Press
For interviews, background information, imagery, or to arrange access to SWB operations, contact:
contact@sailorswithoutborders.org | +48 501 11 21 55
PRESS KIT: SWB Press Fact Sheet (PDF) | SWB logo (PNG)
About Sailors Without Borders
Sailors Without Borders (SWB) is a humanitarian foundation founded in 2016 by a group of sailors who believed that the duty to rescue people in danger at sea is not a matter of choice — it is a moral and legal obligation. What began as a small volunteer crew conducting search-and-rescue operations in the Mediterranean has grown into a multidisciplinary humanitarian organisation operating across Europe and North Africa.
SWB works wherever people are most vulnerable: on the sea, at borders, in conflict zones, and in communities hosting displaced populations. Over nearly a decade of operations, SWB has delivered emergency relief in Greece, Italy, Malta, Libya, Poland, and Ukraine — responding to the refugee crisis, the war in Ukraine, and other humanitarian emergencies as they arise.
The organisation is registered as a foundation in Poland, and operates in full compliance with Polish law and international humanitarian standards, including a mandatory Child Protection Policy.
Key Facts
- 2016 Year founded
- 10 Years of continuous operation
- 6 Countries of operation: Greece, Italy, Malta, Libya, Poland, Ukraine
- 500+ Tonnes of humanitarian aid delivered to Ukraine
- 100+ Ukrainian refugees housed in the Safe Haven project in Poland
- 30+ TIR trucks and convoys dispatched to Ukraine
What We Do
Search & Rescue at Sea
SWB began with maritime search and rescue operations in the Aegean and Mediterranean, deploying volunteer crews and vessels to assist people in distress at sea. Operations have covered routes from Libya to Italy (Lampedusa, Crete) and throughout the Greek islands.
Humanitarian Aid to Ukraine
Since the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, SWB has organised and dispatched over 30 TIR truck convoys carrying food, water, medicine, clothing, and tools to areas of acute need inside Ukraine, in close coordination with local NGOs and authorities.
Support for Refugees
SWB designed and operated multiple humanitarian aid projects, both small and large, helping refugees. An example of this is the Safe Haven project in Poland, providing comfortable accommodation, full board, schooling, and psychosocial support for over 100 Ukrainian refugees, including mothers with children.
Funding & Equipment
SWB has also funded and supplied vessels, pontoons and rescue equipment to partner organisations conducting search-and-rescue operations at sea, as well as equipment (provisions, cars, life vests) for multiple organisations taking action in Ukraine.
Who We Are
SWB’s work is carried out by a dedicated community of volunteers — sailors, lawyers, translators, psychologists, logisticians, and field activists — who contribute skills and time on a short-term, long-term, or recurring basis. The organisation is led by its founders and governed by a board based in Warsaw.
Founders: Malgorzata Belniak, Marek Belniak | Board member: Filip Jezierski