About two years ago, I got a phone call that changed my life.
大約兩年前, 我接到了一通改變我人生的電話。
"Hey, this is your cousin Hassen."
「嘿,我是你的表親哈辛。」
I froze. You see, I have well over 30 first cousins, but I didn't know anybody named Hassen.
我呆住了。 我有超過三十個表兄弟姐妹, 但沒有一個叫做哈辛的。
It turned out that Hassen was actually my mom's cousin and had just arrived in Montreal as a refugee. And over the next few months, I would have three more relatives coming to Canada to apply for asylum with little more than the clothes on their back. And in the two years since that phone call, my life has completely changed. I left academia and now lead a diverse team of technologists, researchers and refugees that is developing customized self-help resources for newcomers. We want to help them overcome language, cultural and other barriers that make them feel like they've lost control over their own lives. And we feel that AI can help restore the rights and the dignity that many people lose when seeking help.
後來才知道, 哈辛其實是我母親的表親, 剛剛以難民的身分抵達蒙特婁。 在接下來幾個月, 我還會有三個親戚 來加拿大申請庇護權, 行李可能只比背上 背的衣物多一點點。 接到那通電話的兩年後, 我的人生完全改變了。 我離開了學術界, 現在在領導一個多樣化的團隊, 有技術人員、研究者,以及難民, 我們的工作是 為新移民開發客製化的自助資源。 我們想要協助他們克服 語言、文化,及其他障礙, 他們才不會覺得失去了 對自己人生的掌控權。 我們覺得,人工智慧 可以協助許多人恢復 他們在尋求協助時 失去的權利和尊嚴。
My family's refugee experience is not unique. According to the UNHCR, every minute, 20 people are newly displaced by climate change, economic crisis and social and political instability. And it was while volunteering at a local YMCA shelter that my cousin Hassen and other relatives were sent to that we saw and learned to appreciate how much effort and coordination resettlement requires.
我家人的難民經驗並不獨特。 根據聯合國難民署, 每分鐘,就有二十個人 被迫離開家園, 原因包括氣候變遷、經濟危機, 以及社會和政治局勢不穩定。 我們在當地的基督教青年會 庇護所當志工時, 我的表親哈辛及其他親戚被送到那裡, 那時我們才了解到重新安置難民 需要多少努力以及協調, 並學會感念這一切。
When you first arrive, you need to find a lawyer and fill out legal documents within two weeks. You also need to schedule a medical exam with a pre-authorized physician, just so that you can apply for a work permit. And you need to start looking for a place to live before you receive any sort of social assistance.
剛抵達時,你得要找一個律師, 在兩星期內填寫完一些法律文件。 你得要安排一次醫療檢查, 且要由有授權的醫生來進行, 這樣你才能夠申請工作許可。 你也得開始找地方住, 要取得任何一種社會協助 都會需要地址。
With thousands fleeing the United States to seek asylum in Canada over the past few years, we quickly saw what it looks like when there are more people who need help than there are resources to help them. Social services doesn't scale quickly, and even if communities do their best to help more people with limited resources, newcomers end up spending more time waiting in limbo, not knowing where to turn.
過去幾年間,有數千人逃離美國, 到加拿大尋求庇護, 這讓我們很快就看見了 當需要協助的人很多, 能協助他們的資源很少時, 會是怎樣的狀況。 社會服務無法快速擴大規模, 就算社區全力而為, 用有限的資源來協助更多人, 新移民最後仍有更長的時間 處在被孤立邊緣, 不知道要向誰求助。
In Montreal, for example, despite millions of dollars being spent to support resettlement efforts, nearly 50 percent of newcomers still don't know that there are free resources that exist to help them with everything from filling out paperwork to finding a job. The challenge is not that this information doesn't exist. On the contrary, those in need are often bombarded with so much information that it's difficult to make sense of it all. "Don't give me more information, just tell me what to do," was a sentiment we heard over and over again. And it reflects how insanely difficult it could be to get your bearings when you first arrive in a new country. Hell, I struggled with the same issues when I got to Montreal, and I have a PhD.
比如,在蒙特婁, 儘管有數百萬美元被用在 支持重新安置難民的措施上, 仍然有近五成的新移民不知道 他們其實可以取得免費資源, 獲得各方面的協助, 從填寫文件到找工作等等。 困難之處並不在於資訊不存在。 正好相反,那些有需求的人, 受到太多資訊的轟炸, 讓他們很難從中理出頭緒。 「別再給我更多資訊了, 直接告訴我該怎麼做吧。」 我們不斷聽到類似這樣的意見。 這就反應出了當你初次 抵達一個新國家時, 要適應環境是有多麼困難。 當我來到蒙特婁時, 我也受同樣的問題困擾, 我還有博士學位呢。
(Laughter)
(笑聲)
As another member of our team, himself also a refugee, put it: "In Canada, a SIM card is more important than food, because we will not die from hunger." But getting access to the right resources and information can be the difference between life and death. Let me say that again: getting access to the right resources and information can be the difference between life and death.
