As the need for masks rises during the pandemic, volunteers work to keep Alaska covered

People in Jackson, Wyoming with access to 3D printers are teaming up and building face shields for the local hospital to help protect the frontline workers from contracting Covid-19. Although the shields aren't the same as medically-graded N-95 masks, hospital personnel say they are still helpful for protecting healthcare workers and help to guard medical equipment.

Citizens across Northeast Georgia are participating in grassroots community efforts to help supply masks for health workers. A Facebook group called, "Mask Making for Athens Area Healthcare Workers," is providing guidance and support in a myriad of ways— from sewing masks, delivering masks, or teaching others how to sew. The group has donated over 2,400 masks to 30 organizations and have received requests for over 4,400 more masks.

The cast and crew members of Hollywood are suffering from the coronavirus social distancing mandates, but the costumers among them are contributing to the shortage of masks during the pandemic. It started when costumer Nickolaus Brown rallied 250 designers, sewers, and cutters to make masks on Facebook. When the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees Union got involved, they produced 3,500 to 4,000 cloth masks for healthcare providers. Another group, called "Mask Crusaders,” has about 100 members and produces makeshift N95 masks. Both are working to grow their reach, quality, and production.

In response to a request from a local hospital, a Peterborough resident began using his 3-D printer to print face masks and clear plastic face shields to help protect frontline workers during the coronavirus pandemic. Although supplies are limited, some "makerspaces" are collaborating on the process and sharing materials and designs to keep operations running.

A group of engineers in Madison, Wisconsin designed a face shield using materials and machines that were capable of producing mass quantities of the shields for hospitals. The design is now open-source and accessible to anyone on the web. They have since sent more than 1,000 face shields to the local hospital, and Ford has even picked up the design, pledging to produce more than 75,000 shields to be sent to hospitals in Detroit.

In India, citizen-led small-scale digital efforts are helping to connect Covid-19 patients with the resources, supplies, and medical equipment they need to survive. The citizen groups are largely using online platforms to crowdsource what they need, with some matching buyers and sellers and others "debunking inaccurate leads."

Altavian, a Gainesville, Florida based engineering company has figured out how to mass produce reusable N95 masks for healthcare workers using 3D printing technology. The mask – crucial in protecting healthcare workers against COVID-19 – is made from a common material, and with funding from donations, the company is able to produce close to 1,000 each day.

A collective of activists and anti-fascists named PopMob has transitioned from protesting right-wingers to producing hand sanitizer. They are working in collaboration with another group called The Rosehip Medic Collective and have produced more than 9,500 bottles (225 gallons) of homemade hand sanitizer. They work with groups like Sisters of the Road, Meals on Wheels, and Portland People’s Outreach Project to distribute the bottles to frontline workers and people experiencing homelessness. They also have a GoFundMe page that has raised over $9,000 to support their efforts.

Dozens of tech-focused volunteers have come together to create Project N95, a personal protective equipment clearinghouse meant to connect health institutions in need of equipment like masks with suppliers around the world. This central marketplace aims to bridge the two parties in a single place along an otherwise complex supply chain.

Medical professionals are facing mass shortages of personal protective equipment amid the coronavirus pandemic, so people with 3D printers are helping to produce alternatives. In New York, one company is using a GoFundMe campaign to help fund the production, while the founder of a Czech 3D-printer company developed one of the most downloaded designs for the transparent disposable full-face masks.