Property rental company, Airbnb, and its charitable arm, Airbnb.org, have announced their intention to provide 20,000 Afghan refugees across the globe with free, temporary housing. Airbnb has maintained a multi-year partnership with the International Rescue Committee (IRC) and has historically worked with HIAS and the Church World Service to aid refugees. At the time of Airbnb’s August 24 announcement, the company had already provided emergency funding to the IRC to support up to 1,000 Afghan refugees and worked with other, unspecified, partners to place an additional 165 Afghan refugees in safe housing.
Airbnb’s refugee housing effort will be entirely funded by Airbnb, CEO Brian Chesky, and donations through Airbnb.org’s Refugee Fund, a $25 million fund that was established prior to World Refugee Day this past June. Airbnb co-founder, Joe Gebbia, referred to the company’s decision as an “easy call” and the company is urging other global businesses to join Airbnb in providing Afghan refugees with immediate aid. Gebbia also emphasized that Airbnb is utilizing the expertise of the IRC, Church World Service, and HIAS to ensure that the provided housing is truly safe and accessible.
While Airbnb has not specified the length of the temporary housing, the company has released that individual hosts have offered both short- and long-term stays. Currently, the company is allowing anyone, not just current hosts, to sign up to host refugees at a free or discounted rate in order to maximize placement possibilities. This is a broad expansion of a program already run by Airbnb that has provided approximately 25,000 refugees with temporary housing across the past four years.
To become a host or donate to the Airbnb Refugee Fund, click here.
To read Airbnb’s official announcement, click here.