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An update on Airbnb.org’s work to support refugees fleeing Ukraine

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Key Takeaways

  • Following President Biden’s announcement that the US will welcome up to 100,000 refugees fleeing Ukraine, Airbnb.org is coordinating directly with the US federal government and is ready to support by providing free, temporary housing to refugees who may arrive in the US in the coming months.
  • More than 1,200 people have now received temporary accommodations through Airbnb.org in Europe.
  • More than 28,600 people have signed up to offer their homes to refugees through Airbnb.org, including more than 17,800 across Europe and more than 5,800 in the US.

Key Takeaways

  • Following President Biden’s announcement that the US will welcome up to 100,000 refugees fleeing Ukraine, Airbnb.org is coordinating directly with the US federal government and is ready to support by providing free, temporary housing to refugees who may arrive in the US in the coming months.
  • More than 1,200 people have now received temporary accommodations through Airbnb.org in Europe.
  • More than 28,600 people have signed up to offer their homes to refugees through Airbnb.org, including more than 17,800 across Europe and more than 5,800 in the US.

A month ago, Airbnb and Airbnb.org announced that Airbnb.org would offer free, temporary housing to up to 100,000 refugees fleeing from Ukraine. Airbnb.org has been working to establish partnerships with international and regional nonprofits active on the ground, who are coordinating stays for refugee guests, regardless of nationality, race, ethnicity, or how they identify. 

As the refugee crisis grows, with more than three million people now having fled Ukraine, the United States has announced it will welcome up to 100,000 Ukrainians and others fleeing Ukraine into the country. Airbnb.org is coordinating directly with the US federal government as the need is assessed, and is ready to support by providing free, temporary housing to refugees and others who may arrive in the US in the coming months.

Additionally, Airbnb will continue to support Welcome.US – a national effort founded to empower Americans to welcome people seeking refuge in the US, starting with Afghan newcomers who evacuated to the US last year – with Brian Chesky, Joe Gebbia and Nate Blecharczyk serving on its Welcome Council. Welcome.US has now launched a new Ukraine Welcome Hub offering ways for Americans to begin the work of welcoming to the United States those fleeing Ukraine, including by becoming an Airbnb.org host. 

Airbnb.org is working with several organisations, including the International Organization for Migration, longtime partner HIAS, Nova Ukraine as well as the government of Germany and Save the Children Sweden to connect people fleeing from Ukraine to free, short-term housing in Europe. More than 1,200 people have now received temporary accommodations through Airbnb.org in Europe. 

Over the last month, Airbnb.org has received an overwhelmingly positive response from individuals looking to assist this effort. More than 28,600 people have signed up to offer their homes to refugees through Airbnb.org, including more than 17,800 across Europe and more than 5,800 in the US.

Additionally, Airbnb.org has also received more than $6.8 million in small-dollar, direct donations from a total of more than 73,000 individual donors across 95 countries. Inspired by this generosity, Airbnb’s co-founders – Brian Chesky, Joe Gebbia, Nathan Blecharczyk and his wife Elizabeth – have personally committed to match up to $10 million in donations to Airbnb.org from March 15, 2022 through March 31, 2022. 

Airbnb and Airbnb.org have been supporting refugees and other displaced people for almost a decade, in collaboration with governments and organisations across the world. Over the past five years, Airbnb and Airbnb.org have connected approximately 55,000 refugees and asylees to temporary housing through Airbnb.org partners. Since August, around 24,000 Afghan newcomers received free, temporary housing through Airbnb.org, in partnership with the US government, all nine US resettlement agencies, and Afghan-led organisations such as Women for Afghan Women.

Anyone who is interested in supporting Airbnb.org’s initiative to help refugees fleeing Ukraine can go to airbnb.org/help-ukraine to get involved, including by participating in the donation matching campaign or offering free or discounted stays. Additional updates on the program will be shared at airbnb.org/help-ukraine. 

About Airbnb 

Airbnb was born in 2007 when two Hosts welcomed three guests to their San Francisco home, and has since grown to 4 million Hosts who have welcomed more than 1 billion guest arrivals across over 220 countries and regions. Every day, Hosts offer unique stays and one-of-a-kind activities that make it possible for guests to experience the world in a more authentic, connected way. As the only platform offering hosted travel and the ability to live anywhere on a global scale, Airbnb has become a noun and a verb and most traffic to our platform remains organic. We will continue to invest in innovations that expand the travel market and lead the way in turning travel into a way of life.

About Airbnb.org

Airbnb.org is a nonprofit organization dedicated to facilitating temporary stays for people in times of crisis around the world. Airbnb.org operates independently and leverages Airbnb, Inc.’s technology, services, and other resources at no charge to carry out Airbnb.org’s charitable purpose. The inspiration for Airbnb.org began in 2012 with a single host named Shell who opened up her home to people impacted by Hurricane Sandy. This sparked a movement and marked the beginning of a program that allows Hosts on Airbnb to provide stays for people in times of need. Since then, the program has evolved to focus on emergency response and to help provide stays to evacuees, relief workers, refugees, asylum seekers, and frontline workers fighting the spread of COVID-19. Since then, Hosts have offered to open up their homes and helped provide accommodations to 100,000 people in times of need. Airbnb.org is a separate and independent entity from Airbnb, Inc. Airbnb, Inc. does not charge service fees for Airbnb.org supported stays on its platform.

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