Community News

GÉANT and the Vietsch Foundation launch project to support Ukrainian Research and Education

April 2022

The GÉANT Community continues to support Ukrainian Research and Education and our partner, URAN. As the war in Ukraine goes on URAN will need our support and help more than ever, not just to survive but to stay as safe as possible and where possible to maintain and rebuild.

Therefore, the GÉANT Association and the Vietsch Foundation are launching a project to support URAN. This project will be legally and financially managed by the Vietsch Foundation, a non-profit tax-exempt charity (in Dutch ANBI) established in the Netherlands.

Funds donated by Europe’s NRENs will primarily address URAN’s cash flow challenges and help to ensure URAN’s survival as an NREN. Whilst the war has heavily affected URAN’s many users who are currently unable to operate themselves and are therefore unable to pay for URAN services, URAN faces ongoing operational costs and is therefore at severe risk itself.

The funds will also support URAN staff with cost-of-living expenses and thus help to preserve the knowledge and skills of the Ukrainian NREN.

Looking to the future, the funds will also help to replace network equipment that has been destroyed or lost during the war, ensuring Ukrainian Research and Education recovers as quickly as possible.

GÉANT Association staff will work closely with URAN to put together proposals for how the funds are best used. These proposals will be analysed by the board of the Vietsch Foundation, with an advisory role for the chair of the GÉANT Board. All NRENs who donate to the fund will receive a regular report on how the project funds have been used.

To learn more, or to discuss a donation, please contact GÉANT.

About the Vietsch Foundation

The Vietsch Foundation was created by Willem Karel Vietsch (1952-2014) through his last will and testament. The foundation was established on the day of his death, 23 February 2014. For more information see: https://www.vietsch-foundation.org/the-foundation

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