Look To The Stars News: UNHCR

Stars Join World Refugee Day Campaign

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 19:20:00 +0000

More than 25 international celebrities including Paula Abdul, actor David Tennant, acclaimed writer Neil Gaiman, Vampire Diaries’ star Kat Graham, UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador, supermodel and former refugee, Alek Wek have joined the UN Refugee Agency’s (UNHCR) World Refugee Day ‘1 family’ campaign to expose the devastating impact of war on families.

Paula Abdul for UNHCR - What Would You Take?

See their photo series here.

More: http://www.looktothestars.org/news/10355-stars-join-world-refugee-day-campaign

Angelina Jolie Opens Girls School In Afghanistan

Tue, 02 Apr 2013 19:10:00 +0000

Angelina Jolie has opened a girls-only school in Afghanistan, according to a report from E! News.

The actress and UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador has opened the school – which already has between 200 and 300 students – near Kabul, in an area that emphasizes boys’ education over the education of girls.

E! News also reports that Jolie plans to use profits from her soon-to-be-released jewelry collection – the Style of Jolie – to build more schools. Proceeds will go to Angelina’s Education Partnership for Children of Conflict.

More: http://www.looktothestars.org/news/9955-angelina-jolie-opens-girls-school-in-afghanistan

Angelina Jolie Visits Displaced Women In Democratic Republic Of Congo

Tue, 26 Mar 2013 19:10:00 +0000

British Foreign Secretary William Hague and actress Angelina Jolie this week visited a displacement camp in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo where the International Rescue Committee is working to prevent violence against women and girls.

Hague and Jolie, in her role as a United Nations refugee agency special envoy, met with IRC staff and displaced women at Nzulo camp near Goma, the capital of North Kivu province. The camp shelters more than 10,000 of the estimated 218,000 people who have been uprooted by armed conflict in the region over the past year.

Camps like Nzulo and other makeshift settlements are often not a safe refuge for women and girls, who risk attack as they collect firewood or water, try to find assistance to support themselves and their families, or walk around at night.

More: http://www.looktothestars.org/news/9922-angelina-jolie-visits-displaced-women-in-democratic-republic-of-congo

Prince Charles Visits Refugee Camp In Jordan

Thu, 14 Mar 2013 13:00:00 +0000

In the week marking two years since the crisis in Syria began, the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall visited a refugee camp in Jordan and met families who have fled the fighting.

The King Abdullah Park camp, just 15 kilometres from the Syrian border, is sheltering 921 people, 529 of whom are children under 18. They are receiving assistance from UNICEF, UNHCR, and the World Food Programme.

During their visit, their Royal Highnesses spent time with families in the camp, hearing for themselves about the profound distress that they have been through and the extreme challenges that many now face as they start a new attempt to survive and look after their children.

More: http://www.looktothestars.org/news/9862-prince-charles-visits-refugee-camp-in-jordan

WWE Divas To Visit Refugee Camps In Rwanda

Fri, 01 Mar 2013 11:30:00 +0000

WWE Divas Alicia Fox and Natalya will visit refugee camps in Rwanda this week as part of their alliance with the United Nations Foundation's Nothing But Nets campaign to help raise awareness and funds to fight malaria in sub-Saharan Africa.

WWE’s Divas will help distribute life-saving bed nets to help protect refugee families, who are fleeing conflict in neighboring Democratic Republic of the Congo, from malaria. They will also meet with officials from the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) to learn about the humanitarian situation there.

More: http://www.looktothestars.org/news/9793-wwe-divas-to-visit-refugee-camps-in-rwanda

Lady Antebellum To Play Charity Ping Pong

Thu, 14 Feb 2013 14:30:00 +0000

Lady Antebellum will front up for a special charity ping pong tournament next month.

Lady Antebellum Play Charity Ping Pong

Join Charles, Hillary and Dave at their inaugural Ping Pong & Songs with all proceeds benefitting LadyAID.

More: http://www.looktothestars.org/news/9713-lady-antebellum-to-play-charity-ping-pong

Angelina Jolie Visits Refugees On Syria-Jordan Border

Sun, 09 Dec 2012 19:30:00 +0000

UNHCR Special Envoy Angelina Jolie travelled to the Jordan-Syria border overnight on Wednesday-Thursday to meet frightened and exhausted Syrian refugees who had just completed the perilous crossing to safety in Jordan.

