Over 40.000 refugees are stuck in camps in Greece.

Their living conditions pose a threat to health and safety.

An outbreak of COVID-19 would not only spread rapidly, but also aggravate this humanitarian crisis deeply. Physical distancing is not an option.

The lack of initiative of Europe's national political governments is devastating and violates human rights. The correct and necessary action is to immediately evacuate all individuals in all camps in order to ensure their safety.

We want to show that we care and declare our solidarity by taking concrete action. Together with you, we want to send a message of solidarity to those who need it the most.

Let's stop turning a blind eye and show compassion and love instead.

Our mission

The goal is to send 20.000 textile face masks to Lesbos,

in order to

slow the spread of COVID-19

and

raise awareness of the humanitarian disaster on the Greek island.

Why textile face masks?

With this initiative, we aim to send textile/cloth masks to Lesbos. These may serve as a slight protection for the wearer, but first and foremost reduce the likelihood of transmitting the virus to others via secondary infection. Specifically, nose and mouth coverings reduce the amount of respiratory particles that are released into the air when talking, coughing or sneezing.

Of course, such cloth masks are not as effective as FFP2 or FFP3 material. However, there is currently a shortage of such protective equipment all over Europe, keeping them out of the hands (or faces) of doctors and nurses in hospitals. Plus, there is one benefit of homemade cloth masks over medical-grade material: Everyone can pitch in and it can be washed!

Selection of sources highlighting the effects of cloth face masks:

Where will we get the masks from?

You! You can make your own face masks and donate them. Find instructions below.
Your social circles. Friends, family, acquantainces: Some of them might already be making masks. Take a pro-active approach and reach out.
Businesses. Some tailors, but also textile producers have switched to producing face masks. If you are a business owner, please fill out our contact form below. If you know any, please contact them or pass their details on to us.

How will they get to those who need them?

Collect

We will collect the masks. [address to follow]

Check

We will work with local medical personell to check the quality of the face masks.

Send

On April 26, we will send the masks to our NGO partners in Lesbos. There, they will be distributed to the and finally handed out by medical staff.

Support #EuropeCares

Make your own masks

Contribute with your own hand-crafted mask. It is simple and can even be done without a sewing machine.

Further instructions can be found on Youtube. Note that medical personnel will do a quality check before passing the masks on. So please take quality into account as a serious factor.

Sewing Manuals:

English Manual
German Manual
Italian Manual

If you can contribute with a translation, please let us know.

Help with outreach

Contribute by reaching out in your own network - family, friends, acquaintances!

Some of them might already be making masks or willing to donate. Don't be afraid to take a pro-active approach and reach out. If you know companies, small and large, that are currently producing face masks, reach out to those too.

Communications Material

To follow soon!

Either option does not work for you?

If you still want to help out, you can make a small donation to support the project. It will primarily help us ship the material to Lesbos. With any excess funds we will purchase additional masks at the cost of production.

Donate via PayPal

Join us!

Successes so far

100 masks from BeWooden

200 masks from a local tailor in Frankfurt am Main, Germany

50 masks from a supporter in Frankfurt am Main, Germany

We will add your contributions!

Contact

#EuropeCares is an volunteer initiative of Volt Europa. We stand against nationalism and populism. We strive for a more united Europe that seeks solutions through collaboration, not isolation.

E-mail

Eileen O'Sullivan
Lennard Everwien
Karam Chehade

Phone

+49 1731787239

Further sources

UNHCR on the situation on the Greek isles

CDC Guideline on Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)

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