The lives of tens of millions of people around the world are threatened by conflict, ethnic violence, drought and natural disaster. But the response to those needs varies tremendously. For example, Toby Porter, an independent consultant, has calculated that in 1999 the United Nations spent $207 for each person in need in Kosovo, but only $16 per person in Sierra Leone and $8 per person in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Refugees International (RI), a DC-based refugee and IDP advocacy organisation, has launched a new initiative entitled "Forgotten People" about humanitarian emergencies around the world.