International Rescue Committee

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International Rescue Committee

We respond to the world’s worst humanitarian crises and help people to survive, recover & rebuild. cities. cities.
-- Worked with 8,027 volunteers in the U.S.
(1900)

Since 1933, the International Rescue Committee has been providing lifesaving services to the world’s most vulnerable. Here’s how the IRC was founded at the call of physicist, humanitarian -- and refugee -- Albert Einstein:

In July 1933, a committee of 51 prominent American intellectuals, artists, clergy, and political leaders formed a branch of the International Relief Association in New York, at

the request of its chief, German-born physicist Albert Einstein. Among them were the philosopher John Dewey, the writer John Dos Passos, and the theologian Reinhold Niebuhr. Other prominent citizens, even including Eleanor Roosevelt, soon joined the effort. Einstein arrived in America on October 17,1933 after he and thousands of other Jews fled persecution in N**i Germany. The committee established offices at 11 West 42nd Street, opposite Bryant Park and not far from the International Rescue Committee's current headquarters location. Its mission, as The New York Times reported on July 24, 1933, was to "assist Germans suffering from the policies of the Hi**er regime." Another group of leaders formed the Emergency Rescue Committee when Paris fell to the N**is in 1940. As the crisis deepened into World War II, the two groups merged. And so came into being the organization that would grow into today's International Rescue Committee. The International Rescue Committee has since established programs in more than 40 countries and in 25 U.S. Our dedicated teams provide clean water, shelter, health care, education and empowerment support to refugees and displaced people. We respond to the world’s worst humanitarian crises and helps people whose lives and livelihoods are shattered by conflict and disaster to survive, recover and regain control of their future. Here are highlights of our impact:

In 2018, the IRC and our international program partners:
-- Provided 1.6 million children with schooling and education opportunities. Supported 15,645 existing businesses and 4,738 new businesses.
-- 21,982 people participated in awareness-raising sessions on governance-related topics, such as individual rights, conflict mitigation and local government hotlines.
-- Trained 23,852 people on child protection, gender-based violence and protection principles, and service delivery.
-- Reached 1.2 million people through our efforts to raise awareness about human rights, protection and gender-based violence.
-- Supported 27,827 village saving and loan association (VSLA) members. VSLA participants saved more than 1 million USD.
-- Supported 16,177 schools, education centers, vocational training centers and safe healing and learning spaces. In the United States in 2018, the IRC:
-- Served 9,127 people with economic empowerment programs, including financial coaching, vocational training and asset building.
-- Assisted 2,175 children and parents seeking asylum in the U.S. and resettled 5,374 refugees and SIV recipients across 25 U.S. who collectively provided more than 200,000 hours of service.

06/02/2026

“Little by little, I realized that I had to keep going. For my baby.”

For Belkis, a 42-year-old Venezuelan mother, the journey to Colombia was marked by violence, abandonment and uncertainty. Pregnant and separated from her children, she faced a system where adequate maternal care felt out of reach.

She is not alone.

Over 1.7 million Venezuelans have sought refuge in Colombia, with women and children facing heightened risks of exploitation, gender-based violence, and a lack of critical healthcare.

The IRC, through collaboration with EU Civil Protection & Humanitarian Aid, provides comprehensive support to Venezuelans who have fled their country. To date, IRC health teams in Colombia have reached over 2,800 people, including 255 pregnant women who previously had zero access to prenatal care.

Through her community network and the IRC center, Belkis was able to access essential maternal care, psychological and financial counseling, as well as legal support to help her reunite with her children. For migrants who face unequal access to local health systems, this intergrated support fills a critical gap.

“I feel calmer, more hopeful,” she says. “Now I attend my medical checkups, continue my psychological sessions, and I know my baby is healthy.”

06/01/2026

Gaza may have faded from the headlines, but the crisis is far from over.

Amid soaring temperatures, families are living in increasingly horrifying conditions.

Collapsed sanitation systems, extreme overcrowding, and widespread rodent and insect infestations are all exposing civilians to disease and further suffering.

Working alongside local partners, our teams are delivering clean water, malnutrition treatment, early childhood development, and mental health support.

But without all border crossings open, critical medical equipment, hygiene supplies and shelter materials cannot reach everyone who needs them.

05/29/2026

In recent days, Ukraine has been hit by some of the heaviest missile and drone attacks since the war escalated.

Dozens of people have been injured, and many have lost their lives. Civilian sites—including metro stations, apartment buildings, and critical infrastructure—have been hit.

Our teams are working around the clock to support people in frontline areas, providing medical care, psychological support, cash assistance, and much more.

Serdar Yardak, IRC Deputy Director of Programs for Ukraine, reports from the scene in Kyiv.

