them might find employment in your company if you offer it, or businesses around you if you activate it.

Be active in offering jobs. The fleeing people want nothing more than just regular life. If you help them with paperwork, they will be more than grateful.

Ukrainians cross their borders as regular citizens. They do not request refugee status. This would actually block them from working for a period of 6 months (that's how it's regulated in Poland, as every separate refugee case needs to be analysed separately). Help manage the documents and win skilled staff!

Wizzair has already been smart to understand that and offered not only jobs but also help with relocation and accommodation for a period of one month.

Involve your tech power

According to NATO, war has five domains: land, sea, sky, and space. The fifth one is cyberspace. As a skilled individual or as an IT team, you can help discover UA web vulnerabilities or join the Tech To The Rescue initiative. On March 1 there were already over 250 organizations offering pro bono support to Ukrainian NGOs in the field of technology. In both, there are ongoing projects and enough tasks for everybody.

Before you start collecting or sending goods anywhere, make sure and check what's needed where. To give an example: at this very moment, the Ukrainian-Polish border is flooded with clothes, but what is needed much more is medicines, as children who were traveling a long time in uncertain conditions have caught a fever, and some people are wounded.

Just make a call and double-check with the direct recipients what they need... and then move on!

In Poland today, every single primary school in every tiniest town and village serves as a place to collect goods for Ukrainians. Make sure you give what is needed, that's a lesson that we in Poland have already learned!

There are even more options to help

Some companies have even started retooling their machines to start manufacturing protective vests for Ukrainian soldiers and civilians. You might, but don't have to go that far. It's enough if you do one or two of the things you've just read about. Others have done it, too.

Every little grain of sand counts, so a Spanish proverb. That's our tiny area of influence.

Please share this article with any of your colleagues, friends, neighbors so that they can also choose how they can help. So that they also regain their grain of influence ❤

If you like to share other great benchmarks to support Ukraine, please mention them in a comment below!

Photo by Tim Mossholder on Unsplash

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how to help victims of the war in ukraine

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War in Ukraine. What you can do to help. Benchmarks for individuals and business.

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Find here a bunch of ideas and benchmarks based on what many people and organisations already do. Join in! last updated March 5, 2022 Let me share with you a number of actions which are within your immediate reach. You can take them literally or as inspirations for your own version of what makes sense.

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How to help Ukraine now

What you can do to help. Benchmarks for individuals and business

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Facilitating learning in the face of crisis

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Facilitating learning in the face of crisis

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Design by Dagna Gmitrowicz, www.dagnaart.com

"How to talk about war" is about how to face crisis situations and make it a topic in non-formal education events, especially if you work with interculturally mixed and transnational groups. Together with Dagna Gmitrowicz and Marta Brzezińska-Hubert we tried out and put together various ways to bring the topic of war to non-formal education and search mutually for ways to handle it within our workshops, seminars and training courses. This small publication is a work-in-progress and an attempt to find first answers and practical ways to talk about war in a non-formal setting. Publication How to talk about war. Facilitating learning in the face of crisis (15 downloads) by Dagna Gmitrowicz, Marta Brzezińska-Hubert and Michael Kimmig
"Connection is the energy that exists between people when they feel seen, heard, and valued; when they can give and receive without judgement; and when they derive sustenance and strength from the relationship." Brené Brown

War February 24th 2022. When the Russian army crossed the border and invaded Ukraine we were in the middle of an On-Arrival Training for volunteers in Poland. In our group were participants from all over Europe, including Ukraine and Russia. We had our programme in the context of a terrifying war, and a refugee crisis, that was just about to unfold. Since then, we have been involved in various events with interculturally mixed groups, always challenged by the impact of this war and the question of how to find a balance between individual needs, the group process, the content within a crisis that was escalating more every day.

The War in Ukraine suddenly brought the war to our doorsteps. It opened our eyes to other wars that are currently happening in the world, wars that are happening far from our borders. Wars we tend to ignore and look in a different direction.

"How to talk about the war" became a question that haunted us. Together with our colleagues, we tried out several things and we posed ourselves several questions:

How to address the war? Do I have to talk about it?

How can I prepare talking about war?

How can I inspire small actions?

How can I support self-care and build resilience?

How can I support those who are especially in need?

How can I strengthen the group/community?

How can I take care of myself?

Since then, we have tried out various ways to bring the topic of a war to non-formal education and search mutually for ways to handle it within our workshops, seminars and training courses. This is a work-in-progress like this article, an attempt to ask the right questions and an attempt to find first answers and practical ways to talk about war in a non-formal setting.
Download How to talk about war. Facilitating learning in the face of crisis (15 downloads)

Design by Dagna Gmitrowicz

Sources and additional resources (not included in the publication)
Talk about the war
How to Talk with Children About the Conflict in Ukraine via savethechildren.org

Teachers can offer a safe space for students to talk about the war in Ukraine and help them take action via theconversation.com

Teaching about Ukraine. Information sites and news about Ukraine by Erik Ofgang via techlearning.com

Fact-Checking Sites for Students by David Kapuler via techlearning.com
Crisis Intervention
How to recognize signs of distress in children. Common reactions to stress in children. via unicef.org

Look - Listen - Link. Psychological First Aid. BlogPost by Michael Kimmig

Psychological first aid: Guide for field workers by World Health Organization, War Trauma Foundation and World Vision International, 2011

Crisis Intervention Resources. Supporting volunteers and volunteering organisations via Mentoring under Construction [padlet]
Self-care and well-being
Five Steps of EmotionAid. Practical toolkit for managing emotions and reactions during times of crisis (in English, French, German, Hebrew, Arabic, Polish, Chinese, Farsi, Turkish, Russian, Spanish, Italian). via emotionaid.com

256 Cards of feelings and needs - Cards of feelings and needs in four different painting styles by ARTE EGO Foundation in Poland and GrenzKultur / Cabuwazi in Germany

Well-being of ESC volunteers and coordinators by Marta Brzezińska-Hubert [padlet]
Ideas for small actions
Real ways you can help Ukraine as a foreignervia supportukrainenow.org

28 Meaningful Ways You Can Help Ukraine via globalcitizen.org
Links last visited 20.03.2022

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How to talk about war. Facilitating learning in the face of crisis - michael kimmig

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"How to talk about war" is about how to face crisis situations and make it a topic in non-formal education events, especially if you work with interculturally mixed and transnational groups.