A Month of Milestones: May Highlights

When the comms team reached out to me to author this month’s newsletter intro, I was told that the theme for this edition is milestones. Serendipitously, as I write this, I am preparing to travel to Geneva for the very first time to represent Talent Beyond Boundaries at the UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency 's Consultations on Resettlement and Complimentary Pathways (CRCP) in Geneva —a significant milestone for me. 

Attending the UNHCR consultation is both a professional and personal achievement. It embodies the tireless efforts and dedication of everyone advocating for refugees. As a refugee leader, it’s an absolute honor to be able to share this space and have the ability to voice the concerns and aspirations of refugees around the world. It’s a privilege to be able to share my knowledge and expertise, serving as living proof that refugees are skilled and capable contributors to society. They are assets, not burdens. It is time to change the narrative.

Refugees, forced to flee their homes, leave behind everything they know and love, carrying only their hopes, skills, and indomitable spirit. They are talented, resilient individuals who, given the chance, can make a massive contribution to society. As I prepare for this consultation, I can't help but think about how different the world could be if labor mobility pathways for refugees had existed earlier. Imagine the hope and opportunities that could have been available, transforming countless lives and dreams into reality. The thought is both inspiring and bittersweet.

I am eager to share insights and stories from this significant event and am committed to our mission to rewrite the narrative around displacement. To this end, we must remember that behind every statistic is a person with a story, talent, and an unwavering hope for a better future.

Together, we can change lives and help more refugees achieve meaningful milestones, just as representing TBB and refugees at CCRP is for me.

A lot more exciting milestones for TBB and displaced talent mobility below, so keep reading! 😊

🚀New Resource Launch: Guiding Principles and Recommendations on Labour Mobility Pathways for Refugee Solutions.

Talent Beyond Boundaries is pleased to share Labour Pathways for Refugee Solutions: Guiding Principles and Recommended Attributes.

Last year, we initiated a process with our partners on the Global Task Force on Refugee Labour Mobility and the Refugee Advisory Group to the 2023 Annual Tripartite Consultations. Our goal was to develop a set of principles to guide our work, provide a consistent set of parameters for our collaborators, and serve as succinct and effective advocacy. We aimed to demonstrate that those working to find safe and durable solutions for displaced persons through their talents have been both pragmatic and principled in our thinking.

While many refugees have been finding their way to employment in destination countries on their own, the conscious design and implementation of safe and legal employment pathways for refugees is really a new field. We felt it was important to compile the ideas behind refugee labor mobility with the learnings from early programs and to bring together the perspectives of UN agencies, governments, refugees, employers, communities, and NGOs. This collaboration articulates how to balance protection needs with effective, cost-efficient results and how to couple innovation with sustainability.

These principles and recommended attributes are not binding or legal instruments. While this text is the result of many rounds of discussions over many months, it is not static. It can and should be revisited regularly as we all learn more about how best to achieve our collective goal: making it possible for many, many more refugees to migrate for work with dignity and purpose. We hope you find this both thought-provoking and useful. We are always happy to hear your thoughts.

Read the full report here.

🗞️New and Noteworthy

🌍 Global: 2023 Annual Report 

Did you miss our 2023 Annual Report launch earlier this month? The report spotlights the milestones from our global programs and initiatives and tracks our progress on our five-year strategy goals. Highlights include:

• 🌍 Opened refugee labor mobility programs in four new countries (Belgium, Ireland, Portugal, and the United States) and expanded our existing programs in Australia, Canada, and the United Kingdom.
• 💼 Worked with more than 230 employers to hire more than 700 refugees and support their migration.🏡 Supported more than 1,600 displaced people to access pathways to countries where they can rebuild their lives safely.
• 📈 Engaged more than 100,000 refugees who have signed up to our Talent Catalog, and supported them to explore labor mobility opportunities.
• 🤝 Built momentum and understanding among employers, partner organizations, and governments, enabling them to better support refugees to migrate for work and make the systemic changes necessary to scale this solution.

These achievements were made possible through the dedication and support of our incredible partners, staff, and the global network of organizations committed to making displaced labor mobility a reality. We are truly grateful for the continued support and collaboration of all those who have contributed to our mission along the way.

Thank you for being part of this journey with us. This is only the beginning, and with your ongoing support, the possibilities ahead are boundless. Read the full report to see how, together, we are creating pathways to dignity and purpose for displaced individuals around the world.

