WEHAV
Our Story
WEHAV was born from legacy. In the midst of Liberia’s civil war, our founder’s father created a humanitarian organization to house and feed the displaced. Long before that, he ran a small auto parts shop called “We Have” — a promise to those in need that help was already on the shelf.
Today, that legacy lives on — reshaped for a global crisis. WEHAV carries forward that promise of presence, protection, and preparedness for the world’s most vulnerable.
Who We Are...
WEHAV is a global nonprofit reimagining housing as a frontline defense in the climate crisis. We equip displaced and climate-affected communities with the tools, knowledge, and designs they need to remain housed — and retain their dignity.
What We Do...
Educate
We produce white papers, maps, blogs, and public campaigns that explain climate migration in human terms. We elevate frontline stories and push for systems that plan — not punish — movement.
Respond
Through our advanced prototypes in evacuation technology, we will guide people to resources, shelters, and evacuation routes — in real time, and in the language they understand.
Design
We develop housing peripherals — cooling coatings, modular awnings, water collection tools — that can turn a vulnerable home into a climate-safe space. Built for affordability. Designed with care.
WEHAV Origin Story
WEHAV’s story begins not with a building, but with a man — Dr. James K. Holder Sr., affectionately known as Big Jim.
In 1978, in post-colonial Liberia — a place where global supply chains rarely reached — Big Jim opened an auto parts store called “We Have.” It was more than a business name; it was a promise. If someone needed a rare mechanical part, he’d find it. If someone needed a favor, he’d show up. His mission was presence — not just profit.
As the needs of the country grew, so did his vision. He founded the Liberian Steel Corporation, one of the first of its kind in the region, using local iron ore to make building materials cheaper and more accessible. Though it was a business, it was never transactional. Neighbors who couldn’t afford metal sheets to patch their roofs would come asking — and Big Jim would hand them over, no questions asked. Housing, to him, was not a product. It was protection.
But Liberia was entering a period of deep unrest. Coups, corruption, and civil war soon followed. In the face of chaos, Big Jim transformed again — this time from industrialist to humanitarian. He launched LiCoRRR (The Liberian Committee for Relief, Resettlement, and Reconstruction), an NGO that worked with governments across the world to provide food, shelter, and dignity to civilians displaced by violence. He believed that no matter the disaster — political or natural — people deserved to be held, housed, and helped.
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Today, WEHAV stands on Big Jim’s shoulders.
We no longer respond to civil unrest — we respond to climate crisis.
But the principles are the same: presence, protection, and preparedness for those displaced.
Where he once sourced auto parts, we now build housing peripherals.
Where he once ran steel mills, we now design lightweight, low-cost tools to help people shelter from heat, floods, and displacement.
Where he once delivered rice and roofing sheets, we now deliver education, evacuation tools, and climate survival strategies. Big Jim passed just a few years into the Liberian Civil War — but his legacy didn’t. WEHAV is how we carry it forward. Not just for Liberia, but for every frontline community across the Global South. For everyone forced to move. For everyone trying to stay.
