Dear <<First Name>>,

Over the last month, Upwardly Global has been fast-tracking tailored resources to support thousands of new Afghan arrivals who have professional skills. Widespread concern is galvanizing action for this population and deepening understanding for immigrant and refugee inclusion more broadly.

This month, we also hit and then exceeded our 8,000th job placement. At an average annual salary that has grown to $64,000, placements transform the lives of individuals and their families. Collectively, Upwardly Global alumni add over $440 million to our economy every year. 

Updates below give insight into how we are working to activate key partners: policymakers, media, businesses, volunteers, and donors around our inclusion agenda. Your partnership is what builds this special community and makes it possible for us to transform opportunity for immigrants, refugees and our country.

With sincerest appreciation, 
The Upwardly Global Family

P.S. Do not miss our major annual event. On Wednesday, September 29th at 7 pm ET/ 4 pm PT, Upwardly Global Gala will celebrate some of the leaders, celebrities, alumni, job seekers, staff and volunteers who have been so critical to our community. Proceeds from the evening support our Haven Fund for Afghan response and other emerging needs.

Don't forget to register for the event and share the link with your networks. We can't wait to see you there and build community together!

Breaking News: The U.S. House of Representatives included the “Improving Opportunities for New Americans Act” as an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act, which was passed yesterday. The legislation would have the Labor Department study and recommend ways to support immigrant and refugee inclusion - a major Federal investment in understanding and addressing barriers that prevent immigrant inclusion. Upwardly Global and critical partners have helped educate and advocate for this work for almost two years, shaping bipartisan support for this landmark action. We hope to see full passage of this groundbreaking legislation by end of year. Learn more here. 

Upwardly Global was invited by print and broadcast media to share experience and information on professional skills of Afghan SIVs. Check out and share these links.

• Upskilling For Today & Tomorrow  - The Hill (9/22)
• The Jobs That Await Afghans In The U.S. Are Often Far Below Their Skill Level - NPR All Things Considered (9/16)
• Resettling Afghan Refugees with Jina Krause-Vilmar - Rational Middle podcast  (9/13)
• NBCLX interview on Afghan response (9/2)
• CBSN interview (8/24)
• MSNBC/ Website interview (8/21)

The American business community has a vital role to play in the current Afghan humanitarian crisis, and Upwardly Global is well positioned to not only empower newly arrived Afghans, but to engage employers who would like to take action. On August 26th, we convened our DEI Employer Working Group of 50+ employers for an emergency briefing on the Afghan crisis to orient the private sector to the dire situation in Kabul, what to expect on American soil, and how employers have the unique ability to activate their resources and open their pipelines to this population. Over 30 businesses are actively engaged in building programs and resources with us now. Check out our announcement and learn more here.

Thanks to special funding by Accenture, Carson Family Charitable Trust and individual donors through our Haven Fund, Upwardly Global has mobilized quickly to create an Afghan application process for our full program and a targeted set of free career readiness courses. Upwardly Global is in conversation with partners at Joint Base McGuire/Dix/Lakehurst, and many dozens of Afghans have applied to our full program over the last weeks. 

Having engaged more than 1,300 Afghan SIVs since 2009, Upwardly Global is well-positioned to understand and support workforce integration for Afghans with professional backgrounds. Of those we work with, 74% are college educated and 82% are fluent in English. Many bring backgrounds in high-demand fields (see chart above).

Background
U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan on Aug. 30 and rapid Taliban takeover resulted in the largest U.S. airlift evacuation in history. Over 70,000  Afghan allies and their families arrived in a span of days to the U.S. -- and more are expected.

There are many misconceptions about Afghans who are arriving, including who SIVs are. The Afghan Allies Protection Act of 2009 provides the special immigrant visa to Afghans who have worked for at least one year as translators or interpreters, or who were employed by, or on behalf of, the U.S. government in Afghanistan, and whose lives are threatened because of their work in support of the U.S. mission. The visas allow these wartime allies to resettle in the United States. According to reports, approximately 10,000-20,000 of the most recent evacuees are Afghan SIVs -- at various stages of processing. 

Tens of thousands of other new arrivals include those who worked with aid agencies and allies, and family members. They are here under refugee or humanitarian parolee status, and many would benefit from basic U.S. career skills.

Upwardly Global is working in close partnership with government, resettlement organizations and front line responders and coalitions -- including as a member of the Council of Welcome.us. We are updating our site as the situation advances --check the latest on our News page.

Responding to a call for immediate humanitarian aid for Afghan arrivals who have left everything behind, Upwardly Global leveraged partnerships (with Afya, Bloomberg and local volunteers, including a Westchester coalition) to get supplies to thousands of Afghans currently housed at Joint Base McGuire/Dix/Lakehurst in New Jersey, and in a parallel leffort, offer our expertise with career preparation and workforce integration.

As we move forward, we are eager to activate volunteer support. Please be in touch if your company can hire or training new arrivals, or if you are interested in mentoring and/or donating to support this work. For information, click here.

Our work would not be possible without a deeply dedicated and engaged Board, Leadership Councils and Ambassadors. We are excited to welcome new Board members Au Nguyen, Bob Garechana  and Steven Ostler to the Upwardly Global family. 

Au is an alumnus of Upwardly Global. She struggled to find work, even though she was an assistant manager at UniLever in Vietnam. She has been featured on CNN and now lives (and works) in California.

Bob is CFO for Equity Residential and has been a long time supporter of Upwardly Global including previously co-chairing the Chicago Gala. He has been a mentor to Upwardly Global job seekers and is working to build hiring ramps with his company today.

Steve Ostler’s twenty-five year professional career was with The Boyer Company, one of the largest commercial real estate firms in the Intermountain West where he was most recently the President and Chief Executive Officer. He was a founder and the CEO of One Refugee, a non-profit that assists young adult refugees in secondary education and career placement, and has served on numerous for-profit and non-profit boards. One Refugee worked with Upwardly Global to provide training resources to the students.  Starting in 2019, Steve became an advisor to Upwardly Global before joining the Board.