我們的團隊中有一名成員 也是難民,他這麼說: 「在加拿大,有一張 SIM 卡 比有食物可吃還重要, 因為我們不會死於飢餓。」 但能否取得對的資源和資訊 可能就是生與死的差別。 讓我再說一次: 能否取得對的資源和資訊 可能就是生與死的差別。
In order to address these issues, we built Atar, the first-ever AI-powered virtual advocate that guides you step-by-step through your first week of arriving in a new city. Just tell Atar what you need help with. Atar will then ask you some basic questions to understand your unique circumstances and determine your eligibility for resources. For example: Do you have a place to stay tonight? If not, would you prefer an all-women's shelter? Do you have children? Atar will then generate a custom, step-by-step to-do list that tells you everything that you need to know, from where to go, how to get there, what to bring with you and what to expect. You can ask a question at any time, and if Atar doesn't have an answer, you'll be connected with a real person who does.
為了處理這些問題, 我們建立了 Atar, 它是史上第一個 人工智慧虛擬律師, 在你剛抵達一個新城市的第一週, 它會一步一步引導你。 只要告訴 Atar 你需要什麼協助。 接著,Atar 會問你 一些基本的問題, 以了解你的個人狀況, 並判斷你是否符合 資源要求的資格。 比如:你今晚有地方過夜嗎? 如果沒有,你是否偏好 去女性專屬的庇護所? 你有孩子嗎? 接著,Atar 會產出步驟清楚的 客製化待辦事項清單, 把你需要知道的一切都告訴你, 從該去哪裡、怎麼去、 要帶什麼去、 及該抱什麼期待。 你隨時可以問問題, 如果 Atar 沒有答案, 你就會被連結到 能夠回答你的真人。
But what's most exciting is that we help humanitarian and service organizations collect the data and the analytics that's necessary to understand the changing needs of newcomers in real time. That's a game changer. We've already partnered with the UNHCR to provide this technology in Canada, and in our work have conducted campaigns in Arabic, English, French, Creole and Spanish.
但最讓人興奮的是, 我們協助人道主義組織及服務組織 收集資料並分析資料, 讓他們能夠了解 新移民隨時在變動的需求, 且這些資訊是即時的。 這能夠改變現有情勢。 我們已經和聯合國難民署合作, 在加拿大提供這項技術, 且我們已經進行了多種語言的活動, 包括阿拉伯語、英語、法語、 克里奧爾語,及西班牙語。
When we talk about the issue of refugees, we often focus on the official statistic of 65.8 million forcibly displaced worldwide. But the reality is much greater than that. By 2050, there will be an additional 140 million people who are at risk of being displaced due to environmental degradation. And today -- that is today -- there are nearly one billion people who already live in illegal settlements and slums. Resettlement and integration is one of the greatest challenges of our time. and our hope is that Atar can provide every single newcomer an advocate. Our hope is that Atar can amplify existing efforts and alleviate pressure on a social safety net that's already stretched beyond imagination. But what's most important to us is that our work helps restore the rights and the dignity that refugees lose throughout resettlement and integration by giving them the resources that they need in order to help themselves.
當我們在談難民的議題時, 我們的焦點通常都在官方統計的 全球 6580 萬名 被強迫離開家園的人。 但現實中的人數比那還要多很多。 到 2050 年,還會有 另外 1 億 4000 萬人 可能會因為環境惡化 而有要離開家園的風險。 現今——是現今——有近 10 億人 已經住在非法的拓居地和貧民窟。 重新安置及整合難民 是我們這個時代最大的挑戰之一。 我們希望 Atar 能為每一位 新移民提供一個律師。 我們希望 Atar 能夠 將既有的努力成果再放大, 減輕社會安全網所承受的壓力, 我們的社會安全網 已經被嚴重過度擴張了。 但對我們來說,最重要的是 我們的所做所為能協助難民 重新取得權利和尊嚴, 這些是他們在重新安置 和整合的過程中所失去的, 而我們的做法,
Thank you.
就是提供他們自助所需要的資源。
謝謝。
(Applause)
(掌聲)