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Refugees possess a wide range of valuable skills and expertise in professions like medicine, engineering, software development, and various skilled trades. And yet, despite having marketable talents, many refugees find themselves in countries where they don’t have the right to work locally and are locked out of skilled migration pathways.
Talent Beyond Boundaries (TBB) is building a world where displaced people can safely migrate for work and fully realize their skills to rebuild their lives with dignity and purpose. Founded in 2016, TBB’s mission is to help refugees who have talents that are in demand in the global market find employment opportunities in countries where their skills are sorely needed. As the first organization in the world to focus on refugee labour mobility as a complementary pathway to traditional humanitarian resettlement, TBB works directly with governments to design skilled migration pathways that are accessible to refugees.
TBB is a trusted partner of the Government of Canada’s Economic Mobility Pathways Pilot (EMPP). This ground-breaking initiative welcomes displaced people with skills that Canadian employers need through Canada’s existing economic immigration streams. The EMPP was established to help remove obstacles faced by many skilled refugees so they can apply to economic programs in Canada. As of February 2023, over 100 displaced people and family members have moved to Canada through the combined efforts of TBB and its partners. Over the next few years, Canada, with support from partners like TBB, is aiming to work with employers across the country to welcome 2,000 skilled refugees to fill labour shortages in a number of high-demand sectors.
In Canada, TBB works in close collaboration with Jumpstart Refugee Talent, a national refugee-led organization that serves refugees as they secure meaningful economic empowerment through employment and entrepreneurial opportunities. TBB also works in partnership with Fragomen Canada to ensure that certified immigration representation is not a barrier to either employers or skilled refugees in participating in the EMPP. Under the EMPP, TBB’s partners also include Windmill Microlending, TalentLift, Weichert, and many other refugee-serving organizations. Together, these organizations have supported refugees to move for work, resume their careers, and rebuild their lives.
Globally, TBB works with partners from the Middle East to Asia to South America to expand the number of refugee candidates registering for the global Talent Catalog. The Talent Catalog is a broad-ranging hiring resource that allows employers to fill job vacancies with highly-skilled displaced people.
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