What refugees need to start new lives | Muhammed Idris

46,664 views ・ 2019-05-03

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About two years ago,
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I got a phone call that changed my life.
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"Hey, this is your cousin Hassen."
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I froze.
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You see, I have well over 30 first cousins,
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but I didn't know anybody named Hassen.
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It turned out that Hassen was actually my mom's cousin
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and had just arrived in Montreal as a refugee.
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And over the next few months,
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I would have three more relatives coming to Canada to apply for asylum
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with little more than the clothes on their back.
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And in the two years since that phone call,
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my life has completely changed.
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I left academia
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and now lead a diverse team of technologists, researchers and refugees
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that is developing customized self-help resources for newcomers.
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We want to help them overcome language, cultural and other barriers
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that make them feel like they've lost control over their own lives.
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And we feel that AI can help restore the rights and the dignity
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that many people lose when seeking help.
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My family's refugee experience is not unique.
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According to the UNHCR,
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every minute, 20 people are newly displaced
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by climate change, economic crisis
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and social and political instability.
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And it was while volunteering at a local YMCA shelter
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that my cousin Hassen and other relatives were sent to
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that we saw and learned to appreciate
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how much effort and coordination resettlement requires.
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When you first arrive, you need to find a lawyer
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and fill out legal documents within two weeks.
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You also need to schedule a medical exam with a pre-authorized physician,
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just so that you can apply for a work permit.
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And you need to start looking for a place to live
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before you receive any sort of social assistance.
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With thousands fleeing the United States
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to seek asylum in Canada over the past few years,
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we quickly saw what it looks like
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when there are more people who need help than there are resources to help them.
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Social services doesn't scale quickly,
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and even if communities do their best
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to help more people with limited resources,
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newcomers end up spending more time waiting in limbo,
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not knowing where to turn.
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In Montreal, for example,
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despite millions of dollars being spent to support resettlement efforts,
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nearly 50 percent of newcomers still don't know
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that there are free resources that exist
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to help them with everything from filling out paperwork
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to finding a job.
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The challenge is not that this information doesn't exist.
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On the contrary, those in need are often bombarded with so much information
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that it's difficult to make sense of it all.
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"Don't give me more information, just tell me what to do,"
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was a sentiment we heard over and over again.
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And it reflects how insanely difficult it could be to get your bearings
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when you first arrive in a new country.
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Hell, I struggled with the same issues when I got to Montreal,
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and I have a PhD.
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(Laughter)
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As another member of our team, himself also a refugee, put it:
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"In Canada, a SIM card is more important than food,
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because we will not die from hunger."
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But getting access to the right resources and information
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can be the difference between life and death.
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Let me say that again:
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getting access to the right resources and information
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can be the difference between life and death.
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In order to address these issues,
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we built Atar,
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the first-ever AI-powered virtual advocate
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that guides you step-by-step through your first week
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of arriving in a new city.
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Just tell Atar what you need help with.
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Atar will then ask you some basic questions
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to understand your unique circumstances
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and determine your eligibility for resources.
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For example: Do you have a place to stay tonight?
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If not, would you prefer an all-women's shelter?
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Do you have children?
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Atar will then generate a custom, step-by-step to-do list
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that tells you everything that you need to know,
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from where to go, how to get there,
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what to bring with you
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and what to expect.
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You can ask a question at any time,
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and if Atar doesn't have an answer,
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you'll be connected with a real person who does.
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But what's most exciting
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is that we help humanitarian and service organizations
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collect the data and the analytics that's necessary to understand
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the changing needs of newcomers
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in real time.
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That's a game changer.
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We've already partnered with the UNHCR
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to provide this technology in Canada,
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and in our work have conducted campaigns in Arabic, English,
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French, Creole and Spanish.
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When we talk about the issue of refugees,
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we often focus on the official statistic
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of 65.8 million forcibly displaced worldwide.
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But the reality is much greater than that.
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By 2050, there will be an additional 140 million people
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who are at risk of being displaced due to environmental degradation.
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And today -- that is today -- there are nearly one billion people
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who already live in illegal settlements and slums.
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Resettlement and integration
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is one of the greatest challenges of our time.
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and our hope is that Atar can provide every single newcomer an advocate.
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Our hope is that Atar can amplify existing efforts
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and alleviate pressure on a social safety net
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that's already stretched beyond imagination.
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But what's most important to us
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is that our work helps restore the rights and the dignity
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that refugees lose throughout resettlement and integration
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by giving them the resources that they need in order to help themselves.
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Thank you.
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06:03
(Applause)
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