UNHCR Special Envoy Angelina Jolie meets with refugees at the Za'atri refugee camp in Jordan.
Credit/Copyright: UNHCR/J.Tanner

“What I saw last night is a dramatic example of the plight of hundreds of thousands of Syrians who have been uprooted by the fighting and are in a desperate search for safety,” Jolie said Thursday on her second mission to the region in three months.

More: http://www.looktothestars.org/news/9402-angelina-jolie-visits-refugees-on-syria-jordan-border

Lady Antebellum Launches LadyAID To Help Children In Need

Wed, 05 Dec 2012 13:45:00 +0000

GRAMMY winning trio Lady Antebellum announced this week their new charitable initiative called LadyAID, a philanthropic effort created to bring awareness to and generate support for children in need locally, nationally and globally.

The multi-level organization will reach children across the state of Tennessee through grants to Monroe Carell Jr. Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt and St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. On a national level, LadyAID is supporting Children's Miracle Network Hospitals and on a global level, myLIFEspeaks and The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR). The LadyAID Fund is a component fund of The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee.

“The opportunity to play music on stages all around the world has given us so much happiness,” said Lady A’s Dave Haywood. “By establishing LadyAID, we’re going to be able to put a new focus on accomplishing an off-stage goal we have as a band, which is to help children in need.”

More: http://www.looktothestars.org/news/9380-lady-antebellum-launches-ladyaid-to-help-children-in-need

Photos Follow Angelina Jolie's Visits To Syrian Refugees

Tue, 09 Oct 2012 14:30:00 +0000

In her new role as UNHCR Special Envoy, Angelina Jolie has made five trips to visit refugees so far this year. She travelled to Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey in September 2012 to meet some of the tens of thousands of Syrians who have fled conflict in their homeland and sought shelter in neighboring countries.

Jolie wrapped up her Middle East visit in Iraq, where she met Syrian refugees in the north as well as internally displaced Iraqis and refugee returnees to Baghdad.

The UNHCR has posted a set of unpublished photos that were taken during her visit to the Middle East and show her meeting with Syrian and Iraqi refugees. The photos can be found here.

More: http://www.looktothestars.org/news/9067-photos-follow-angelina-jolies-visits-to-syrian-refugees

Barbara Hendricks Performs At UNHCR Nansen Awards

Wed, 03 Oct 2012 13:00:00 +0000

UN High Commissioner for Refugees António Guterres on Monday night presented the Nansen Refugee Award to Somali humanitarian, educator and women’s rights advocate Hawa Aden Mohamed.

She was unable to attend in person for health reasons.

The 63-year-old former refugee, widely known as “Mama” Hawa, has been honoured for her extraordinary service – under extremely difficult conditions – on behalf of refugees and the internally displaced, mainly women and girls but also including boys.

More: http://www.looktothestars.org/news/9035-barbara-hendricks-performs-at-unhcr-nansen-awards

Angelina Jolie Visits Syrian Refugees In Iraq

Mon, 17 Sep 2012 12:15:00 +0000

UNHCR Special Envoy Angelina Jolie has hailed the Iraqi government’s willingness to host Syrian refugees fleeing violence and said she hoped all Syrians seeking asylum in Iraq would be welcomed.

Angelina Jolie spent the weekend in Iraq. In Baghdad, she visited Iraqi families who had been displaced twice: first to Syria to escape the war in Iraq, and now back to Iraq.
Credit/Copyright: UNHCR/J.Tanner

“I want to highlight the noble efforts of the Iraqi government and the people of Iraq to support Syrian refugees,” said Jolie. “At this juncture, it is critical that Iraq receives urgent international support and continues to welcome refugees across its borders.”

More: http://www.looktothestars.org/news/8944-angelina-jolie-visits-syrian-refugees-in-iraq

Angelina Jolie Visits Syrian Refugees In Turkey

Thu, 13 Sep 2012 20:10:00 +0000

UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) António Guterres and his Special Envoy Angelina Jolie were in Turkey today, continuing their mission to visit Syrian refugees.

The trip follows their visits to Jordan and Lebanon over the last few days, and saw the pair reiterate the need to help countries that are hosting tens of thousands of people fleeing violence in Syria.