🇪🇺 TBB’s European Expansion  

1. Two new programs launched in the European Union: DT4E 2.0 and STEP

The Skills, Talent, and Empowerment Through Pathways (STEP) project, funded by the European Union’s Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund (AMIF) and led by the Federation of Evangelical Churches in Italy (FCEI), has been officially launched. The project will be implemented in Ireland, Italy, and Spain between 2024 and 2026. The STEP Partnership includes the Federation of Protestant Churches in Italy, Talent Beyond Boundaries, Pathways International, Migration Policy Institute Europe, Caritas Italiana, SMEs Academy Avignon - CNA, The Open Community, Instrategies, Fundación Cepaim, IOM Belgium and Luxembourg IOM Regional Office in Brussels, Fragomen, the Irish Refugee Protection Programme and the Spanish Ministry for Inclusion, Social Security and Migration.

In parallel, the IOM-led and EU-funded Displaced Talent for Europe 2.0 (DT4E 2.0) pilot project was launched at IOM Belgium and Luxembourg IOM in Brussels, Belgium. The project will be implemented in Belgium, France, and Slovakia.

TBB's European expansion through the STEP and DT4E 2.0 projects marks a significant step in providing pathways for skilled refugees to contribute to European economies and societies. This initiative broadens our impact across Europe, implementing projects in new countries and deepening opportunities in existing ones. 

2. Italy is ready for displaced labor mobility  

Starting strong in Italy, TBB met with Italian Labor Minister Maria Calderone, UNHCR Italia, Agenzia ONU per i Rifugiati , and other partner organizations, including Pathways International , to discuss labor mobility pathways for refugees. A number of other meetings were held ahead of the first candidate arrivals, which are expected to take place in the coming months, thanks to projects coordinated with the Italian private sector.

📢 🇮🇹 🏢 Calling Italian employers who want to be pioneers and hire through this new pathway! Learn more about hiring displaced talent in Italy here. 

🇺🇸 United States: Micron Partnership Launch

TBB and The International Rescue Committee are partnering with one of the world’s largest semiconductor companies, Micron Technology , to hire through the Welcome Corps at Work Program. This partnership represents a huge advancement for displaced labor mobility pathways in the U.S. and demonstrates that government-backed initiatives can often effectively enable private-sector engagement. 

The official launch took place in Atlanta, where April Arnzen , Micron's Chief People Officer, announced the historic partnership to an in-person audience that included representatives from USAID and leaders from the U.S. and Kenya. This collaboration marks a significant step forward in our efforts to provide meaningful employment opportunities in the U.S. for refugees and other displaced individuals.

The Welcome Corps at Work (WCW) program was officially launched by the U.S. Department of State. This new initiative will offer a humanitarian solution to skilled labor shortages in the United States and refugee displacement abroad. TBB and the International Rescue Committee (IRC) will lead the implementation of the program, which connects U.S. employers with qualified refugees and, once employers make a concrete job offer, facilitates the refugees’ resettlement with private sponsor support.

🇨🇦 Canada: The EMPP in Canada turns six 🎂

The Economic Migration Pilot Pathway (EMPP) was designed to help skilled refugees access economic immigration to Canada, and it turned six this spring. The pathway was first launched in 2018 and has since then impacted the lives of more than 430 displaced individuals. Notable success stories include Mohammed Hakmi, a software engineer, and Omar, a senior front-end developer at Shopify. The program has been instrumental in integrating skilled refugees into the workforce, empowering individuals, and helping industries thrive.

Last year, Canada pledged to make the EMPP a permanent economic immigration program, recognizing its success and potential. With ongoing global crises, the need for initiatives like the EMPP is greater than ever. As we celebrate this milestone, we call on businesses and government bodies to join us in integrating skilled refugees into the workforce. Learn more about the EMPP and how you can hire displaced talent through our website.

Partnership with the Canadian Roofing Contractors Association (CRCA)

The Canadian Roofing Contractors Association (CRCA) has formed a strategic partnership with TBB, providing CRCA members with access to a new labor pool. This partnership is the first of its kind for the construction industry and the roofing/building envelope sector. As a trusted referral partner of Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) under the Economic Mobility Pathways Pilot (EMPP), TBB has helped over 150 refugees secure job offers in Canada, and this collaboration will allow CRCA member companies to hire skilled refugees seeking stable employment in Canada. If you are interested in hiring in Canada, learn more here.

