Mission Success: Space Industry for Ukraine Initiative Reaches New Heights

Spearheaded by CEO of HawkEye 360, John Serafini and National Security Space Association Executive Director, Steve Jacques, SIFU was designed to harness the resources and innovation of industry partners to provide immediate humanitarian aid to the people of Ukraine. Twenty-three companies donated $895,000 in capital, forming a coalition to guide the allocation of aid to areas of most need:

HawkEye 360, National Security Space Association (NSSA), The Aerospace Corporation, Capella Space, ABL Space Systems, ARKA, BlackSky, Cognitive Space, ICEYE, Insight Partners, Leidos, LeoLabs, Maxar Technologies, Modern Technology Solutions, Inc., Raytheon Technologies, Rebellion Defense, Relativity Space, Riverside Research, Rocket Lab, Shield Capital, Ursa Space Systems, Velos, and Viasat.

More than a dozen projects were vetted and approved, along with six partner NGOs entrusted to implement selected projects: Aerial Recovery, Alaska State Sno-X Lions Club, IREX, Revived Soldiers Ukraine, Save Our Allies, and Spirit of America.

The projects executed over several months spanned critical needs such as medical rehabilitation of civilians and veterans, evacuation support, aid delivery (clothing, food, water, hygiene supplies, medicine), communication restoration and prototype development, housing repairs and winterization, refugee assistance, and provision of PPE and equipment to hyperlocal journalists in defense of free press. SIFU achieved mission objectives to ensure maximum impact with minimal overhead.

To date, SIFU funds have assisted over 247,000 refugees, 103 families in need of housing repairs and heating supplies, over 9,500 evacuations, and the delivery of more than two million pounds of aid to victims in some of the most volatile areas of Ukraine.