3 May 2011 WRC rings the NYSE Opening Bell скачать в хорошем качестве

3 May 2011 WRC rings the NYSE Opening Bell

Women's Refugee Commission (WRC) visits the NYSE to highlight the plight of urban refugees and recognize this year's Voices of Courage honorees. In honor of the occasion, Sarah Costa, Executive Director, Women's Refugee Commission, rings The Opening BellSM, joined by Voice of Courage honorees. This year, the Women's Refugee Commission's annual Voices of Courage luncheon is focused on the plight of urban refugees. At the luncheon, on May 3, WRC will honor two refugee women who are working to improve the lives of their fellow refugees who are displaced or seeking asylum in urban areas-- Zrinka Bralo and Stella Mkiliwane. WRC will also honor Thomson Reuters Foundation for AlertNet -- its innovative approach to providing critical information on humanitarian crises to humanitarian workers, policy makers and other key players in conflicts and natural disasters. About the Urban Refugee Crisis: Just 10 years ago, the United Nations reported that only 13 percent of refugees lived in urban areas - now over 50 percent of the world's 10.5 million refugees live in cities, compared to the 1/3 who live in camps. And the international community simply hasn't caught up with this new reality- urban refugees don't have access to the programs available to refugees in camps nor to those available to other urban poor in the cities where they live. Urban refugees are constrained by limited assets, limited support networks and lack of appropriate job skills. They also face legal, cultural and linguistic barriers to establishing a sustainable living. In addition, women and girls often have little alternative other than to engage in harmful strategies to earn money to support their families. To make a living, these women may turn to survival sex, or to the informal economy, where they face extortion, exploitation and abuse. Young people, in turn, are often neither in school nor able to find work, leading to rising crime rates as well as to a generation likely to be less educated than their parents. The Women's Refugee Commission goes into the slums of cities all over the world to learn about the needs of urban refugees directly from displaced women, men and youth. WRC then designs and develops programs to help protect these refugees and to ensure that they gain skills in markets that aren't already saturated. WRC then tests these programs and, using their findings, advocates for policies and practices that will result in increased economic security and protection for urban refugees. About Women's Refugee Commission The Women's Refugee Commission advocates for laws, policies and programs to improve the lives and protect the rights of refugee and internally displaced women, children and young people, including those seeking asylum—to bring about lasting, measurable change. WRC seeks a world in which refugee, internally displaced, returnee and asylum-seeking women, children and young people are safe, healthy and self-reliant; where they participate in the decisions that affect their lives, both during displacement and when displacement ends; and are advocates and activists themselves, providing continuous monitoring of the policies and practices that affect them. About AlertNet Established in 1997 in the aftermath of the 1994 Rwanda genocide, AlertNet provides news and information on natural disasters, conflicts, refugees, hunger, diseases and climate change to relief workers, donors, policy makers, researchers, students, journalists and the general public, aiding humanitarian efforts throughout the world. AltertNet also deploys reporting teams to disaster zones to disseminate fast, reliable information to affected populations in local languages on everything from how to minimize disease risks to where to get medical help and how to trace missing relatives. AlertNet represents Thomson Reuters' commitment to the Knowledge Effect--the belief that the right information in the right hands leads to amazing things. About Thompson Reuters Foundation Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of the world's leading provider of news and information, is committed to empowering people in need around the world with trusted information and free legal assistance. A registered charity in the United States and United Kingdom, the Foundation leverages the skills, values and expertise across Thomson Reuters to promote the rule of law, save lives in disasters and improve standards of journalism. Our initiatives stand for better governance, greater transparency, more effective humanitarian relief and a robust global press. They are a call to action by our employees and partners. They are the embodiment of the Thomson Reuters Trust Principles of independence, integrity and freedom from bias. (Source: Thomson Reuters Foundation)