With many global conflicts that are lasting decades, this has resulted in exponential growth of refugees looking to find safe havens away from the dangers of war and conflict.
Many countries have opened up their borders to asylum seekers while others have helped support refugee camps to house individuals until peacetime.
In either case, a refugee crisis is real and happening, so here are ways one can help:
Stay informed
Staying informed about the recent developments related to various refugee crises can be the easiest and first step towards helping change happen. Read up on popular reports such as the UN Refugee Agency’s annual report and use this to motivate oneself to give back and help those in need.
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Host community dinners
Nothing gets people together like a delicious meal. Invite refugees in one's community to a neighborhood dinner. This dinner can be hosted at home or in a nearby community center and doesn't need to be anything fancy; it can be entirely catered. The importance is it'll help refugees get to know the rest of the community and allow others in your community to realize refugees are no different and warm up to them.
Help pay for counsel
Many refugees home and abroad require legal counsel and state resources are always stretched thin. Make an effort to pay for any immigration counsel that’s required by a refugee. Many law firms, in fact, will offer pro bono services supplemented by community donations.
Provide stays for refugees on Airbnb
Airbnb allows anyone to provide emergency shelter to someone in need. Sign up on the platform and provide free housing be it a private room or a couch to refugees in need of temporary housing.
Send letters of hope and encouragement
Even small actions such as sending letters of hope and encouragement can go a long way in making an impact on a refugee’s lives. These letters can be sent to local organizations to be forwarded along, or directly sent to various refugee camps in the world.
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Monetary donation
Money can help significantly in solving the challenges faced by refugees. Funding can help improve refugee camps globally and even locally can help provide necessary stipends to incoming refugees hoping to build a new life. Many charitable organizations also need funding to hire employees and carry out the operations necessary to deliver help to areas of need.
Fundraise
Carrying out fundraising initiatives can help raise awareness on the refugee crisis happening around the world and collect the necessary funds that can be donated to organizations. Any fundraising initiative ranging from the lemonade stand on the side of the road to elaborate dinners will help.
Help teach them English
Many refugees are brought to countries where the local language isn’t the same as their mother tongue. And one of the biggest challenges refugees face is communication in such a scenario. Many small organizations and public libraries offer free English or local language teaching sessions to help educate refugees but are always in need of volunteers to help refugees when it comes to practicing the language.
Join a local support network
A lot of local support networks exist that are informal and coordinated through online social network groups such as Facebook Groups. These communities organize various food and clothing drives and host various sessions for refugees that help with them with legal counsel, tax planning, etc.
Help prepare them for employment
How one gets employed drastically varies across cultures and this means many refugees may arrive at a nation with little to no alignment on how to look for a job and stand out as a successful candidate. There are charitable organizations such as Hire Immigrants that help overcome this by using volunteers to guide refugees on their job hunt.
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Employ refugees
Refugees can also get a huge step up in life and tackling the many challenges they face by means of employment. This provides income which they can then use to settle down and build a new life. There are many services that help upskill refugees to look for jobs but a better solution is if one has business owners in their network that can directly employ refugees. Moreover, even those who aren’t owners may have senior leaders of companies in their network that can go about hiring highly skilled refugees.
Educate them on cultural nuances
Many refugees get basic training and education on arrival to a new country but little focus is placed on cultural assimilation and understanding the nuances of daily life. This is where helping any refugees out via volunteer events to introduce them to cultural activities in one’s country can help them integrate faster and feel more at home.
Write to the government
Write open letters to Congress or other government entities. If everyone carries this out, it’s hard for those in positions to enact drastic change to stay ignorant and can lead to meaningful policies being in place that provide more aid and open up borders to refugees.
Donate household goods
Many of us have too much at home and struggle to declutter. Luckily, refugees often lack the staple household items and don’t have the money to get started if they are newly integrated into society. Donating one’s good can help here and many organizations exist that can pick up your goods and route it to areas in need.
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Join peaceful protests
Peaceful protests are most effective when it’s in large numbers. If there are community protests going on be sure to get involved so that local governments will start to notice and the sheer numbers demonstrate action must be taken to help refugees in need.
Help publicize important issues
We all have those in our network that may not directly be aware of refugees and the challenges they face in today’s day and age. Reach out into one’s network and publicize their issues, be their voice and utilize influencers to spread the word further.
Show up at the airport
Refugees arriving in one’s country could use a boost in morale and nothing beats a grand welcome when they arrive at the airport. Many of these refugees are arriving from horrid conditions with lots of trauma, knowing a community exists when they arrive that welcomes them can help quell any fears they have about moving to a new country.
Spread awareness on social media
By actively sharing information about ongoing refugee crises around the world and any developments at home. These posts on social media can boost awareness and by utilizing popular hashtags, it can get topics trending that’ll deliver even more awareness to those that aren’t actively following Refugee related feeds.
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Support businesses owned or run by refugees
Many refugees arrive with no transferable skill set and decide to set up their own businesses to directly sell their services to the market. In such a case, find local establishments that are run by new refugees and actively support them.