From UNHCR.org: "During their trip, Guterres and Jolie thanked Turkey for keeping its borders open for anyone seeking asylum; for adopting a system of temporary protection; and providing assurance that no Syrian would be forcibly returned. They also praised the role of the Turkish Red Crescent in providing aid to the refugees.

More: http://www.looktothestars.org/news/8936-angelina-jolie-visits-syrian-refugees-in-turkey

Angelina Jolie Visits Syrian Refugees In Lebanon

Wed, 12 Sep 2012 20:10:00 +0000

UNHCR chief António Guterres and Special Envoy Angelina Jolie have spent a second day visiting Syrian refugees who have escaped the violence in their country.

Angelina Jolie meets today with a young Syrian refugee in the Bekaa Valley, Lebanon.
Credit/Copyright: UNHCR/J.Tanner

From UNHCR.org: "Guterres and Jolie, his Special Envoy, visited the Bekaa Valley neighbouring Syria on Wednesday morning and met some of the 67,000 registered refugees in Lebanon as well as members of host communities. In the afternoon, they held talks with top officials, including President Michel Sleiman and Prime Minister Najib Mikati, on the situation and challenges facing Lebanon and the humanitarian response from UNHCR and others.

More: http://www.looktothestars.org/news/8926-angelina-jolie-visits-syrian-refugees-in-lebanon

Angelina Jolie Meets Syrian Refugees In Jordan

Tue, 11 Sep 2012 20:00:00 +0000

UNHCR chief António Guterres and Special Envoy Angelina Jolie have heard harrowing tales of suffering and cross-border escape during meetings with Syrian refugees in northern Jordan.

Angelina Jolie meets with refugees on the Jordanian border minutes after they crossed from Syria.
Credit/Copyright: UNHCR/J.Tanner

Guterres and Jolie both visited Za’atri, a camp holding almost 30,000 people in very difficult conditions, on Tuesday. Jolie, on Monday night, also met a group of around 200 traumatized refugees – including many children – just after they crossed the border, some with injuries and many telling of loss and brutality.

More: http://www.looktothestars.org/news/8918-angelina-jolie-meets-syrian-refugees-in-jordan

eBay Founder Donates $500,000 To Refugee Support In South Sudan

Wed, 05 Sep 2012 20:15:00 +0000

eBay founder Pierre Omidyar and his wife Pam have donated US$500,000 to UNHCR's emergency operation for tens of thousands of refugees in South Sudan.

Pam Omidyar said she and her husband, who created the eBay auction site in 1995, had been inspired to help on a personal level after hearing about a visit in July to UNHCR-run refugee camps in South Sudan by three members of The Elders, a grouping of respected international figures dedicated to promoting peace and human rights.

Archbishop Desmond Tutu and former Finnish President Martti Ahtisaari, both Nobel Peace Prize laureates, together with Mary Robinson, a former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, met Sudanese refugees during a visit to Yusuf Batil Camp in South Sudan’s Upper Nile state. The distinguished visitors said they had come to show solidarity with the forcibly displaced.

More: http://www.looktothestars.org/news/8890-ebay-founder-donates-500000-to-refugee-support-in-south-sudan

Annie Lennox To Perform At UNHCR Nansen Refugee Awards

Tue, 04 Sep 2012 16:30:00 +0000

British singer/songwriter, campaigner and activist, Annie Lennox, OBE, will perform at this year’s Nansen Refugee Award ceremony in Geneva on October 1, the UNHCR announced on Monday.

The UN refugee agency, which has presented the annual award since 1954, said the line-up would also include performances by classical singer and UNHCR Honorary Lifetime Goodwill Ambassador Barbara Hendricks and popular Swiss musician Bastian Baker.

A UNHCR press release added that 2011 Nobel Peace Prize laureate, Leymah Gbowee from Liberia, is also confirmed to attend the award ceremony, which will pay tribute to this year’s Nansen winner. The award is given annually to an individual or organization in recognition of extraordinary and dedicated service to refugees.

More: http://www.looktothestars.org/news/8883-annie-lennox-to-perform-at-unhcr-nansen-refugee-awards

Angelina Jolie's World Humanitarian Day Message

Mon, 20 Aug 2012 20:00:00 +0000

UNHCR Special Envoy Angelina Jolie has written a special message on the organization’s Facebook page to mark World Humanitarian Day.

