MINNEAPOLIS -- An international relief group based in Minnesota is used to responding to conflicts all over the globe, but the pandemic has left it with a situation it's never dealt with before.

The group Alight provides humanitarian and disaster relief to refugees in countries such as Rwanda and Somalia. CEO Daniel Wordsworth said because of travel restrictions, they can't fly doctors and nurses into Minneapolis for training and then dispatch them to areas in need.

"We're just like we've become islands all over the world, that are all inaccessible," Wordsworth said.

Wordsworth said restrictions also make it hard to locate and distribute supplies, such as personal protective equipment. He said the good news is, they have a strong group of teams already established in these countries. They're taking measures such as setting up hand-washing stations with whatever supplies are still trickling through, and educating the people they serve about preventive measures.

Wordsworth said, for example, the teams in Eastern Congo are getting creative by teaching school children about prevention and sanitation measures, in hopes the message will spread to a wider audience.

"And then, we send these 1,700 children back to their homes, back to their villages and communities, as kind-of trained ambassadors to protect their families, their parents and the wider community," he said.

The United Nations estimates 70 million people uprooted by war and persecution are in danger of contracting the new coronavirus. Its refugee agency is trying to raise more than $250 million to lessen the impact in vulnerable areas. As part of that outreach effort, Alight hopes to gather $1 million in donations to help its teams on the ground.


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TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- Organizations providing relief support for Afghan refugees say more people can help by simply taking time to learn about the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan.

Groups like Catholic Charities Jacksonville are preparing to handle a surge of over 150 Afghan refugees, who'll need basics like food, housing and jobs as they begin their new lives in the community in the next few months.

Matt Schmitt, associate director for the group, said at the same time, he has been trying to help clear up some misunderstandings that stem, in part, from the name of the effort: the Afghan Parolee Support Program.

"People are worried that the refugees that are coming from Afghanistan are a security threat," Schmitt explained. "They're concerned that the term 'parolee,' by the way, it sounds like someone who's been released from jail or from prison, and that is the farthest from the truth."

Schmitt explained the terms are used by the federal government as subcategories for refugees, such as someone on a Special Immigrant Visa, a 'parolee' or 'asylee,' and they have no connection to the criminal justice system. He added all refugees will be completely vetted through the U.S. State Department before being sent to resettlement areas like Jacksonville.

Schmitt urged people to do more research, by visiting his organization's website or searching online for the Office of Refugee Resettlement, Department of State, and other sources to keep up with what's going on.

"And then after that, feel free to get involved," Schmitt emphasized. "We're doing humanitarian work. If you were in this situation, wouldn't you like to have someone reach out, you know? It's 'help a brother out,' that's what I've been saying lately, help a brother out."

Schmitt pointed out the Catholic Charities of Jacksonville website has information about how to help. They need gently used furniture and household items. People can also volunteer their time, or donate money and specify that it go directly to resettlement efforts.

The State Department named Jacksonville among the top 19 "welcoming cities" for refugees, but organizations in other parts of the state also are gearing up to help with resettlement.

SALT LAKE CITY -- Utah officials and private agencies are preparing to assist refugees from Afghanistan when they arrive in the Beehive State.

Utah is one of 19 states designated to receive Afghan refugees in the coming weeks and months. Agencies such as the state's Refugee Resettlement Office and groups such as Catholic Community Services and the International Rescue Committee are lining up local volunteers and services to assist the immigrants.

Aden Batar, director of migration and refugee services for Catholic Community Services of Utah, said the Afghan refugees are a special group.

"The Afghan refugees that are coming to the United States, these are individuals who put their lives on the line helping our U.S. forces in Afghanistan for so many years," Batar pointed out. "I think this is the smallest thing we can do by helping them and their families."

He explained once they are evacuated from Afghanistan, the refugees will fly to a third country for initial processing, and then will be brought to one of several intake sites in the United States for additional vetting.

Batar noted while there is no firm date for when the first group of refugees will arrive, he said Utah agencies are preparing to receive them in the near future.

"Some states already started getting some books, but, Utah, I will say we are still waiting," Batar observed. "I will say, probably in the next week or in the next weeks, we should be getting some families arriving here in Utah."

Batar stressed Utah assistance agencies are looking for homes to place the refugees, agencies that can assist them with basic living needs such as clothes and furniture, and monetary donations to help the families settle in.

"Special immigrant visa holders; those are the ones that have worked with the U.S. forces in Afghanistan getting their permanent residency," Batar emphasized. "So we have been appealing to our community to donate, so we can provide the services to this vulnerable group that are in need."

He added many of the Afghanis left the country with little more than the clothes on their backs and whatever they could carry in a small bag. To help, contact Catholic Community Services or the International Rescue Committee offices in Utah.

NEW YORK -- Buffalo and New York City are among the U.S. sites where demonstrators are gathering this week to convince Germany's leader to reconsider her position on COVID-19 vaccine patents.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel meets with President Joe Biden today. Trade groups want to capture her attention by calling for a waiver of trade-related intellectual property rights (TRIPS) for the vaccines, to allow greater access for developing countries.

The U.S. supports it, but Germany remains opposed.

George Kimball, New York state director of the Citizens Trade Campaign, said it is a big opportunity to pressure a world leader to do the right thing.

"Based on the CDC and the World Health Organization (WTO), there needs to be 15 to 20 billion vaccines produced to vaccinate the world," Kimball noted. "And Pfizer, Moderna, J & J (Johnson & Johnson) don't have that capacity. So, we have to, you know, share the technology."

For its part, Germany cited factors such as quality control and manufacturing supply in not advancing the waiver. The demonstrations come the same week the global death toll from COVID-19 has surpassed four million. New York City's demonstration was held yesterday; Buffalo's is today.

In the U.S., some racial groups have faced barriers in accessing COVID vaccinations, but public health officials say it's now widely available across the country. That isn't the case in low- and middle-income nations.

Dr. Pauline Muchina, representative for Africa at the American Friends Service Committee, hopes Merkel is convinced to drop Germany's opposition.

"The fact that many countries, like my home country of Kenya, will not receive full vaccines until 2024 is very, very unjust, and all of us are not safe until we are all safe," Muchina argued.

TRIPS was waived by the WTO in 2003 to allow the import of cheaper, generic drugs into developing
countries that lack manufacturing capacity, a change made permanent in 2017.

Chancellor Merkel's visit comes days ahead of a W-T-O meeting to decide the issue.