Google to help United Nations track refugees

Mountain View-based Google is working with the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees on a mapping service that tracks the movement of refugees. The project is expected to help humanitarian work by focusing attention on millions of refugees who have been forced from their homes because of hardship or violence. “All of the things that we do for refugees in the refugee camps around the world will become more visible,” U.N. Deputy High Commissioner for Refugees L. Craig Johnstone said. Google Earth can be focused on areas such as Darfur, Iraq and Colombia, and the U.N. will provide information on the problems faced by refugees.