UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador Cate Blanchett discusses plight of refugees at Davos

Australian actress Cate Blanchett attends the annual World Economic Forum (WEF) on January 23, 2018 in Davos, eastern Switzerland. (AFP)
Updated 23 January 2018
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UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador Cate Blanchett discusses plight of refugees at Davos

LONDON: UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador Cate Blanchett spoke about the issues surrounding refugees at the World Economic Forum in Davos on Tuesday, calling for increased solidarity and responsibility sharing to help the 65 million people who have been displaced worldwide, including 22 million refugees.
The award winning Australian actress also condemned her countries own treatment of refugees, calling it “shameful” and an “embarresment”.
Blanchett picked up a Crystal Award on Monday for her leadership in raising awareness of the refugee crisis. The actress is in Davos to talk about her work for UNHCR.

“As a UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador, my job is simple: to help connect people to the human stories of those forced to flee, and to state the case for all of us to stand with refugees,” she said.
The actress explained that a major part of the problem is the misinformation around refugees.
She said that it is the developing world baring the burden while the developed world is being told that refugees, “who have masses to offer, will be a burden.”
You have to remember that these are innocent people," she says.
“The vast majority of them want to go home, but in the meantime, they want to offer something to their host country. But, the numbers are so overwhelming that you need individual stories.”


Recovery of missing dog Boro brings hope after Spain’s train crashes

Updated 22 January 2026
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Recovery of missing dog Boro brings hope after Spain’s train crashes

  • On Thursday, forest firefighters in southern Spain found the black-and-white pooch
  • Photos of Boro, a medium-sized black dog with white eyebrows, went viral

MADRID: After back-to-back fatal train crashes sent shock waves through Spain, some good news arrived on Thursday: Boro, the missing dog, was found.
Days earlier, Boro’s owner Ana García issued a desperate plea to help find him after the dog bolted Sunday in the aftermath of the high-speed train crash in southern Spain that killed at least 45 people. García, 26, and her pregnant sister were traveling with Boro on the train that derailed.
On Thursday, forest firefighters in southern Spain found the black-and-white pooch, and posted images that showed García with one of her legs in a brace embracing Boro. Sitting inside a car, she spoke to reporters.
“Many thanks to all of Spain and everyone who has got involved so much,” she said. “It gave me great hope and we’ve done it.”
The search for Boro appeared to provide Spaniards something to hope for amid the week’s tragedy, and ultimately something to celebrate.


For days, people had rallied online to find him, amplifying García’s call by sharing video of an interview she had given to local media. Photos of Boro, a medium-sized black dog with white eyebrows, went viral alongside phone numbers for García and her family. Spanish television broadcasters and newspapers covered the search.
García, her sister and the dog had been traveling Sunday by high-speed train from Malaga, their hometown in southern Spain, to the capital Madrid, when the tail of their train car jumped the rails for reasons that remain unclear, and smashed into another train.
The collision killed dozens and injured more than 150 people. Rescue crews helped García and her sister out of the tilted train car. That’s when she briefly saw Boro before he ran. She spoke to the cameras with a blanket draped over her shoulders and a bandage on her cheek after Spain’s worst rail accident in more than a decade.
“Please, if you can help, look for the animals,” a limping García told reporters at the time, choked up and holding back tears. “We were coming back from a family weekend with the little dog, who’s family, too.”
On Thursday, she had a bruise beneath her eye but, with Boro back by her side, also a smile plastered across her face.
“Now we have him and we have him for all our life,” García told reporters. “Now let’s go home, buddy.”