How NFTs are used to support the victims of the war in Ukraine

After Russia's invasion of Ukraine and the unprecedented suffering and destruction it has caused to the Ukrainian people and their cities, we have observed many different ways in the ways that cryptocurrencies and the Blockchain are utilized to support humanitarian efforts and the country. The crypto community has stepped up and has united it support for the victims of such aggression. For direct crypto donations to the Ukrainian government and NGOs, to official Ukrainian DAOs collecting funds, and to NFTs minting tokens and using the funds to help people in need in Ukraine.

The NFT aspect is quite interesting, as it allows everyday people who want to donate something to help Ukraine, to do that in a transparent way and get an NFT as a badge of honour as a result. Furthermore, in most cases since these NFTs are not aimed to generate profit but to be a badge of honour for their holders, they are non transferable and cannot be listed in secondary market for speculation and flipping purposes. NFTs are playing an increasingly important role, as an Ukrainian NFT flag was auctioned for $6.75 million by Ukraine DAO with the funds going to the Come Back Alive NGO that is supporting the Ukrainian military to buy defensive equipment.

Sandbox, the popular Metaverse Blockchain Game, in cooperation with MauerNFT from Berlin has minted 10,000 Ukraine Flag NFTs that it plans to sell for $1 million. The funds from the NFT fundraiser will be matched by Sandbox that will offer another $1 million and all go towards the humanitarian relief effort in the country. The buyers of the flags will be able to use them and plant them on their lands to show support for Ukraine. Furthermore, similar initiatives with Ukrainian NFTs have been launched by various artists and collections in different Blockchain networks. The Hive team has also stepped up and has been involved in order to help its team members from Ukraine and Hive users that have been affected by the horror of the war by launching its own NFTs series and donating the funds to the Ukrainian Ministry of Digital Transformation. Once again, the crypto community, be it gamers, collectors, or investors have come together for a noble cause. Ukraine is suffering, people are dying, lives and dreams have been shattered. It is a duty to help and I am glad that we are exploring and using unique ways to do that, like NFTs.