Bike Kitchen

The Bike Kitchen is a social bicycle repair workshop established to improve sustainable mobility in areas of Chernihiv affected by the war and in de-occupied communities across the region.

In 2022, public transport in Chernihiv came to a halt for 40 days due to heavy shelling during the early stages of the full-scale invasion and the blockade of the city. The entire Chernihiv region also faced a severe fuel crisis.

The lack of public transport severely restricted people’s mobility within the city, making it difficult to access basic services like medical care or evacuate from danger zones. It also disrupted logistics and the delivery of humanitarian aid, especially for people with limited mobility.

#BikesForUkraine

NGO Eco Misto Chernihiv is one of the co-founders of #BikesForUkraine – an international initiative supporting Ukrainian communities affected by the war.

Launched by six Ukrainian NGOs, the campaign collects bicycles from donors around the world. Our goal is to improve mobility for Ukrainian volunteers and essential service workers, so they can deliver humanitarian and other aid to those who need it most.

Internally displaced persons and residents of modular towns or affected areas can also receive bicycles by filling out a request form on the website.

Over 700 bicycles have been donated by European partners and repaired during community bike events (“Velotolokas”) in our social bike repair workshop.

The workshop received used bikes and supplies from international partners, including from Germany, Denmark, the Netherlands, Italy, and Latvia.

Campaign initiators: U-Cycle (Kyiv), NGO Eco Misto (Chernihiv), NGO Youth Association “Extreme Style” (Sumy), NGO Urban Reforms (Kharkiv), NGO FORZA (Uzhgorod), NGO Velovector (Odesa)

To promote cycling in Chernihiv, we established the city’s first social bike workshop, organize community events for local cyclists, and advocate for urban cycling infrastructure and development strategies.

What makes the bike workshop social?

The workshop offers free access to professional tools and expert guidance from experienced bike mechanics.

We also host educational sessions where participants learn how to care for their bikes. These include both theory and hands-on practice, empowering people to handle basic maintenance and small repairs on their own.

• Free bikes for volunteers and social workers.
• Free access to professional tools for cyclists.
• Repair and maintenance services for personal bikes.
• Events and activities to grow the local cycling community.
• Workshops on bike maintenance and repair.
• Bicycle rental.