FROM THE CITIES TO THE FARM FIELDS: RYAN HENDRICKSON DEMINES UKRAINE

Ukraine 242 Podcast

Ryan Hendrickson retired American Green Beret, is president and founder of the organization Tip of the Spear Land Mine Removal and author of Tip of the Spear: The Incredible Story of an Injured Green Beret's Return to Battle.
Conflict in Ukraine has increased awareness about civilian war casualties as a 21st century global crisis. The Ukrainian war has attracted various experts and humanitarians, from inside and outside of the country, to respond and help, a catalyst for developing organizations, services, and technologies which will be widened to help other war-torn parts of the world. Ryan Hendrickson is one of these; he plans to dedicate the rest of his life to the international cause of landmine removal.
Ryan describes how he came to build his organization after almost dying from a landmine himself, then undergoing a harrowing series of 28 surgeries and painful rehab that pioneered new methods of leg reconstruction. When war broke out in Ukraine, Hendrickson went there to drive civilian rescue vehicles, volunteer work that led him to focus on landmine removal. He describes the mines and their removal process and discusses how landmines in Ukrainian farm fields will impact international food supplies, causing hunger crises in countries that normally rely on Ukraine.