Displacement
CARING FOR REFUGEES
The number of refugees has surged to more than 35 million men, women, and children. What can be done?
The number of displaced people worldwide is greater than the population of Germany.
UNHCR estimates that 117.2 million people will be forcibly displaced or stateless by the end of this year.
From Syria to Afghanistan to Ukraine, conflict has displaced families from their homes and from their home communities. Refugees suffer tremendous discrimination and alienation, often marginalized and stereotyped in the new places they call home. When some refugees fled Ukraine, violence met them in their place of vulnerability, with some perpetrators even taking advantage of their desperation–forcing some into lives of sexual exploitation and subjecting them to abuse.
People forcibly displaced from their homes carry significant burdens and assets into the new places they live. In a foreign land often with a foreign language, refugees are forced to start over. And, they bring with them gifts, grit, and experiences that can bless and enrich their new communities.
How can the Church welcome the strangers from places like Ukraine, Sudan, Afghanistan, and Syria?
“He defends the cause of the fatherless and the widow, and loves the foreigner residing among you, giving them food and clothing. And you are to love those who are foreigners, for you yourselves were foreigners in Egypt.” Deuteronomy 10:18-19
Launch Capital creates safe and welcoming housing for refugees and immigrants—all while delivering incredible returns.
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Why Accepting Refugees is a Win-Win Formula
There are a lot of mutual benefits for host countries welcoming refugees. Among other benefits, it boosts entrepreneurship: “In the U.S., for example, while migrants are 15 percent of the population, they represent 25 percent of entrepreneurs.”
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We Asked Refugees: What Did You Bring With You?
Often refugees have limited time and space to pack up their lives. MercyCorps asked Syrian refugees living in Jordan what possessions they brought with them.
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How the Church Can Respond to the Global Refugee Crisis
Kent Annan, director of humanitarian and disaster leadership at Wheaton College, has lived alongside and served refugees in countries all over the world. His book You Welcomed Me introduces the Church on how to think and respond theologically and practically to the global refugee crisis.
SEE MORE →
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Swimming to Freedom
A new Netflix film, The Swimmers, tells the remarkable tale of Yusra Mardini, a young Syrian refugee and UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador, who miraculously escaped conflict in Damascus and went on to compete in two Olympics.
Take action. Change lives.
Below you’ll find some of the best-in-class organizations that are working to renew the imagination. These organizations are trustworthy, effective and innovative. In a world full of choices, we want to make the complex accessible. So, we invite you to explore them and consider giving and investing. Or you might consider building your own venture.
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How are Washington churches using coffee to change refugee lives?
Barista training. Two churches in Washington partnered with World Relief to launch a barista training program for newly arrived refugees and immigrants. Everywhere, people are suffering from natural disasters, extreme poverty, institutional violence, and displacement. World Relief partners with churches in over 100 countries to provide relief and create lasting change in every corner of God’s kingdom.
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Can entrepreneurship blossom in war-torn East Africa?
Seed Effect believes that it can. Operating out of Uganda and serving South Sudanese refugees, Seed Effect provides savings and loan group training, facilitates Bible study groups, and empowers entrepreneurs. In so doing, they foster self-sustainability and transform lives and communities for lasting change.
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Every year North Koreans risk their lives escaping a brutal regime. Who's helping them?
For many, hope seems like a distant dream, but for some, Liberty in North Korea is making it possible by operating a 3000-mile secret rescue route. Some have called it a “modern-day underground railroad.” It’s a perilous journey, but for people who are deprived of resources, opportunities, and basic human rights, it’s well worth the danger.
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What technology can save the 55,000 newborns in Gaza this year...
Baby sleeping bags—aka, portable incubators. Thousands of mothers in war zones are forced to give birth to their babies prematurely due to trauma. Embrace Global has helped over 475,000 newborns in war zones with their life-saving portable incubators—an innovative and cost-effective solution. They've been helping newborns in Ukraine and Uganda, and now they are also turning their attentions to Gaza.
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How long do refugees stay displaced for...
Over two decades, on average. Across the world, regardless of their specific family needs, refugees are given three things for their decades-long camping experience: a structure, a bad tarp, and a dirt floor. This simply isn’t good enough. They need good shelter. They need choice. They need access to work. Every Shelter is a non-profit organization designing shelter solutions for refugees and helping them create home.
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TrustBridge Giving Space
Keep discovering vetted opportunities at TrustBridge Giving Space, which helps donors send money to charities around the world.
