Mission East is an international relief and development organisation, which works to help vulnerable populations, supporting communities’ capacities to organize and assist themselves, through activities ranging from disaster relief to development assistance.
Their vision is to empower people and communities in crisis affected countries to lift themselves out of poverty and marginalization.
Mission East works in response to community needs, specializing in Rural Community Development and Disability & Special needs. As well as direct implementation, Mission East works with and through local and international partners in order to enhance the relevance, impact and sustainability of their programmes.
Their ‘Values in Action’ are honesty, integrity, compassion, respect for all people and valuing the individual.
Mission East has committed to application of the Core Humanitarian Standard (CHS) and is a member of the CHS Alliance. Mission East is a signatory to the Code of Conduct for Red Cross and Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) in Disaster Relief. In our work we apply Sphere Project standards.
History
Mission East was founded in 1991 by Rene Hartzner and his son Dr. Kim Hartzner. Rene Hartzner had travelled extensively in Eastern Europe under Communist rule and had seen at first hand the difficult conditions under which some people – especially Christians – were living. This had such an impact on Rene Hartzner that he felt the need to do something.
Kim Hartzner heard his father talk about his Eastern Europe experience and felt the same conviction to help. In 1991, Rene and Kim started the organisation ‘Mission East’ – with aim of providing aid to Eastern Europe.
The organisation has grown from these beginnings and its interventions have spread far beyond its original Eastern European focus to countries such as Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Nepal and North Korea.
Rene Hartzner has since retired, but Kim Hartzner remains as the organisation's Managing Director.
Mission East works in a number of countries in Eastern Europe and Asia:
From emergency aid to independence
Mission East works in situations of relief, rehabilitation and development. Some countries are in the development phase where other locations require programming which caters for both relief and development needs.
Emergency relief aid: Countries can find themselves in a crisis requiring urgent humanitarian assistance. Whenever possible, Mission East responds to ease the suffering through meeting urgent needs.
Rehabilitation: Emergency aid alone is not enough to regenerate communities. Following on from the initial relief effort, programmes start to focus on restoring community assets and laying the ground work for development projects.
Development: Working with local NGOs and civil society groups, Mission East plans and implements projects designed to bring long-term benefits to the community. Projects include working with groups to improve education and health standards for children with disabilities; community driven and manager water and sanitation improvements; farming and small business development.
