Amanda Raad to Join Panel Discussion on International Response to Ukraine’s Humanitarian Crisis

Anti-corruption and international risk partner Amanda Raad will participate in an online panel discussion, hosted by emergency humanitarian organization BlueCheck Ukraine, on the failure of the international humanitarian aid system to support Ukraine’s civil society and NGO sector in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The panel discussion, titled “Responding to Ukraine’s Mounting Humanitarian Crisis,” will take place on March 23 at 12pm ET. Click here to register for the event.

Amanda will be joined by Abby Stoddard (Founder and Partner, Humanitarian Outcomes), Jason Cone (President and Co-Founder, BlueCheck), Murphy Poindexter (Treasurer and Co-Founder, BlueCheck) and Yana Lomaka (Grant Officer, Life Quality Fund) to explore why, according to research and policy organization Humanitarian Outcomes, local Ukrainian aid organizations, which carry out 90 percent of relief operations, receive just 1 percent of the billions of dollars in international aid pledged to Ukraine. BlueCheck secretary and co-founder Michael Goldfarb will serve as moderator.

The panel will also review BlueCheck’s experiences over the past year identifying, vetting and funding Ukrainian partners, propose adjustments to the international aid system, and discuss BlueCheck’s due diligence and fast-track funding protocols. Additionally, the speakers will provide on-the-ground insight into the provision of aid in a war zone.

BlueCheck is a non-profit organization that focuses on getting financial aid to frontline organizations in Ukraine. Ropes & Gray, led by Amanda Raad, litigation & enforcement partner Ama Adams and capital solutions & private credit partner Jeff Katz, has been providing pro bono anti-corruption, corporate and IP counsel to help BlueCheck in its mission to vet prospective grassroots organizations in Ukraine and elsewhere since the inception of the conflict. The firm is also helping BlueCheck set up scalable systems to assist victims of other humanitarian emergencies around the globe, including earthquake victims in Turkey and Syria.

Learn more about Ropes & Gray’s pro bono support for Ukraine.