Refugee Protection International at a Glance

Restoring dignity in urban displacement with community-led partners

Refugee Protection International offers a scalable, community-led model of frontline aid. Our mission is to partner with local NGOs and duty bearers to strengthen protection and self-reliance among urban refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs) near conflict zones.

RPI and community-led partners respond to some of the world’s most complex humanitarian crises, including the ongoing wars in Gaza-Israel, Ukraine and Syria, and the Turkey-Syria earthquakes.

Founded in late 2015, Refugee Protection International prioritizes swift, community-led relief efforts co-designed or launched with RPI’s support. RPI staff and volunteers also do cross-border relief deliveries to hotspots, including Ukraine’s frontlines, and bring refugee-made crafts from female trainees to the US market to support women’s self-reliance with community-led training partners in the Middle East and Ukraine. Efforts have assisted nearly a million refugees, IDPs, and locals in Ukraine, the Gaza Strip, Syria, Lebanon and southeast Turkey. RPI’s heart goes out to victims on all sides of war.

By collaborating with inspiring refugee-led and community partners, we aspire toward a more equitable and efficient model of international relief work. It is our vision that refugees have the opportunity to lead humanitarian efforts on the ground, better access external funding, and more effectively meet their community’s self-reliance needs. RPI is honored to serve as a partner and grateful to its giving partners.

We will respond to additional crises in the world, prioritizing women and children in hard-to-reach areas and urban neighborhoods, where community partners are often best placed to identify and serve those in need. RPI staff and volunteers will continue direct cross-border aid efforts when and where needed, building on our work in Ukraine.

Refugee Protection International & partner Kids Paradise increase aid to Gaza’s displaced women and children

RPI is a nonprofit organization with U.S. tax-exempt 501(c)3 public charity status. In our pursuit of local relief capacity and aid efficiency, we rely on a nimble footprint and rigorous approach to collaboration and due diligence.

RPI is committed to the humanitarian principles of impartiality, neutrality, humanity, and independence. We strive for ethical conduct, accountability, and transparency. As an independent humanitarian organization, we do not impose political or religious views on our local partners and participating beneficiaries. Nor do we discriminate based on religion, race, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, mental or physical disabilities, or marital status.

Health Care and Education
We procure, deliver and ship medical equipment and supplies to partnering hospitals in war zones and provide grants to our implementing partners conducting non-formal primary education of refugee children and maternal and child health care in countries in conflict, including community management of acute malnutrition, counseling on infant and young child feeding in emergencies (IYCF-E), medical check-ups, perinatal and postnatal care for pregnant women and newborns. Read more →

Protection and Self-Reliance
Through direct cross-border aid work in war-zones and grants to our implementing partners, we support displaced and conflict-affected civilians to access emergency food, relief aid, psychosocial support, livelihoods skills training (for women), language skills, birth registration, referrals, and information on the documents needed to access jobs, public education and health care in neighboring host countries. Read more →

Housing Conditions
Through our volunteer/staff aid trips and grants to implementing partners, we provide war-displaced civilians with temporary shelter insulation, equip collective shelters with kitchen and washing equipment, bedding, and generators and fund our partners to implement shelter upgrades and access to affordable rent, alternative fuel and flood relief. Read more →