“On World Humanitarian Day we remember the aid workers who have lost their lives in the line of duty and we honor the extraordinary courage and dedication of humanitarian workers around the world,” she wrote. “I had the honor and the pleasure of meeting one of these brave individuals before his murder during a visit to Pakistan, where I witnessed first-hand the incredible devotion of a very kind and gentle man. His name was Mr. Zill-e-Usman.”

For this year’s observance of the Day, which fell on 19 August, the UN launched a campaign, entitled ‘I Was Here,’ aimed at engaging one billion people through social media so they can pledge a humanitarian action, and share their individual actions with others through an interactive website, www.whd-iwashere.org. On the morning of Sunday, 19 August, more than one billion messages were shared at the same time.

More: http://www.looktothestars.org/news/8811-angelina-jolies-world-humanitarian-day-message

Barbara Hendricks Visits Refugees In Burkina Faso

Wed, 11 Jul 2012 11:30:00 +0000

UNHCR's only lifetime goodwill ambassador, soprano Barbara Hendricks, has visited a camp in northern Burkina Faso to raise awareness about the plight of tens of thousands of Malian refugees in Africa’s Sahel region and to help raise funds for UNHCR’s relief operations there.

The conflict in Mali has forced almost 200,000 people to seek refugee in neighbouring countries, including Burkina Faso (65,000), Niger (42,400) and Mauritania (88,800). Another 159,000 are displaced within Mali.
“Malian refugees have fled the worst and are trying to rebuild their lives in camps or settlements,” said Hendricks, adding that her visit was aimed at bringing “their fears and their anxieties to the press, to public opinion and to those who will decide whether to help aid agencies like UNHCR.”

More: http://www.looktothestars.org/news/8626-barbara-hendricks-visits-refugees-in-burkina-faso

The Elders Visit Sudanese Refugees

Tue, 10 Jul 2012 14:30:00 +0000

Nobel Peace Prize laureates Archbishop Desmond Tutu and Martti Ahtisaari, a former Finnish president, visited Sudanese refugees this weekend in South Sudan’s Upper Nile state along with Mary Robinson, a former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.

The three visited Yusuf Batil Camp on Sunday as members of The Elders, an independent grouping of 12 respected public figures dedicated to promoting peace and human rights and to finding solutions for other global problems. The organization was set up in 2007 by entrepreneur Sir Richard Branson, musician Peter Gabriel and former South African President Nelson Mandela.

The day before South Sudan’s one-year independence anniversary, the refugees told the visitors about their flight from villages in Sudan’s Blue Nile state to escape fighting between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Sudan People’s Liberation Army-North and the challenges and difficulties they now face.

More: http://www.looktothestars.org/news/8623-the-elders-visit-sudanese-refugees

Angelina Jolie Donates $100,000 On World Refugee Day

Wed, 20 Jun 2012 17:10:00 +0000

Angelina Jolie has made a donation of US$100,000 on World Refugee Day to the UNHCR for their work in helping Syrian refugees.

“UNHCR believes even 1 person forced to flee is too many,” said the actress. "And it’s true. Every individual refugee matters. Each has their own story. Each has suffered and survived more than I could ever bear. And yet, they rise up to live another day.

“We risk forgetting the individual when we speak in numbers, but the numbers tell an important story. In the past year 4.3 million people have become displaced. There are still 2.7 million refugees from Afghanistan. 12 million people are stateless. And for the fifth consecutive year the number of forcibly displaced people worldwide exceeded 42 million.

More: http://www.looktothestars.org/news/8541-angelina-jolie-donates-100000-on-world-refugee-day

Angelina Jolie Leads Celebrity PSAs For World Refugee Day

Thu, 14 Jun 2012 15:30:00 +0000

In the past 18 months, the UNHCR has faced one of the busiest periods of its history, with crisis after crisis keeping the agency at full stretch, but over the next week staff across the globe will take time to commemorate World Refugee Day and the millions they help.

The focus for UNHCR this year will be in Brazil, where High Commissioner for Refugees António Guterres will be spending World Refugee Day (June 20) in Rio de Janeiro at the UN Conference on Sustainable Development. He will be attending and addressing Rio+20 after visiting refugees in Ecuador.

Two days before World Refugee Day (WRD), UNHCR will be releasing worldwide its eagerly awaited Global Trends 2011 report, which updates the number of people of concern to the organization, including refugees, asylum-seekers, the stateless and internally displaced people.

