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Introduction: why volunteer and why now
Volunteering in Ukraine has become a sustainable system of mutual aid that supports the army, communities and critical infrastructure. If you are thinking about becoming a volunteer, it means that you are ready to turn your intention into action and contribute to real change. Charity is not only about large sums of money, but also about regular, consistent steps that multiply the result.
Today, every hour of your time can make a difference: from logistics and communications to fundraising and analytics. You choose the role that suits your skills and schedule, and we help you integrate into the processes so that you don’t get overwhelmed. This is especially important when it comes to helping the Armed Forces and targeted assistance to civilians.
The International Unity Movement Foundation creates conditions for safe, transparent and effective participation of everyone. We work according to clear standards, take care of instruction and support you at all stages of your volunteer journey.
Who is a volunteer today: a range of roles and responsibilities
Volunteering has long gone beyond just physical deliveries and collecting items or funds. If you’re wondering how to become a volunteer with no experience, the answer is simple: find a role where your current skills are already useful. Charity is about systematic processes and adherence to standards, so it’s not the number of hours you spend, but the sustainability of your contribution that matters.
Logistics in charity
One of the basic roles is logistics and warehouses: receiving and sorting cargo, inventory, packaging, and route planning. Attention to detail, the ability to work with spreadsheets, and discipline are valued here. If you are mobile, it will be useful to participate in deliveries together with a coordinator - this is targeted assistance that quickly turns into a concrete result.
Procurement and fundraising: where resources are born
Procurement and fundraising is a field for those with an entrepreneurial mindset and a flair for communication. You help search for trusted suppliers, analyze competitive offers, and maintain documents and reports.
Communications and content: visibility and trust
Communications and content - SMM, copywriting, design, photo and video, storytelling for social media and the website. Your task is to show the path from request to closing the need without disclosing sensitive data. You work with facts, figures, and safe stories to make the charity understandable and trustworthy.
IT and data analytics: numbers that power action
IT support and data management is everything related to CRM, analytics, automation, and cyber hygiene. If you’re an analyst or developer, it’s easy to find ways to strengthen processes and save your team time. Even simple dashboards can help you track requests, plan purchases, and measure the impact of your aid.
Law and accounting as the basis of trust
Legal and accounting support builds trust: contracts, deeds, privacy policies, financial statements. You help to ensure transparency and compliance, which is especially important when it comes to assistance to the Armed Forces, specific goods, and international transfers.
Psychosocial support: caring for people and teams
Psychosocial support is a field for those who can listen and facilitate safe conversations. You can moderate communities, help with hotlines, and prepare resources for self- and mutual assistance. Such volunteering reduces stress in the team and among recipients, increasing the resilience of the entire system.
Specialty areas: from tactical medicine to 3D printing
There are also special areas: tactical medicine, equipment assembly and repair, 3D printing of parts, preparation of shelters, basic cybersecurity for partners. If you have unique competencies, let us know - together we will find where they will bring the greatest effect. Here, every hour is equal to a specific task solved.
Volunteering is based on responsibility: being on time, following instructions, and recording results. You save your resources, choose a realistic workload, and communicate with the coordinator about your progress and limitations. This is how the pace is formed, which allows you to stay in action for a long time and scale up your assistance.
How to apply to the International Unity Movement
To quickly understand how to become a volunteer in our team, start with a simple letter. Write to the official email [email protected] and briefly describe your skills, experience, city, available time and preferred format of participation (online or offline). In the subject line, please indicate: "volunteering - [your city] - [chosen role]" in the subject line so that we can send your application faster.
After receiving the letter, the coordinator will contact you to clarify the details and offer relevant directions. We will tell you where your help will be most effective, in particular if you are interested in helping the Armed Forces or targeted assistance to civilians.
Basic safety rules: your safety is our priority
Volunteering in a time of war requires discipline and caution. To ensure that your assistance remains safe and effective, we follow clear procedures and ask you to do the same.
Operational security
Do not post routes, departure times, photos with geolocation or details about recipients in real time. Avoid mentioning units, numbers, types of cargo, and intermediate points.
Cyber hygiene and account protection
Enable two-factor authentication in email and messengers, use unique passwords and a password manager. Do not open suspicious attachments, check links, or work with sensitive information on public Wi-Fi without a VPN. Share documents only on a need-to-know basis.
Medical minimum and first aid
Take a basic first aid course and practice stopping critical bleeding. Check the contents of your backpack before each trip: tourniquet, hemostatic agent, bandages, gloves. If someone in the group has more training, agree on roles in advance and keep emergency contacts handy.
Legal and financial framework
Work through the official channels of the International Unity Movement Foundation, keep track of expenses, reports and keep receipts. Comply with applicable restrictions on the shipment of ammunition, dual-use equipment and medicines. Execute all agreements and acts correctly - this guarantees transparency of the charity and protects you legally.
