A new website has been launched in Ireland to allow Irish businesses to help refugees fleeing the invasion of Ukraine by offering them their products and services either at discounted rates or for free.

Pryvit.ie, which means ‘hello’ in Ukrainian, was launched today (21 March) as a not-for-profit initiative by the Tech for Good Dublin community to mobilise companies in Ireland in helping welcome Ukrainian refugees to the country.

The website acts as a portal for the refugees to find Irish businesses making offers and contact them directly to avail of the offers, which includes a wide range of services such as discounted or free coffee, meals, working spaces and even yoga classes.

The aim of the website is to attract more Irish businesses, such as grocery shops, cafes, gyms, pharmacies and drapery shops, to post offers exclusively for those arriving in Ireland from Ukraine. It is part of a wider global tech response to Russia’s ongoing invasion of the country.

Ireland has welcomed more than 9,000 refugees from Ukraine since the invasion began on 24 February, with an estimated 100,000 expected to arrive in the coming months.

Máirin Murray, co-founder of Tech for Good Dublin, said that the tech community in Ireland is “horrified” by the war in Ukraine and wants to play its part in welcoming them in this time of distress.

“Pryvit.ie is a simple idea that allows businesses to offer a helping hand through a welcome offer for their goods or services to Ukrainian refugees,” she explained.

The website is a result of a recent Tech for Good Dublin event called Ireland Supports Ukraine in which the group discussed ways to mobilise the Tech for Good community to use technology to help the refugees feel welcome.

“It will also be a testament to the kindness and generosity of the Irish business and tech community,” Murray added.

As part of the initiative, Future Human, Silicon Republic’s sci-tech event happening in Dublin in May, is offering free conference tickets to tech professionals who have arrived from Ukraine and are interested in attending.

Scholarship and research

Meanwhile, the Irish Government has proposed using the Erasmus programme to create a new EU scholarship scheme for students and researchers fleeing from Ukraine.

Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, Simon Harris, TD, first made the announcement last week amid a wider EU response to the crisis, aiming to help people from the country in “a comprehensive, compassionate and humanitarian way”.

The announcement followed a meeting in which Harris discussed with other stakeholders on making language provisions available to those arriving from Ukraine as well as making Ireland’s third-level education system more accessible to them.

“When it comes to education, like so many other areas, we are strongest when we coordinate and work together across the EU. I am sure we can learn from each other – let us share our responses so that we can ensure our actions are impactful,” Harris said.

While the European Commission is already looking at its own programmes, such as Erasmus, to find ways to help refugees, Harris pushed for “an additional step” in which the programme will be used to fund a new scholarship scheme to help students fleeing war to continue their studies.

“In Ireland, when I talk of accessing education, it is not just about entering a school or college, it is about supports for learning materials such as books, or a laptop,” he added. “I don’t believe we should try and create a new system, but we could use one that is known to work and expand it to suit the needs of Ukrainian people.”

Separately, the European Research Council (ERC) is also urging its grantees in Ireland and across Europe to provide temporary employment to researchers and support staff fleeing Ukraine.

The ERC, which is the EU’s leading funding body for research set up in 2007, has contacted all its 5,600 current grantees on the matter and is collecting information on potential job opportunities for those displaced by the war.

Prof Maria Leptin, ERC president, called on all ERC grantees and the institutions hosting them to open their labs and teams to refugee researchers and other helping staff.

“You may be planning to hire team members for your ERC-funded project, and I would ask you to consider refugee researchers and other staff members from Ukraine whose expertise matches your needs,” she said.

“This is only one way of giving a helping hand – it’s crucial that the scientific community stands together.”

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