05/28/2026

Bangladesh is battling one of its most serious measles outbreaks in decades, with over 57,000 suspected cases, 81% of them children under 5.

Cases have been confirmed across all 64 districts, and at least 400 people are expected to have died.

The IRC has launched an emergency vaccination campaign in Cox's Bazar, where Rohingya refugees are particularly vulnerable to infection due to overcrowded conditions and limited access to health services.

So far, our staff have vaccinated 20,000 children across five camps. Community health workers are also conducting household-level outreach across both Rohingya and Bangladeshi host communities, supporting parents and caregivers to identify early symptoms and understand when to seek care.

But the outbreak is a warning sign of a pattern playing out across multiple settings, where access to routine health services has been
repeatedly disrupted, creating the conditions to allow preventable diseases to take hold.

International funding must be urgently scaled up to enable sustained investment in primary healthcare and immunization infrastructure.

05/27/2026

Right now, more than 400 million children living in or fleeing conflict zones risk losing access to safe learning, emotional support, and opportunities to play.

But play is one of the most powerful tools children have to learn, heal, and build resilience, and we're committed to making sure children in crisis can access it.

Since 2019, the IRC and The LEGO Foundation have been bringing play-based learning to children affected by conflict and crisis, reaching more than 7 million children across 12 countries.

Now, a renewed $97 million, five-year partnership will help us reach 5 million children across East Africa and the Middle East—embedding proven early learning approaches into national systems that already serve children and families, so the impact lasts.

Swipe to see how the IRC is partnering with The LEGO Foundation to reach millions of children 👉

05/26/2026

The warning signs are incredibly clear: without urgent international action, this could become the deadliest Ebola outbreak on record.

This outbreak can still be contained, but only if governments, donors, UN agencies and humanitarian organizations urgently work together alongside the Africa Centre for Disease Control and Prevention to support frontline responders and affected communities.

Visit Rescue.org to learn more about how we’re aiding in the response to this Ebola outbreak and donate to support our work.

05/22/2026

Martin arrived in Uganda as a refugee from South Sudan. Today, he is a community health volunteer who knocked on doors to contain a measles outbreak, reaching over 1,000 of his neighbors.

His work is part of a larger effort in the Palabek settlement of Uganda, which is home to over 97,000 refugees.

The pressure on local health infrastructure has been immense, and a single untreated case of measles or mpox can become a neighborhood-wide emergency within days.

To address this, the IRC trained 148 volunteers and local leaders to spot and stop outbreaks early, with support from EU Civil Protection & Humanitarian Aid.

When a new mpox outbreak hit the settlement, the community was ready. More than 5,000 people were reached, and no deaths were recorded during this period.

Martin knows the secret to success: trust. When one of his task force stands up at a community gathering to explain what mpox looks like and how to prevent it, people listen—because these are not strangers—they are community members who have been through the same things.

05/20/2026

At the Cox’s Bazar refugee camps in Bangladesh, giving birth can be life-threatening.

Complex socio-religious superstitions, such as those that make husbands skeptical of blood transfusions and C-sections, put the lives of countless mothers and newborns at risk.

A deep-seated mistrust in hospital births and other cultural stigmas around sexual and reproductive health, lead to preventable difficulties—and in multiple instances, to avoidable deaths—during pregnancy and childbirth.

Many rely on home births without professional medical support, which in turn increases the risk of pre-and-post natal complications that can quickly become fatal. The consequences are devastating: hemorrhage, infection, and other preventable conditions remain leading causes of death for mothers and infants in crisis settings like this one.

The story of 27 year old Burmese refugee, Samira, demonstrates how the simple decision of administering a blood transfusion can be crucial to the survival of mothers and their children.

The IRC, through critical funding from the EU in Emergencies, is working directly with affected communities to close the gap in sexual and reproductive health care provision and awareness.

Read more about how IRC midwives are saving the lives of mothers and babies despite ongoing challenges: https://www.rescue.org/eu/article/how-irc-midwives-are-protecting-mothers-and-newborns-worlds-largest-refugee-camp

05/19/2026

As Ebola cases spread across eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and in Uganda, the IRC has launched a response to protect vulnerable communities and support an already overstretched health system.

Here's what you need to know ➡️

05/14/2026

Recent clashes in Chad’s Lake province are placing already vulnerable communities at even greater risk—triggering a new wave of displacement and leaving families with increasingly little means to survive.

After more than 15 years of crisis, the situation remains acute. Already facing a food deficit, the province has been severely affected by the conflict: internally displaced people have been deprived of their livelihoods, particularly access to fishing grounds and fertile land. Malnutrition levels continue to rise and access to basic services is severely limited.

With support from the EU Civil Protection & Humanitarian Aid, our teams are providing essential health services to displaced communities, but further funding is urgently needed to reach people with vital assistance.

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