Can Crowdfunding Save Europe

(Newswire.net — September 21, 2015) NV, Las Vegas — Last week, an image broke the hearts of millions of people around the world and a small three-year-old child became the heart-wrenching poster child for the refugee crisis currently gripping Europe.

The photo of little Aylan Kurdi’s body washed ashore on the beach of a Turkish resort town came to represent the desperation of thousands of migrants from Africa and the Middle East flooding European cities, fleeing war and poverty and desperate for freedom and a chance to work.

The picture of Aylan, a Syrian refugee, quickly started trending on Twitter with the hashtag, “KiyiyaVuranInsanlik,” which means “humanity washed ashore.” The image may be overly graphic, but because it was focused on an individual, as opposed to a group like the photo above, it struck a chord in the hearts of many people from Europe and abroad.

Since then, the topic of refugees has been at the forefront of conversations from the political arena to the dinner table.

While everyone agrees something must be done, the direction countries and NGO’s are taking is diverse. Who doens’t want to help end the suffering of those from war-torn countries and give them a chance at a life most of us take for granted.

Norwegian billionaire Petter Stordalen is one of those people who is intent upon making a difference and has generously donated 5,000 free nights in his hotel chain to refugees. In the past week alone, he has taken in at least 50 refugees in 35 rooms at his Quality Hotel Airport Gardermoen, outside Oslo.

“The world is seeing the biggest humanitarian crisis in Europe since World War 2,” Stordalen said. ”It’s impossible not to be affected by the human tragedy and by what’s occurring in the Middle East.”

Elsewhere, people have turned to Crowfunding to help.

The Calais Migrant Crisis raised well over their $772 target to take aid to camps in Calail.

“Yesterday 6 of us in 2 vans did the trip across the channel,” their update reads. “It was a success and we were able to drop everything off at the building all the aid is stored at. We then spent some time in the jungle, meeting people and finding out ways in which we could help. I’ll be returning mid Sept for a few days.”

Meanwhile, a couple has already raised over $10,000 in their bid to bring a family of refugees from Syria to Barrie in Central Ontario, Canada.

The couple is hoping to sponsor a family of four.

These are just two of numerous campaigns that are currently featured.

Jim Graham, a crowdfunding expert, who is launching the highly anticipated Kickstarter Millionaire program this money, which shows ordinary people how to use crowdfunding and outsourcing to rake in significant money, says he expects this trend of people turning to crowdfunding for cause-driven issues to not only continue, but flourish.

“Crowdfunding provides the perfect platform for those who don’t have money, but want to help, really make a difference,” Graham says.

“If you have a real desire to make an impact and help for the good of the world, then chances are, others will believe in you and back your campaign. Crowdfunding can help ordinary people do extraordinary things. ”

While crowdfunding for charity is not a new concept, the platforms and a strong foundation of social media is giving non-profits a much needed push to benefit their causes. From international crises

Humanity, it seems can be very kind.

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