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How can investing in multi-family housing serve refugees and deliver a better financial return...
Launch Capital is proving it's possible. Expelled from their homes by violence and political repression, refugees from around the world are relocating to the US only to find a housing market in crisis. Many are being forced to live in motels, Airbnbs, and people’s basements. This isn’t sustainable, but Launch Capital is providing a solution. They’re investing in multifamily real estate, fighting traditional models that mischaracterize refugees and immigrants as “risky” tenants and welcoming them as the stable, reliable members of their communities that the evidence shows they can be.
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What group has lower substance abuse and higher company retention rates than the native-born population in the U.S....
Refugees. Most refugees currently living in America are from South Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. By and large, displaced people possess a resilience and curiosity which drives a hunger for education and skill development. Many have graduated from higher education, but are largely underrepresented in the job marketplace. Amplio Recruiting is a full staffing firm which specializes in placing skilled refugees into jobs. Partnering with Amplio Ventures, they operate at the heart of the refugee employment ecosystem. Their mission? Restoring stability to forcibly displaced people.
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How many of the world’s great entrepreneurs are stuck in poverty...
Too many. Elon Musk’s father was an emerald magnate and Bill Gates’s mother was a bank executive. How many people—equally talented, if not more so—are stuck in cycles of poverty and destitution because of factors outside of their control? That’s the question that Talanton seeks to answer, investing in values-driven, growth-stage businesses in developing countries to help uplift people from poverty and into good, sustainable positions where their true talents can shine.
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What's like Shark Tank for faith-driven entrepreneurs without being cutthroat...
The Faith Driven Investor Marketplace. This platform is a free tool for accredited, faith-driven investors looking to put capital to work. Funds and deals that go on the platform are at the discretion of a group of faith-driven investors with experience ranging across all different asset classes. Whether a multi-million dollar real estate venture or a small business, concessionary capital or a high financial return profile, Marketplace connects investors and entrepreneurs.
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What if Christian entrepreneurs didn't have to be alone...
Now, they don't have to be. Faith Driven Entrepreneur helps Christ-following entrepreneurs find their community and fulfill their God-given call to create. They do this by providing inspiring content and sparking meaningful connections between like-minded entrepreneurs and investors.
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What's wrong with doing things right...
It’s not enough. The ethical way says, “I win, you win.” But the redemptive way says, “I sacrifice, we win.” To this end, Praxis is a venture-building ecosystem advancing redemptive entrepreneurship. They support founders, funders, and innovators motivated by their faith to address the major issues of our time.
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What is limiting to a leader's potential...
Isolation. Faith-driven, results-minded CEOs and executives meet in C12 Business Forums monthly to encourage and challenge one another. These groups of peers work together to make better decisions, avoid costly mistakes, and create solid plans for business growth, all while striving to create eternal impact far beyond the bottom line.
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What happened to the family macademia nut business...
Sinapis' business training turned this business on the brink of failure into a source of livelihood for Kenyan workers. Sinapis provides training, ongoing opportunities ,vibrant community, and faith-based principles to Christian entrepreneurs in Africa, Asia, and Central America. Its alumni report an average increase of 138% in revenue 1 year after graduation.
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What percent of startups fail...
90%. One out of 10 startups fail within the first year. And most of them fail due to avoidable mistakes. Founders navigating potential pitfalls on their own is hard, though. OCEAN is a training community for entrepreneurs that integrates practical business skills with biblical wisdom so that entrepreneurs can start and lead a sustainable business without the pressure of figuring it out alone.
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What if you had to leave your kids for 2,555 nights...
This is the reality for many Filipinos who leave to their families to build a brighter future for their kids. What if they didn’t have to? Dream Bigger Ventures empowers Filipino Founders to grow as leaders who will have the character, community, and competency to solve seemingly impossible problems with sustainable ventures.
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What does "ziwani" mean in Swahili...
"At the lake." In the same vein, the nonprofit Ziwani represents a place of refreshment, community, and commerce for Christian business leaders in Africa. It equips and partners with the Christian business community so that they can meaningfully and practically live out their marketplace calling on the African continent.
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What continent has the world's youngest and fastest-growing workforce...
Africa. Future Africa is working to increase the continent’s 3% contribution to global GDP by investing in global businesses that will lead the digital economy. They've raised 2 unicorns, have 6 exits, deployed $10M+ in 106 portfolio companies and $1B+ in follow-on capital.
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