Ideas on how to Stand With Ukraine!

It took three weeks with an unlawful war, an attack on a peaceful nation to create a humanitarian disaster. More than 3 million Ukrainians have fled the country and more than 2 million are refugees in their home country. In total it’s like the entire population of my home country Denmark all becoming refugees in just three weeks! Impossible to grasp. Thousands of civilians are dead. Russian war crimes are everyday life in Ukraine. It’s devastating to watch from a distance.

Business leaders have stepped up massively. Many activities are carried out since the start of the war and many companies have donated to international organizations on ground in the war zone or in neighboring countries. Despite all that support UNHCR is very clear more financial funds are needed and they are needed now. 

I guess we are many asking ourselves how we can support further, what we can do? The good news is in business there is always more we can do to support Ukraine and small steps and actions we can take to stop the war. Therefore, try to think everything is possible and don't wait for others to act. All action counts and businesses have a lot of power to push things in the right direction.

Below I will share my commented #StandWithUkraine to-do list from the last two weeks and hope you can copy relevant ideas but also share back your ideas and thoughts to keep building meaningful actions to explore and execute.

✅ Keep donating to established organizations on ground with proper experience and muscles. If you have donated once think of ways to engage your organization behind a second round. If any philanthropist is willing to double your donation like Akelius Foundation for Swedish donations to UNHCR or UNICEF in the month of March - get going and utilize the opportunity! 

✅ Activate your procurement department and make clear choices. If your suppliers of products or services have not pushed pause/stop on Russia push pause/stop on them. Start looking at the Yale-list below but watch out for irrelevant supplier actions as “stopped investment” or “stopped import”. These things are given with the sanctions in place. Do also look at suppliers of services and not only products. Look further to small and mid-size suppliers not on the list. A hint is to action relevant FMCG suppliers and if relevant the supplier of tires for your company fleet. 

https://som.yale.edu/story/2022/over-400-companies-have-withdrawn-russia-some-remain

And don’t forget to let the suppliers you pause or stop get the message with an explanation directly from you. Customer and consumer pressure leads to action.

✅ Work as close as you can with local authorities to explore where and how you can support in receiving refugees. It is currently very hard to assess how many will enter a country, how they will and can accommodate and where. Flows are already high and will only increase out of neighboring countries and further into Europe. Be patient when you don’t get answers or even a straight “no” to your well-meant proposals. They might be needed tomorrow, but no one knows today. 

✅ Rethink your fuel and energy consumption. Oil companies have no traceability on the fossil fuel going into your company cars and trucks (at least they say so). Likely you will find Russian oil in the mix. What to do? Lower consumption, place demands on your supplier to completely quit Russian oil, shift to biofuels which are slightly more expensive but traceable and without Russian ingredients or even better electrify your fleet faster! Also invest more resources stepping up energy efficiency - prices are high and volatile - you have an important slot before next winter to aggressively implement the energy reduction initiatives on the list and keep adding to it. Payback is faster than ever, and your risks get lower. 

✅ Revisit your risk analysis and mitigating actions. Almost sure the work needs an overhaul and some additions. Train your crises management procedures if you haven’t lived them over the last weeks. We all hope the war will stop today but unfortunately it might take long and your actions must mirror that. Think ahead for the next phase. Can you help creating meaningful activities for all the kids arriving, jobs for their mothers? Spare some of your fire power for what might happen in 3,6,9 or 12 months. Try to engage your organization for the long run. Look at the company values and think of how they fit the current situation. People want to help and support - companies can act as catalysts and playmakers. Share your knowledge with others, tell your industry organization and Board of Directors what you do so they can bring relevant ideas on to other companies they reach. Build partnerships with other businesses and NGO's! 

Businesses can use the ammunition at hand and try to make our combined actions heard all the way to the Kremlin while we Stand With Ukraine. Don't wait. Act now!