International Rescue Committee makes aid tracking tool open sourced
An aid group is sharing the tool it uses to track aid shipments in Syria with everyone. The International Rescue Committee announced that its Commodity Tracking System is open sourced. Many aid groups...
View ArticleSurge of refugees overwhelms Greece and Europe
The number of refugees seeking safety in Europe is quickly escalating, and countries are struggling to deal with the influx. The latest wave is hitting economically troubled Greece particularly hard....
View ArticleThe U.S. would not respond better than Europe to the refugee crisis
By sheer geographic luck, the United States does not have to deal with the increasing inflow of refugees from the Middle East, Asia and Africa. The rapid increase coupled with terrible policies across...
View ArticleU.S. needs to add a 0 to its 10,000 refugee commitment, aid groups say
A decision by the White House to increase the number of refugees that the United States can accept is not good enough, according to several aid groups, and shows that the U.S. response to refugee...
View ArticleMichael Clemens sets the record straight on (the benefits of) migration
For the Humanosphere podcast, we speak with Michael Clemens, a senior fellow at the Center for Global Development who has a special interest in trying to bring a more evidence-based – less hysterical...
View ArticleFailed states and refugee crisis prompt peacekeeping surge
International peacekeeping may be changing significantly over the next year. Last month President Obama announced that U.N. member states had pledged 40,000 new troops and police for peacekeeping...
View ArticleJust as many refugees entered Europe in October as in all of 2014
More than 218,000 migrants and refugees entered Europe last month – roughly the same number of people crossing in all of 2014. With no end in sight to violence in Syria and Afghanistan, refugees from...
View ArticleParis attack fallout: U.S. states refuse to resettle Syrian refugees
This story has been updated to reflect the increasing number of U.S. states announcing refusals to resettle Syrian refugees. More than a dozen U.S. states announced that they will not resettle Syrian...
View ArticleRadicalized French citizens come and go as the door slams on refugees
The discovery of a passport used to enter Europe through Greece near the body of a Stade de France suicide bomber set off a cascade of public calls to Syrian refugee resettlement, from individuals on...
View ArticleTerrorism and refugees are linked, but not how you might think
The majority of terror attacks that took place in 2014 occurred in only five countries. And they happen to be the home countries of the refugees seeking asylum in Europe. Terrorism and the refugee...
View ArticleClean energy for refugees could cut costs and reach more people, report says
Basic changes to the way refugees camps are powered could save $323 million a year in fuel costs. Bigger changes could increase that savings for aid groups, already struggling to meet the needs of the...
View ArticleAid agencies worry regulations will impede digital cash lifeline to refugees
As the world races to contain the growing threat from terrorist groups like the Islamic State, aid organizations worry about the impact new financial regulations may have on much-needed aid to Syrian...
View ArticleThanksgiving can be America at its best, or its worst
Opinion Hundreds of thousands of people will travel from their homes in the next few days. Here in the U.S., the mass movement is to celebrate Thanksgiving. For people living in Burundi, Iraq, Syria...
View ArticleOp-ed: Syrian refugees offer economic boon to host countries
Analysis The United States could be missing a big opportunity for economic growth if officials lock out Syrian refugees. The screening process that many say is inadequate, is, in fact, so good that it...
View ArticleU.N. global humanitarian appeal calls for record $20 billion for 2016
Meeting the global humanitarian needs of the world in 2016 will require five times more money than a decade ago, according to the United Nations. The 2016 global humanitarian appeal asks for $20.1...
View ArticleRefugee crisis: 12,000 people stuck in limbo along Syria-Jordan border
More than 12,000 Syrians seeking asylum in neighboring Jordan are stuck in a make-shift camp along the northeast border. Jordanian authorities are preventing people from entering, forcing them to live...
View ArticleMerkel named person of the year for extraordinary refugee crisis leadership
The crowd rushed forward as the speakers arrived for a high-level U.N. event on the Sustainable Development Goals. I followed, assuming everyone wanted to get close to the flawless hair of actress...
View ArticleSyria finally grants U.N. access to starving town
The Syrian government is allowing the U.N. to deliver humanitarian assistance in the rebel-held city of Madaya. It comes days after reports revealed that the village’s inhabitants are facing what has...
View ArticleLatest call to help Syria – $9 billion – will never be fully funded
World leaders gathered in London today to pledge support for the humanitarian response to aid those affected by the civil war in Syria. The conference seeks $9 billion for 2016, a sum it has no chance...
View ArticleSyrian sieges leave more that 1 million at starvation risk
The Syrian government is using one of the oldest war tactics to defeat rebel groups during its civil war – the siege. More than 1 million people are believed to be living under siege in Syria,...
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