Tepla Gora Foundation

Tepla Gora Foundation is a Ukrainian non-profit social enterprise that develops and operates Tepla Gora Eco Centre in the Carpathian region (Cheretiv, Ukraine). Founded in 2019, Tepla Gora is a living demonstration site for sustainable infrastructure and community-led resilience. We host educational events, retreats, volunteer programmes and hands-on trainings, showcasing low-carbon solutions such as solar energy, rainwater harvesting and eco-sanitation (compost toilets). Our purpose is to strengthen communities through sustainability, education and wellbeing—especially in times of crisis—by creating a safe and inspiring space where civil society organisations, youth groups and grassroots initiatives can meet, learn, recover and co-create. We promote both “inner” and “outer” ecology: the wellbeing of body, mind and spirit, lived in harmony with others and with nature. Our work spans three interconnected domains: activities at Tepla Gora (holistic rest, recovery, learning and collaboration); engagement in the local Carpathian community (sustainable regional development); and work across Ukraine and internationally (healthy ecological lifestyles, eco-entrepreneurship and the vision of a Climate Positive Ukraine). We collaborate with Ukrainian and international NGOs and community networks, hosting sustainability gatherings and organisational retreats, including with EcoDiya and Greenpeace Ukraine. Since the start of the full-scale war, we have expanded our humanitarian and resilience work. Our flagship initiative, KOLO, is a free 10-day rehabilitation and recovery programme for internally displaced people and veterans, delivered in a supportive community format that combines rest, nature-based practices, creative activities and group processes. KOLO is sustained through our social enterprise model, complemented by support from Razom (2022) and Fondation de France (2022–present), with €81,000 in funding received to date.