WelcomeWay

A real-time, multilingual support network that helps migrants, refugees, and long-term travelers quickly integrate into a new environment. "No one should feel lost in a new country!"

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WelcomeWay was born out of a shared realization: in the first days and weeks after arriving in a new country, migrants, refugees and even long-term travelers often don’t need financial aid. What they really need is information, guidance, and human connection.

This insight was deeply personal for two of our team members, who were forced to relocate due to the war in Ukraine. They had to integrate into a completely new country, without knowing the language or having any local connections. Based on their lived experience, we saw that the existing support systems are often hard to find, or scattered across countless websites, forums and communities.

Critical help like finding a place to live, understanding how to register with local authorities, accessing a doctor or translator — is often experienced through trial and error, which is far from the most rational or effective way to solve the problem. We needed a solution.

This is how WelcomeWay was born: a platform that brings it all together in one accessible place — designed to be used by anyone, anytime, anywhere.

🛠 How We Built It We started with informal interviews and conversations with friends and acquaintances who had migrated or volunteered to support newcomers. That helped us identify the most urgent and universal needs.

Based on that input, we designed a scalable MVP: a real-time support network that enables mutual aid among people.

🚧 Challenges We Faced

  • Design & Team Coordination While our team was assembled in advance, we hit a major challenge just two days before United Hacks V5 began — our original designer stopped responding right before we were about to finalize the UI ideas. With design being critical, this forced us to urgently find a replacement and rethink our visual concept under intense time pressure. What's more, for a new designer it meant creating a fully finished design for a web application in a completely new team and around a brand-new, unfamiliar idea, which was quite challenging. Luckily, we managed to finish our working prototype, even while forming a new design directly on the go.

"It was challenging, but also an incredible learning experience." — _ Dmitry, one of our team members_

🌱 What We Learned Simplicity is powerful — people don’t need a million tabs, just one app that works right now.

  • How to collaborate under serious time pressure
  • How to adapt and keep going when the unexpected happens
  • The importance of respecting and supporting your teammates
  • Creative thinking in both product design and implementation
  • Clear, fast, and open communication makes everything smoother

💬 Reflections from the Team "We didn't just build an app, we built a solution to a problem real people live every day. In 48 hours, we created a working platform that could help millions of newcomers feel less alone in their new countries." — Amara Marx

"We were coding with passion — and so was the weather. By the deadline, not just our brains were fried — even our flip-flops had melted." — Maksym Yaroshenko

"Working on this project was one of the most fun experiences I've ever had. W Team" — Dosymzhan Kogabaev

"This project is highly scalable due to its potential everyday impact on the lives of countless people around the world — especially in today’s uncertain times. At the same time, it can also be useful for long-term travelers, exchange students, or anyone taking a gap year to volunteer, explore, or simply take a break. That’s what makes this resource so universally relevant." — Dmitry Ponomarenko

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