Airbnb co-founders Brian Chesky, Joe Gebbia, Nathan Blecharczyk and his wife Elizabeth will donate ten million dollars to support the campaign the platform is running through Airbnbn.org, which seeks to have hosts offer shelter in their homes to refugees from Ukraine.
A press release states that as of April 3, more than 44,500 hosts in 160 countries have signed up on Airbnb.org to offer their homes to refugees worldwide. This includes more than 30,500 new hosts who joined Airbnb.org between February 28 and April 3, including more than 18,800 new hosts in Europe alone.
“Airbnb.org has received more than $7.2 million in small direct donations from over 75,000 individual donors in 95 different countries. To further support Airbnb.org’s important work, two weeks ago Airbnb co-founders Brian Chesky, Joe Gebbia, Nathan Blecharczyk, and his wife Elizabeth personally pledged to match up to $10 million in donations to Airbnb.org from March 15, 2022, to April 30, 2022,” the statement posted on the platform highlights.
“We are thrilled with the community's response and grateful to all the hosts who have signed up to welcome refugees into their homes. We encourage anyone with space to register on Airbnb.org,” said Mónica Casañas, CEO of Airbnb Marketing Services SL, today.
Alliance with three Spanish NGOs
With the aim of providing free accommodation in Spain to refugees fleeing Ukraine, Airbnb.org today announced its collaboration with three Spanish NGOs to book stays for refugee guests through its platform. The partnership has been established with the non-profit organizations Rescate, Red Acoge, and Diaconía Madrid.
Last month, Airbnb and Airbnb.org announced that Airbnb.org would provide free temporary accommodation to up to 100,000 refugees fleeing Ukraine. The organization has been working to establish partnerships with international and regional nonprofits active on the ground, which refer, book, and coordinate stays for refugee guests, regardless of their nationality, race, ethnicity, or identification.
Rescate has been dedicated to assisting refugees and victims of conflict, violence, and natural disasters in their countries of origin and destination, paying special attention to the most vulnerable: women and children. Currently, Rescate is working to distribute humanitarian aid to more than 70,000 people who have crossed the border into Poland.
“In Spain, in collaboration with other organizations, we are already welcoming people from Ukraine. We have medical personnel, psychologists specializing in war trauma, and social workers on staff. Our organization's goal is to provide a solid and comprehensive welcome, equipping displaced persons with the autonomy and tools they need to rebuild their lives after leaving their country and fleeing war,” explains Cristina Bermejo, director of the NGO Rescate.
Red Acoge, which focuses on defending the rights and inclusion of migrants and refugees, promoting participation, equal opportunities and social and labor integration, will work with Airbnb.org and will be in charge of booking and coordinating the stays of refugee guests.
“It is great news that a free accommodation service for refugees has been launched in Spain, serving as a tool to channel solidarity initiatives from citizens in collaboration with specialized organizations that are part of the State Reception and Integration System,” explains Laura Traveso, Head of Communication and Fundraising at Red Acoge.
Diaconía Madrid not only helps families fleeing Ukraine, but also works on their inclusion in Spain and has created a guide to help all Spaniards understand the situation of these people and be able to collaborate more efficiently and usefully.
“In this humanitarian crisis, we need to find something that gives us hope. Once again, as happened during the COVID-19 pandemic, the solidarity of the public is proving exemplary. Today, we also celebrate that the collaboration between third-sector organizations and businesses is providing practical and rapid responses to the needs of the most vulnerable people. At Diaconía Madrid, we are grateful to Airbnb.org for extending this valuable tool to our organization, which allows us to provide initial shelter, under the best possible conditions, to the most vulnerable families fleeing war,” explains Jonatán Pozo, coordinator of Diaconía Madrid.
Airbnb.org is working with various organizations, including the International Organization for Migration, HIAS, and Nova Ukraine, as well as the German government and Save the Children in Sweden, to help connect people fleeing Ukraine with free short-term stays in Europe.
More than 2,800 guests have been hosted as part of Airbnb.org's efforts in Ukraine. In the United States, the government launched the Welcome Center for Ukraine, which offers ways for Americans to welcome those fleeing Ukraine, including becoming hosts through Airbnb.org. In the past month, Airbnb.org has received an overwhelmingly positive response from individuals looking to help in this way.
The CEO of Airbnb Marketing Services SL said that the collaboration between Airbnb.org and Rescate, Red Acoge and Diaconía Madrid reflects the effort to continue helping as many people as possible
Anyone interested in supporting Airbnb.org's initiative to help refugees fleeing Ukraine can go to airbnb.org/help-ukraine to get involved, offer free or discounted stays.
