Lebanon, 2022. The people of Lebanon face intense wildfires that are destroying entire landscapes of cedar trees and forcing many to abandon their homes. This year the wildfires have already started in early June and are destroying the ancient pine forest.

However, local firefighters lack the necessary equipment to bring them under control!

Poor governance and climate change have made the situation extremely dangerous. The severe underfunding of fire departments has put firefighters, mainly volunteers, at great personal risk and has heightened the threat to Lebanese lives and nature.

The Solution

The solution is simple: Lebanon’s firefighters need the appropriate equipment!

Unfortunately, the Lebanese government has not acted on this issue and there is no expectation that they will do so. A history of corruption and neglect has effectively dismantled the country’s capacity to protect the people and forests of Lebanon.

The Plan

While Lebanon suffers from a severe lack of equipment, many fire stations in developed countries such as the UK, the US, and The Netherlands, possess fully functional equipment that is no longer in use due to stricter national regulations.

This provides a perfect opportunity to supply Lebanon with working firefighting equipment at an affordable price, which is exactly the idea behind the work of Team 7.

In 2015, Ghadi El Khoury and Charbel Salameh founded Team 7 to improve the conditions of emergency responders and collaborate with organisations and fire stations around the world to move equipment to Lebanon. Following the devastating wildfires of 2019 and 2021, which forced hundreds to flee their homes, the need for better protection of Lebanese people and their nature has become increasingly more desperate.

To curb the dangerous fires, Team 7 seeks to ship this unused equipment to where it is needed the most. This involves paying for shipment to Lebanon, which is very expensive for large items such as trucks. With no government funding, Team 7 relies on donations to finance this.

To support these critical and time-sensitive efforts, The Hague Peace Projects has set up a crowdfunding campaign together with Team 7.

What can you do to help?

You can help by making a donation to our campaign and spreading the news!

Every little bit helps! Regardless of your donation, each contribution encourages others to do the same and together we will reach our goal sooner. The campaign will go live on the 18th of July 2022.

You can also show your support by registering on this form, and on the day of the launch we will reach out to you so that you don’t forget to contribute.

Groups and organisations may choose to contribute in different ways:

Shipping companies can support us by shipping the equipment from Europe to the Port of Beirut where the Lebanese firefighters will be eagerly waiting.

Lebanese friends in Europe, we ask you to help by spreading word of this campaign so that we may reach enough willing donors to achieve our goal of 5000 Euros.

Environmental groups can contribute by sharing this campaign with their community and helping us to raise awareness and funds.

Fire departments can be of assistance by providing equipment or funds for the Lebanese firefighting cause, or by sharing this campaign with firefighting colleagues who may be able to help.

Businesses that make a donation can benefit from a positive public image and attract the conscious customer by becoming an official sponsor of this campaign.

Whoever you are, together we can make a critical and direct impact on the preservation of forests and people’s lives in Lebanon.

Thank you for supporting our campaign!