Estimated Time: 30 minutes

In order to understand refugees and their plight, you need to understand the global crisis. Today, explore global refugee data and then analyze what the numbers reveal about today’s world. IDPs are refugees who have had to move within their own country but haven't crossed an international border.

For this project, you will need:

• The Refugee Data Analysis worksheet (below)
• Access to one of these sources:
  • UNHCR Data Portal (up-to-date statistics on refugees and IDPs)
  • The Refugee Project (interactive map of refugee movements since 1975)

Using the Refugee Data Analysis worksheet, complete the activity.

Directions:

Step 1: Choose a Crisis
Select one refugee crisis to explore in depth (examples: Syria, Afghanistan, Venezuela, Ukraine, or South Sudan).

Step 2: Collect Data Use the data portal or refugee project map to find:

• How many refugees have left this country in the past 10 years
• Where the majority of them went
• One surprising fact or statistic (example: a small country hosting a huge number, or an unexpected destination country)

Step 3: Analyze Patterns On your worksheet, explain:

• Why do you think people went to the countries they did?
• What role do geography, language, or politics play?
• How does this movement compare to the journeys of Josef, Isabel, or Mahmoud?

Step 4: Critical Thinking Extension Imagine you are a world leader making decisions about refugees. Based on your research:

• Which country or countries are carrying the greatest burden in hosting refugees?
• What responsibility should other nations have in sharing that burden?
  

Were you surprised by any of the data? Which numbers were the most striking? How does the data compare to what you expected to see?