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@helpers-no

Helpers.no - Helping the helpers

Volunteer-driven support for frontline helpers — providing the tools, systems, and resources they need

Helpers.no

We build open-source tools that keep organizations running — with or without the cloud.


SovereignSky — Crisis-Ready Operations Platform

81% of Norwegian cloud infrastructure runs on US platforms. Hospitals, government agencies, schools, and businesses all depend on Azure, AWS, and Google Cloud — services subject to the US CLOUD Act. A single political decision, a trade conflict, or a cyberattack could make these services unavailable overnight. Organizations that can't operate without their cloud provider will simply stop functioning.

This isn't theoretical. It's the reality that every IT department knows but few have a plan for.

SovereignSky is a sovereign cloud platform that ensures organizations can operate — with or without the cloud.

sovereignsky.no — the knowledge platform with databases on laws, datacenters, jurisdictions, and software across 60+ countries, plus all our open-source tools and documentation.

What

  • Infrastructure: Kubernetes-based platform that runs anywhere — on-prem, local datacenter, or sovereign cloud
  • Developer tools: Consistent dev environment across Windows, Mac, Linux
  • Applications: Nextcloud (file sharing/collaboration), CRM, and more coming
  • Templates: Ready-to-go project starters for APIs, web apps, backends
  • Machine provisioning: Automated setup for developer workstations (Intune/Jamf)

Who it's for

  • Aid organizations preparing for crisis response
  • Municipalities ensuring continuity of operations
  • Companies reducing dependency on foreign cloud providers
  • Anyone who needs to operate when the cloud goes dark

Repos

Repo Purpose Docs
devcontainer-toolbox Consistent development environment dct.sovereignsky.no
urbalurba-infrastructure Sovereign cloud platform uis.sovereignsky.no
dev-templates Project starter templates
client-provisioning Developer machine setup (Intune/Jamf)
sovdev-logger Structured logging with OpenTelemetry
software-scrape Sovereign software discovery
sovereignsky-site Landing page sovereignsky.no

📋 Project board · 📖 Full README


Get involved

We welcome developers, sysadmins, and anyone who wants to help build infrastructure that keeps organizations running when it matters most. You don't need to have been at the border to be part of this. You just need to care about building things that work when it matters.


Where it started

In March 2022, 5,000 refugees arrived daily at the Tesco Centre transit camp near the Polish-Ukrainian border.

No IT systems. No volunteer screening. No logistics tracking. No donation management. No big NGOs. No government funding. Just people who showed up. Ordinary people. Some were nerds. That experience led to a decision: this must never happen again — the people who show up must get the tools they need to help people in need. That became the mission: helping the helpers.

Everything was improvised. The nightmare: children and women disappearing to human traffickers posing as drivers or aid workers. With the help of SINTEF, a QR-based wristband identification system was built to distinguish legitimate helpers from traffickers. Featured in Dagens Næringsliv: Databransjen kan hjelpe polske flyktningmottak

📋 Project board · 📖 Full README


Based in Norway. Open to contributors worldwide.

Popular repositories Loading

  1. dev-templates dev-templates Public

    The development templates offer a quick, modern, and standardized way to start new projects—APIs, web apps, backends, or experiments. They lower the entry barrier for all developers, enabling rapid…

    Shell 2 2

  2. urbalurba-infrastructure urbalurba-infrastructure Public

    A zero-friction developer platform for building, testing, and deploying modern apps—without needing to know Kubernetes, GitOps, or the cloud. Everything you need to turn ideas into production-ready…

    Shell 2 2

  3. devcontainer-toolbox devcontainer-toolbox Public

    Forked from norwegianredcross/devcontainer-toolbox

    A comprehensive development container setup that provides a consistent development environment across Windows, Mac, and Linux. This toolbox includes configurations and tools for working with Azure …

    Shell 1 2

  4. client-provisioning client-provisioning Public

    Deployment scripts for setting up developer machines with container-based dev environments. Windows (Intune) and macOS (Jamf).

    PowerShell 1

  5. qr-armband qr-armband Public

    QR-based wristband identification system for aid workers and refugees. Developed with SINTEF during the Ukraine crisis. Featured in DN: https://www.dn.no/innlegg/ukraina/flyktninger/it/innlegg-data…

    C#

  6. simple-qr simple-qr Public

    Python implementation and API for QR generation. Part of the wristband ID system developed with SINTEF.

    Python

Repositories

Showing 10 of 12 repositories

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