Confidentiality and recipient data
Do not disclose personal data of applicants, warehouse addresses, or exact coordinates of cargo transfer. For reporting, use generalized wording and impersonal photos without sensitive metadata. Only responsible persons have access to data tables, and stories are published with explicit consent.
Communication and risk escalation
Report any suspicious requests, incidents on the route, or information leaks to the coordinator immediately. Do not make uncoordinated decisions under stress - ask for help and follow the procedure. A delay for inspection is better than a risk to people, cargo and the reputation of the aid organization.
Preventing burnout as a safety element
You are a key resource. Plan your rest, alternate tasks of different intensity, and don’t hesitate to ask for a replacement. A steady pace is a way to keep volunteers engaged for a long time and maintain the quality of the processes that underpin assistance to the Armed Forces and support for communities.
Remember: following these rules is a shared responsibility. They are designed to turn your desire to help into a safe, predictable and measurable action as part of the International Unity Movement. If you have any doubts, please contact the coordinator - we will suggest a solution that will save both you and the charity.
Ethical standards: trust as a foundation
Ethics is the framework on which volunteerism and charity are based. When you act in a transparent and respectful manner, donors and recipients understand that the assistance comes according to the rules, without ulterior motives. This is especially important when it comes to helping the Armed Forces and working with sensitive information.
Respect for dignity means that you do not exploit people’s stories for emotional effect. Public materials are prepared only with consent, without details that could harm security or privacy. You avoid hate speech, stigmatization and discrimination of any kind - assistance should be based on need.
Transparency and accountability means timely updates, correct figures, and confirmation of facts without revealing too much. If a mistake is made, it is recognized and corrected, and the process is improved to prevent it from happening again. This is how trust is built, without which systemic assistance is impossible.
Zero tolerance for fraud involves checking requests, suppliers, and counterparties. You do not engage in dubious schemes, do not work with "gray" ammunition, and do not promise what you cannot fulfill. Anything that raises doubts is escalated to the coordinator of the International Unity Movement Foundation.
Compliance with the corporate ethics of the International Unity Movement Foundation is a prerequisite for participation. The standards regulate data collection, communication, reporting, work with partners and the media. If you are not sure how to act ethically in a difficult situation, please contact the coordinator - we will suggest a solution that will maintain trust and efficiency.
Useful courses and resources to get you started
Training speeds up adaptation and increases safety - it’s an investment in your effectiveness. If you’ve just decided to become a volunteer, start with short modules that cover basic risks. This way you will integrate into the processes faster and make your help measurable and predictable.
It is useful to take basic first aid courses: MARCH algorithms, bleeding control, evacuation, and IFAK. A few hours of practice will give you confidence when traveling and on duty, especially if you are planning trips or participating in the assistance to the Armed Forces of Ukraine. At the same time, it is worth paying attention to OPSEC and cyber hygiene: two-factor authentication, password managers, VPNs, file and link verification, removing metadata from photos, and properly configuring accesses in shared documents. This reduces the risk of leaks and manipulation, and protects the personal data of recipients and partners.
The logistics base will be useful for back-office processes: Sphere basics, route planning, inventory, accounting, and labeling of boxes and batches. Short warehouse and packaging instructions make it easy to change and scale, and standardized approaches reduce errors and losses. If you’re passionate about communications, pay attention to storytelling, publication ethics and privacy protection, basic design for social media, and preparing photo reports without sensitive data. You will learn how to turn facts into a comprehensible narrative that supports charity and trust without putting people at risk.
A separate area is fundraising and work with donors: texts for meetings, vendor verification, contractual frameworks, transparent budgets, acknowledgements, and retention of support. Competent fundraising turns into stable assistance, which makes it possible to plan purchases several weeks in advance.
How to choose your role and avoid burnout
Start with a realistic workload: plan 2-4 hours per week and gradually increase the pace. Determine where your skills bring the highest return: analytics, communications, logistics, fundraising, or field trips. If in doubt, contact us - we will help you match your experience with current priorities to make your help tangible.
Build your work through simple processes: record tasks, deadlines, and responsible parties in common tools, and duplicate key knowledge in brief instructions. Delegate whenever possible and always have a "plan B" in place in case of force majeure. This approach reduces stress and provides consistency, without which volunteers quickly become exhausted.
Take care of pacing and recovery: take breaks, alternate tasks of different intensities, and set clear time limits. Ask for feedback from the coordinator regularly to help you grow faster and avoid repeated mistakes. Remember that charity and assistance to the Armed Forces of Ukraine is a marathon, where stability and preserved strength are as important as enthusiasm at the start.
Your next step
If you are ready to take action and are looking for a way to become a volunteer without any barriers, please contact us at [email protected]. In the letter, please indicate your skills, city, available time and desired role - so we can offer you a suitable direction faster.
The team of the International Unity Movement will conduct a short onboarding and suggest where your help will have the greatest impact, in particular in the areas of assistance to the Armed Forces and community support. Take the first step today and turn your intention into systemic charity.
