We are in the middle of the greatest displacement of people in history. Of the more than 70 million people displaced from their homes globally, the largest growing number are refugees from Venezuela. Nearly 15 per cent of the country has fled, seeking safety and asylum elsewhere. For LGBTQ+ refugees, safety is elusive. Today in The Conversation Canada, Yvonne Su of the University of Guelph tells us about the only dedicated centre for LGBTQ+ refugees in Latin America: Casa Miga, which has limited space and resources.

Already isolated and vulnerable, it seems to me that LGBTQ+ refugees (really, all refugees) shouldn’t have to go it alone. Canada has been willing to jump in where the crisis calls for it. Canadians have overwhelmed the government with demand so we can privately sponsor refugees. Syrian refugees have come by the thousands, and found jobs and homes across the country. And in 2017, the Canadian government worked with Rainbow Railroad (an organization that evacuates queer refugees from dangerous countries) to extract 42 Chechen refugees during Russia’s deadly crackdown on queer Chechens. Casa Miga may be remote but its problems are everyone’s.

Also today:

• How to make the dreaded task of data entry less despised
• A Finnish phenomenon: Where students learn how to ask, not only answer, questions
• Insects, seaweed and lab-grown meat could be the foods of the future

Regards,