🇦🇷Latin America: Our first employment fair in Argentina

We hosted our first job fair in Latin America last month in partnership with Jumpstart Refugee Talent , connecting Canadian employers with displaced Latin American candidates. The event, held in Buenos Aires and online, provided the candidates with access to international job opportunities and the employers St. Joseph's Care Group and Tri-County Mennonite Homes with the opportunity to interview and connect directly with the candidates.

This first recruitment event in Argentina underscores our commitment to bringing labor opportunities to displaced individuals across Latin America and highlights our ongoing expansion as we continue to grow our programs in the region.

Read more about our experience here:

Spanish recap from our Latin America External Affairs Lead, Gabriela Munoz . English version from our Canada Director, Lara Dyer .

🗓️ Places We've Been in May

LinkedIn Impact Summit 

As one of LinkedIn for Nonprofits ' partners, we had the opportunity to attend the LinkedIn Impact Summit and the Refugee Partnerships roundtable events at LinkedIn’s offices in London. There, we connected with other organizations working in the field and learned about the inspiring work LinkedIn is doing to support other nonprofits and organizations. LinkedIn is one of our key corporate champions and partners, and we look forward to continuing this fruitful partnership into 2024 and beyond.

#MIGNEX Policy Conference

Our Global Advocacy Director, David Manicom Manicom, was part of the #MIGNEX24 Policy Conference in Brussels. David was one of the panelists speaking on “What’s next for EU migration and development policy”, along with representatives from ODI , the Belgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the European External Action Service, and the Ghanaian government. 

ODI hosted the event, which presented its latest research. TBB had the honor of participating in the closing plenary. We emphasized key themes: planned pathways are safer and more humane; displaced people bring valuable talents; and pre-arrival employment for refugees supports human dignity, empowering both refugees and employers while boosting public confidence.

FEM Conference in Dallas

Our Global Program Director, Noura Ismail, and our Global Program Manager, Mariam Olleik, attended TBB at The Forum for Expatriate Management 's Americas Summit in Dallas. Noura and Mariam represented TBB on a panel discussion on reimagining global mobility and a roundtable on Alternative Talent Pipelines. 

We want to thank the Forum for inviting us and the esteemed colleagues and speakers who shared the stage with us and gave us an opportunity to share our experience on displaced labor talent mobility. 

🛬 Airport arrivals

Two new candidate arrivals in Canada 🇨🇦

We welcomed Moad and Mohamed, the two most recent healthcare candidates to arrive in Canada. They landed in Ontario and have begun working at St. Joseph's Care Group , a long-term care provider in the region who also attended our in-person recruitment event in Buenos Aires, Argentina, last month.

Their arrival marks another success in our ongoing efforts to support displaced talent and enhance healthcare services in Canada. Learn more about how to hire skilled refugees in Canada here.

🌟Success stories

In celebration of International Nurses Day and International Day of Families, we featured the Mayali family's inspiring journey from Lebanon to the UK. Bilal and Racha Mayali, Palestinian refugees, pursued nursing at Makassed University despite professional limitations in Lebanon. For over two decades, they served their community amid Lebanon’s financial crisis and the pandemic. Seeking better opportunities for their children, Bilal registered with TBB’s Displaced Talent Healthcare Scheme and was offered a position at the University of Leicester Hospital.

With support from TBB’s partners, Fragomen and Pathway Club, his son Hamza’s visa was approved, allowing the entire family to relocate. In July 2023, Bilal started his new role, followed by Racha and Hamza, who also joined NHS England . Their daughter Roaa is excelling in her studies and plans to pursue nutrition at university. In Bilal’s words: “You have given us a future and a chance to advance... Opportunities we did not have in Lebanon.”

Read their full story here.

👔Candidate Corner

📹 🎙️Upcoming #TBB Talks 

Stay tuned for the next editions of our #TBBTalks on Instagram, where our Source and Latin America teams will go live to answer candidates' questions about the recruitment and relocation processes, as well as the options available for candidates in Latin America. Follow us on Instagram (@talentbeyondboundaries) to stay updated on the dates.

Hire Displaced Talent

If you’re looking for a creative solution to your workforce woes, TBB can connect with an untapped pool of displaced talent who are ready and willing to join your team. Start recruiting!