(17 March 2016) – Amid political turmoil, innovative initiatives such as Techfugees and coding classes are providing short to long-term solutions.
In the UK, TechCrunch editor Mike Butcher has brought together tech engineers, entrepreneurs and startups with NGOs and other agencies to help spark new solutions or develop existing ideas through a series of conferences and hackathons, under his non-profit initiative Techfugees.
“The idea is moving away from [just being] how can we help with the crisis at the moment, to how are we going to use tech to help integrate former refugees into society, help them settle and get jobs and educate them,” says Butcher. “We’re looking at ways to turn this tragedy into an opportunity – and not just for them.”
As politicians worldwide argue over the resettlement of refugees, a joined-up effort of the innovative tech community with local governments, NGOs and those affected continues to be the best solution in developing innovative tech tools to help tackle the ongoing crisis. (The Guardian)