Virtually everything about the new U.S. Welcome Corps is Canadian-inspired. The program – announced last week by Secretary of State Antony Blinken to recruit Americans to help settle refugees – is modelled on Canada’s long-running Private Sponsorship of Refugees system. The Welcome Corps’s creators have consulted extensively with non-profits north of the border.
Pairity will use questionnaires to help match refugees with sponsors most likely to help them successfully integrate. Among other things, the algorithm considers shared interests, family composition and location preferences in making its pairings. Just as in the Canadian system, American sponsors – who may include groups of friends, companies, churches or non-profits – will be responsible for paying the cost of resettling refugees and helping them navigate life in the U.S.
“We believe that private sponsorship has the potential to significantly expand our capacity to welcome refugees in the United States and also to really connect Americans with arriving refugees and see the many skills and talents that they can bring,” she said.