More: http://www.looktothestars.org/news/8517-angelina-jolie-leads-celebrity-psas-for-world-refugee-day

Angelina Jolie Meets Refugees In Ecuador

Mon, 23 Apr 2012 19:55:00 +0000

Angelina Jolie made her third trip to Ecuador to meet Colombian refugees this week, and urged the government to maintain its open asylum policy.

According to the UNHCR, "Ecuador hosts 56,000 refugees and 21,000 asylum-seekers and receives 1,300 new applications for protection each month from people fleeing neighbouring Colombia’s continuing violence. Many live in the remote and poor northern areas of the country close to the border.

“Jolie’s two-day visit began on Saturday in Lago Agrio, capital of Sucumbios province in the north of the country. She visited the oil town’s San Valentin neighbourhood, where she met young Colombian refugees and Ecuadoreans who were part of a youth group supported by UNHCR. They told her about their tough lives in an area where the young are often targets for recruitment by armed groups and traffickers.”

More: http://www.looktothestars.org/news/8248-angelina-jolie-meets-refugees-in-ecuador

Angelina Jolie Named As UNHCR Special Envoy

Tue, 17 Apr 2012 19:15:00 +0000

The UN refugee agency announced on Tuesday that actress and humanitarian Angelina Jolie will take on a new and expanded role for UNHCR as Special Envoy of High Commissioner António Guterres.

During a decade of service as a UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador, Jolie has conducted more than 40 field visits around the world, becoming an expert on the phenomenon of forced displacement and a tireless advocate on behalf of refugees.

“In her new role, she is expected to focus on large-scale crises resulting in the mass displacement of people, to undertake advocacy and represent UNHCR and Guterres at the diplomatic level, engaging with relevant interlocutors on global displacement issues,” spokesman Adrian Edwards told journalists in Geneva.

More: http://www.looktothestars.org/news/8215-angelina-jolie-named-as-unhcr-special-envoy

Malaria Takes Center Court To Save Lives In South Sudan

Thu, 29 Mar 2012 11:00:00 +0000

Since last June, more than 130,000 refugees—and counting—have entered South Sudan and neighboring countries to escape fighting on the border of Sudan. As the situation worsens, the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) is providing food, water, and shelter. Living in a country where malaria is the leading cause of death among children under five, the refugee families in South Sudan need another life-saving tool: insecticide-treated bed nets.

To meet this need, the United Nations Foundation's Nothing But Nets campaign launched a nationwide appeal this week to send 100,000 life-saving bed nets to help these families sleep safely. Broadway shows in many Nederlander theaters across the U.S. are fundraising, while NBA star Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors and WNBA star Ruth Riley of the Chicago Sky are raising awareness to help Nothing But Nets reach this goal as quickly as possible.

Mark Kirya, a UNHCR program and public information officer, stresses that bed nets are critical for the survival of the refugees he’s working with in South Sudan. “As families flee their homes to escape the perilous clutches of violence on Sudan’s borders, they are left with little choice but to occupy the densely populated refugee camps in South Sudan and neighboring countries,” explains Kirya, “While UNHCR provides basic and essential assistance in health care, water, shelter among other areas, without additional support they can do little to stem the rising threat of malaria as it continues to decimate young children and families.”

More: http://www.looktothestars.org/news/8110-malaria-takes-center-court-to-save-lives-in-south-sudan

Celebrities And Companies Help In Horn Of Africa

Wed, 01 Feb 2012 15:15:00 +0000

In less than three months, thousands of Americans have donated to send 150,000 anti-malaria bed nets in response to the humanitarian crisis in the Horn of Africa.

An eclectic group including celebrities like Jonah Hill, and organizations like the Consumer Electronics Association, The United Methodist Church, and the Union for Reform Judaism came together to send nets through the UN Foundation's Nothing But Nets campaign—a global, grassroots campaign to fight malaria in Africa—and the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR).

Every 60 seconds, a child dies from malaria—a disease spread by a single mosquito bite. Due to the location and crowded environment in refugee camps, malaria is a leading cause of death among refugees, making bed nets a key tool for survival. Access to insecticide-treated bed nets can help curb the spread of malaria by up to 90 percent.

More: http://www.looktothestars.org/news/7776-celebrities-and-companies-help-in-horn-of-africa