2 Billion Kilometers to Safety

What is 2 Billion Kilometres to Safety?

2 Billion Kilometres to Safety is a global movement in solidarity with families forced to flee their homes. Refugees cover 2 billion kilometres every year in the search for safety—and we challenged everyone to contribute their steps to help reach this distance together. With your enormous support, we have together covered over 34 million kilometres, showing refugees they are not alone.

Why is the website closing?

We are closing the 2 Billion Kilometres to Safety website to focus on raising much needed funds to help refugees protect themselves and their families against coronavirus.

Reaching 2 billion kilometres was always an ambitious target. At the start of 2020, with an active group of 111,000 people walking and running with refugees we were gaining distance daily but were still a long way off our target. This is a sobering reminder of the staggering amount of kilometres that refugees cover each year to reach safety.

Then in March 2020, the global coronavirus pandemic changed the way we all live and work. Staying inside became crucial to protect ourselves and others and the kilometres gained as a part of this movement understandably stalled as a result.

Coronavirus has also changed the way that we must show our support for refugees. UNHCR’s number one priority is, and always has been, the protection of people forced to flee. This campaign has helped raise a huge amount of awareness of the refugee situation—but we now need to go further.

I have contributed many kilometres already. How have I helped?

Thank you so much for showing your solidarity with refugees! You have joined people from 188 countries stepping with refugees and your posts on social media have a combined reach of over 200 million people! Together we have shown refugees that they are not alone and have spread the message of solidarity far and wide.

I still want to contribute my steps

Excellent! We would love for you to continue contributing your steps in solidarity with refugees. We are launching the new and improved Step With Refugees site (coming soon!)—a chance to challenge yourself to match the distance covered by a refugee to seek safety. We will provide more information this new initiative soon.

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