SAN FRANCISCO—Since 2018, Airbnb has partnered with Polaris–an anti-trafficking organization and operator of the U.S. Human Trafficking Hotline–to combine its expertise with the innovation and scale of the sharing economy to take a modern approach to preventing modern slavery. Airbnb and Polaris are expanding this partnership to bolster these efforts around the globe.
In 2020, Airbnb is redoubling its work through an expanded partnership to broaden its training to hosts, guests and additional Airbnb employees. For hosts and guests, Airbnb will work with Polaris to develop both in-person and virtual training to help the community understand how trafficking happens and what might be cause for concern, as well as action steps to report suspected trafficking. Airbnb will also be updating its employee training to include its global customer support hubs, its engineering teams and local employees who interact directly with its user community. Newly developed curriculum will be tailored to support its global expansion and ensure meaningful impact.
“Human trafficking is an incredibly complex issue that does not lend itself to quick and easy answers. The depth of Airbnb’s commitment is exactly what is necessary to make a real dent in the scope of this global tragedy,” said Nancy McGuire Choi, CEO of Polaris.
Through this partnership, Airbnb has worked with Polaris on key initiatives:
- Establishing a robust training curriculum for Airbnb’s customer support agents and crisis managers to assist the identification of possible signs of exploitation and improve the reporting of potential trafficking
- Developing smart protocols to share learnings and support its cooperation with law enforcement
- Designing new methods to better flag possible exploitation on Airbnb before it happens, while still respecting and maintaining the privacy of hosts and guests
- Convening a range of companies and local anti-human trafficking experts to explore new areas of collaboration to strengthen the private sector’s efforts in combating trafficking