💙 💛 HOSTING INITIATIVE FOR UKRAINIAN PEOPLE

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We kicked off concrete efforts to help our fellow Alumni in Ukraine by finding hosting for alumni and their family/ friends in need of a shelter abroad.While the initiative comes from INSEAD Alumni Association France, the team is now European with 30 National Alumni Association Representatives, working every day to find our Alumni and families shelter, everywhere in Europe, and supported by the INSEAD Alumni Association. Please join us to thank our 30 national volunteers. You will find their name at the end of this article.

So far, we have managed to find a solution for 369 people and we are still receiving requests every day. We would like to thank our unbelievably generous hosts.

Some of our Guests and Hosts accepted to share their stories with us tou can read below.

Olga, our guest Tatyana Ivanova her sister and INSEAD Alumna and Xisco and Maria de la Calle, the hosts and INSEAD Alumni in Spain.

Tatyana Ivanova : « I would like to thank Xisco, Maria, Adeline and INSEAD community for the incredible support they gave to my sister, Olga. In the very first days of the war INSEAD managed to quickly organise all possible support that Ukrainian family may need. In the days when it was hard to think and act, INSEAD connected us to alumni Xisco and his wife Maria.
Xisco and Maria went above and beyond to create home-like environment for Olga in their house in Barcelona from the very first days. Not only did they open the doors to their house but also actively engaged to spend time all together, helped her to adjust in the new country and provided support in the job search. Someone who deserves special attention  is soon-to-be two year old Siena who is teaching Olga Spanish words and makes sure nobody in the house ever gets bored. The radiating energy of this family left us no chance but to keep planning and building new life!
Xisco de la Calle : « This absurd and criminal war leaves no room for happy stories. Any effort we make hardly mitigates the monstrous damaged caused to humankind.
Our sweet, cheerful and talented new roomie Olga has brought joy to our lives. She refreshes every day and every night the excitment that diversity creates in those of us who carry Insead in our hearts.
Olga will thrive anywhere she goes. For my wife Maria and me is and will be a great honour to support her in rebuilding her life. She is making great progress real quick which is so amazing  to watch! »

 

Iryna, Oksana and Anna, our guests and Bojana our host and INSEAD Alumna in The Natherlands

Anna : « I appreciate you and INSEAD Community for this opportunity to meet such friendly, honest, helpful people – Bojana and Arjan. Thanks to them we are safe, we feel ourselves as in home, we have usual life in common sense.   I’ll tell you little about our story, it’s not practice advice, but my feelings.  We left our home at the begging of the war , spent several weeks in different places in Ukraine🇺🇦 , we changed a location based on bombing directions. When we get opportunity to go abroad I was scared because it meant that this war was not short-lived.   12.03.22 we crossed border.. My first think was about safety, the second one was about calm life that I saw. It was huge contrast compared to Ukraine. And I had such think all our trip to Netherlands 🇳🇱.   I was ashamed to come to people to other country with my problems,  but Bojana and  Arjan were so friendly and supported us,🙏 and I started to feel relieved .. Our friends helped us with everything (house, registration in municipality and doctor, helped with clothes, money etc.). As well I would like to note than people in NL are so friendly.   Cut long story short, today is the forty fifth day when I’m not at home, my husband and my mother are far from me, but thanking for Bojana and  Arjan I’m still strong and I have hope for future.  I’m so happy to meet my new Dutch friends 🇺🇦🇳🇱  » BR, Anna

THANK YOU TO OUR EUROPEAN TEAM:

Pierre Fouques Duparc 🇫🇷
Jaafar Chafai El Alaoui 🇫🇷
Claude Perol 🇫🇷
Adeline Romain 🇫🇷
Olivier Puech 🇫🇷

Jaromir Sladkovsky 🇨🇿🇸🇰
Lucie Berankova 🇨🇿🇸🇰

Majken Bønnelykke 🇩🇰
Carl Johan Collet 🇩🇰

Markku Komsi 🇫🇮
Sofia Silberman 🇫🇮

Raphaela Balzer 🇩🇪
Marisela Aguilar 🇩🇪
Luna Yzaguirre 🇩🇪
James McGoldrick 🇩🇪
Marisa Rodriguez 🇩🇪

Sergio Gonella 🇮🇹
Stefano Madeddu 🇮🇹
Frederico Morosi  🇮🇹

Philippe Osch 🇱🇺
Alex Kraynyukov 🇱🇺

Sven Cobben 🇳🇱
Lian Krijger 🇳🇱
Xenia Rudenko 🇳🇱

Andrzej Nitecki 🇵🇱
Marek Blicharz 🇵🇱
Przemyslaw Bielicki 🇵🇱

Rita Texeira 🇵🇹

Laura Gravila 🇷🇴
Andi Malaies 🇷🇴
Magda Manea 🇷🇴

Andrew Kristensen 🇸🇪

Philippe Mauron 🇨🇭
Constanza Eufemi 🇨🇭

Nermeen Varawalla 🇬🇧
Katerina Kravchenko 🇬🇧
Margot Theocharides 🇬🇧
Rob McKinnon 🇬🇧