Bruce and Mary Louise Cohen first became a team, and couple, when they met on Capitol Hill. After serving as a partner at two large law firms, Bruce worked as Chief Counsel for the Senate Judiciary Committee under Senator Patrick Leahy of Vermont. Mary Louise Cohen, a founding partner at a DC law firm, has worked toward social justice in a number of ways including co-founding the Batonga Foundation, a non-profit focusing on secondary education for girls in Africa, and working with a Georgetown oncologist to create a program that treats Ethiopian children who are battling cancer.

When Bruce and Mary Louise decided it was time to take a step back from their current work, their son suggested a program at Harvard attended by his friend’s parents. In 2014, the Cohens became one of the first couples to both be fellows at Harvard’s Advanced Leadership Initiative (ALI). 

With an interest in continuing Bruce’s work on comprehensive immigration reform, the Cohens explored several potential projects. But after Eric Cantor, one of the few Republican House members supporting immigration reform, was defeated in his primary, Mary Louise recognized that, “Immigration reform is dead.” A week later, while supporting a friend at a fundraiser for Syrian refugees, they learned about the high number of skilled professionals being displaced. The mission for Talent Beyond Boundaries (TBB) became clear: help refugees find security through their skills and talents.   

The International Labour Organization (ILO) and The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) had considered labor mobility by looking at the issues from the top down --envisioning complicated agreements between governments.   In contrast, the Cohens believed that for TBB to be successful, they would need to work from the bottom up—relying on the private sector to demonstrate the viability of the project.

When they finished their fellowship at ALI, the Cohens started their ground research in Beirut, meeting refugees and refugee-serving organizations. With the assistance of the U.S. Ambassador to Lebanon, the Cohens had a successful meeting with the UN Refugee Agency, UNHCR, which provided aggregate data confirming the large numbers of skilled refugees in Lebanon.

They next traveled to Geneva and discussed the project with UNHCR, including the need to address refugee protection concerns.  Those discussion resulted in a formal cooperation agreement between UNHCR and TBB.  Finally, with TBB up and running, the Cohens hired not only experienced individuals, but refugees, including the UK director, a Bosnian refugee, and a Syrian refugee who helped build their digital database of skilled refugees in the Middle East.

So far TBB has helped more than 300 people secure a solution to displacement, and has relocated families to Australia, Canada, and the UK. Families relocated through TBB see an increase of 750 percent in their income, and 60 percent of relocated candidates are able to send remittances to their extended families in difficult circumstances. The progress continues with 206 people currently in the visa application process (96 principal applicants and 110 dependents). The governments of Australia, Canada and the UK have commited to issuing 800 economic visas to skilled refugees over the next two years as they continue to expand refugee labor mobility pathways. Including family members these commitments can result in more than 3,000 people moving to secure and productive lives.

TBB is seeking to change the narrative around refugees from one solely focused on vulnerability and need to one that recognizes the talents refugees possess and that they are assets to companies and communities. When governments make economic immigration pathways accessible to skilled refugees, everyone benefits.

During the pandemic, TBB’s momentum in places like Australia and Canada was slowed dramatically because of travel bans. Economies took a hit, so fewer employers were interested in hiring. But the pandemic also turned out to be an accelerator for learning about essential workers and where there were shortages. In the UK, TBB now has a contract to bring in 180 refugee nurses. The Cohens also pivoted during the pandemic to focus on the organization’s goals and advancement, including fundraising. The Cohens were able to step back from day-to-day operations with the help of co-CEOs and directors in each of TBB’s locations.

The Cohens are confident TBB’s mission will succeed because of the glaring need for additional solutions for refugees, the support earned from UNHCR and the growing interest of other organizations and governments.  TBB was named a finalist in the recent Larsen Lam ICONIQ Impact competition and ultimately received a grant of $1.25 million. Their long-term plan isn’t necessarily to keep expanding TBB as an organization, but rather to achieve their mission by encouraging and helping others take of the work of identifying skilled refugees and matching them with employers needing to fill skill gaps.  The Cohens believe that TBB demonstrates the power of labor migration as a solution for refugees with skills, and they hope to inspire more refugee-serving organizations, like RefugePoint, HIAS and others. Ultimately, success would be when TBB is no longer needed and can go out of business. As Mary Louise puts it: “We want to build the highway and other people can drive down it.”