Crisis response

Mobilizing to provide essentials to
communities in need and those in crisis,
including food, clean water, shelter,
secure connectivity, and disaster relief.

• 1.3M+ people supported through our food
security partnerships

• 770,000+ people supported through our
water and sanitation partnerships

Impact story:

Connecting people with critical services and building resiliency

_{Ukrainians supporting Ukrainians with LifeForce, a secure, real-time humanitarian aid matching platform.}

AI4Good is on a mission to support economic and community resilience through technology via three verticals: Intelligent societies, catalyzing innovation, and humanitarian aid.

Problem: After Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, millions of people were displaced within the country and in need of humanitarian assistance. At the same time, publicly available on-line information was being used by Russia to target critical infrastructure such as hospitals.

Solution and Cisco support: Cisco Foundation is supporting LifeForce Ukraine, a Diia-authenticated geo-fenced secure digital platform that provides verified life-saving information and support real-time and enables coordination across governments, non-profit/non-government organizations, and individuals and families in search of assistance.

Impact: Cisco support has enabled AI4Good to develop advanced features including a community task manager, grant need verification and interactive dashboards, connecting IDPs with the services and supplies they need, and enabling governments to understand needs real-time and manage the flow of aid accordingly.

LifeForce deployed across 5 regions in Ukraine, deliver critical information in a secure manner
100-200K unique platform users per month
252K average aid matches per month
2M+ aid deliveries verified and completed since platform launch

Impact story:

Building back better and changing unsafe construction practices

_{Improving vulnerable housing is nearly 75 percent cheaper and saves 68 percent of embodied carbon compared to new construction.}

Build Change is working to reduce deaths, injuries and economic losses caused by housing and school collapses due to earthquakes and extreme weather events.

Problem: In recent years, the deadliest disasters have been earthquakes and windstorms in which most deaths are attributed to structural collapse. By 2030, an estimated 3 billion people will be living in sub-standard housing which is particularly vulnerable to these events.

Solution and Cisco support: Cisco Foundation is supporting BCtap, a technology platform that digitizes end-to-end management of disaster prevention and post-disaster resilient housing programs. It has been designed such that it can be quickly deployed and customized for local contexts.

Impact: Cisco support has enabled Build Change to streamline BCtap workflows resulting in a 95 percent reduction in time to stand up a new program, 33 percent reduction in field visits required, and improved transparency, data consistency and quality control. It has been leveraged in more than 40 post-disaster rebuilding programs across South America, Asia, and the Middle East.

1.1M people benefitting from improved housing/ schools since inception
230K buildings made safer since 2004
40 post-disaster rebuilding programs leveraging BCtap
26+ countries in which BCtap has been implemented

Impact story:

Bringing trust and transparency to agri-food supply chains

_{Trace gives farmers a voice by enabling them to verify the price they are being paid for their goods.}

Fairfood is on a mission to accelerate change toward sustainable food systems and improve the economic prosperity of smallholder farmers and food workers.

Problem: Poor transparency in the agri-food supply chain contributes to a lack of ability and incentive for companies to manage human rights, environmental and other issues; and, to the exclusion of smallholder farmers and food workers from fair value distribution.

Solution and Cisco support: Cisco Foundation is supporting Trace, a blockchain-based platform that enables companies to trace products from farm to fork and log verifiable evidence to support claims around issues including fair pay, environmental stewardship, and more.

Impact: Cisco support has enabled Fairfood to extend their program presence from 10 to 22 countries and onboard over 30 new strategic partners to help them bring fully traceable products to market and improve responsible business practices across South America, Africa, and Asia.

30K farmers registered on Trace platform
375K people benefitting from increased farmer incomes
60 companies engaged to improve supply chain transparency
22 countries covered across three regions

Impact story:

Transforming communities’ access to clean water

_{Jose Freyle (R) and Isabel Uriana (L), local Wayuu and WaterAid team members, perform water quality testing and maintenance on water infrastructure, La Guajira, Colombia, July 2024. (Photo credit:}_{WaterAid/Keoma Zec)}

WaterAid transforms lives by improving access to clean water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) in the world’s poorest communities.

Problem: In La Guajira, Colombia, water scarcity is common among the rural communities where water is untreated, exposing people to microbiological contaminants, elevated salinity levels, and heavy metals.

Solution and Cisco support: With Cisco Foundation support, WaterAid rolled out the first mobile water quality lab in La Guajira and trained local community partners to conduct tests, analyze water quality data, maintain and sustain the lab to ensure longevity and effectiveness of water systems.

Impact: This program ensures rural communities’ access to clean and safe drinking water. Cisco support for the successful pilot resulted in plans for replication and scale to additional communities in Columbia.

First water testing facility and mobile lab established in La Guajira
500 people from two pilot communities have access to clean water
Signed contract with the Colombian Ministry of Housing to replicate this model in 46 additional communities in La Guajira