Dear Fab Lab Community,

The brutal invasion of the sovereign nation of Ukraine and inhumane tactics against its civil population have led to the worst humanitarian crisis Europe has seen since WW2 with nearly 3,000,000 refugees fleeing the country. The crisis is growing worse each day as the war continues. FabFoundation strongly condemns this war that Putin and the Russian government is waging on Ukraine and its people.

We stand by and support our Ukrainian brothers and sisters and are deeply moved by the outpouring of support from the community. At this moment - the safety and well-being of the Ukrainian people is our first and foremost priority. After the acute immediate humanitarian crisis is dealt with - we will provide support to rebuild the community. In the days and weeks to come we are gathering and exploring ways to help and will be publishing them here.

We would also like to acknowledge the complexity of politics surrounding the state-funded fab labs in Russia. We cannot possibly understand the forces that come to bear upon these labs in their current situation, and feel we are not in a position to judge. This does not mean we support the Russian State, in fact, quite the opposite. We recognize and acknowledge the distinction between individuals and states. And we welcome fab labs and makerspaces that share our values wherever they are, meaning spaces that provide inclusive and equitable access to education and technology through collaborative social benefit, sustainability, and economic development programs that make positive impact in their communities.

The first fab lab in Ukraine, IZOLAB, was destroyed in 2014 and its premises turned into a military prison in the lead up to Russia’s occupation of Crimea and establishment of the breakaway states in Donetsk and Luhansk regions. Since then, a network of fab labs and makerspaces has been established across Ukraine. Most of the humanitarian focused fab labs have been destroyed in this war, as have other community fab labs and makerspaces. Some lab managers have managed to get out of the country safely, and others have gone silent. We are deeply concerned about the tragic loss of life, of home, of the ability to communicate, of the safety and security of our friends and colleagues in Ukraine.

Please contact us at FabUkraine@fabfoundation.org if you have resources and ideas to offer help, or if you are in Ukraine or any of the neighboring countries that are receiving and hosting refugees and you need the support of the fab lab network.

HOW TO HELP? We have listed a few ways below, and this list will grow and change frequently.

With peace and love in partnership, The Fab Foundation

The M19 Collective is a collection of makerspaces, fab labs, community organisations, foundations, industries, universities, researchers and individuals, fostering a collaborative effort in open innovation and helping to combat the current COVID-19 crisis in India. The OxiKit is an open source oxygen concentrator design that allows for more than one person to use the same oxygen tank at the same time. As you may have read, oxygen tanks are in critically short supply in India. This initiative will help save lives, and build decentralized manufacturing capacity across the country. If you are able, please donate toward this important initiative to help save lives as well as support local production in communities across India.

SCOPES-DF brings together a community of practice activating digital fabrication tools to support authentic student learning across all subject areas. With 1,000 members, this website hosts over 250 community-contributed lesson plans to engage students in learning with Fab tools. Lessons are standards-aligned and incorporate the Fab I Can Statements for student learning assessment. Join the SCOPES-DF community mailing list to stay informed of virtual webinars, workshops, and meetups with this amazing group of educators.

Since 2016, Chevron and the Fab Foundation have partnered to recognize educators that are creating STEM learning opportunities through digital fabrication. To date, we have awarded over $40,000 to formal and informal educators all around the world.

Last year was a particularly challenging time for educators and their students. Due to the pandemic, over 95% of school-age children were unable to learn in their classrooms with teachers. In spite of these difficulties, many teachers are innovating and finding a way to get quality learning experiences to their students, and we wanted to acknowledge them with the Teacher Innovator Award! Fab Foundation and our partners at Chevron awarded innovative teachers with $1,000 to continue their work during this pandemis.

To learn more about the 2020 Teacher Innovator Award Winners, click below!

The National Fab Lab Network Act of 2019 has been introduced to the US Senate and is in process of introduction in the House of Representatives, Bill S.2752 mandates a Fab Lab for every congressional district, empowering individuals and communities through digital fabrication tools that promote education, science, technology, engineering and math skills, increase invention and innovation, create businesses and jobs, and fulfill personal, professional, and community needs.

*Alaska and Hawaii not shown due to sizing constraints but also have fab labs. This map shows a rough estimate of fab labs that already exist in the US, taken from fablabs.io. There are more maker spaces throughout the US that do not appear on this map.