Giving Compass' Take:

• Ashley Post writes on her own experiences with the devastating earthquake in Haiti and Hurrican Matthew and provides five things for donors to consider when supporting disaster relief and recovery. 

• How can donors better prioritize vulnerable populations after natural disasters? 

• Learn more about research that can help donors make the most impact in disaster giving.

Natural disasters and humanitarian crises are a recurring issue in many developing countries. Even the United States has been plagued with major hurricanes, tornadoes, and fires in recent years. With each passing year, organizations that serve these areas diligently prepare for the worst and hope for the best. For donors, it can feel overwhelming to research and choose an organization to support in the wake of a crisis. As one of Charity Navigator’s Top 10 Disaster Relief Organizations, we’re happy to share our best advice with you today on how organizations and donors can be good partners during humanitarian disasters.

At its core, a humanitarian response requires quickly developing efficiencies, sharing best practices among organizations/governmental agencies, and learning from past mistakes. At Hope for Haiti, for example, we adjusted our core programmatic approach after the Haiti Earthquake in 2010 based on what we learned during relief efforts. Following Hurricane Matthew in 2016, we were able to apply much of what we learned about logistics, donor communication, and balancing immediate disaster response with long-term recovery. We believe there is always room for improvement, and that’s why we’ve listed some things to consider when supporting relief efforts below:

  1. First, look to local organizations that are already on the ground.
  2. Pay attention to accountability, transparency, and governance.
  3. Support organizations that have short, medium, and long-term plans for disaster
    response.
  4. Don’t send things that aren’t needed.
  5. Follow up on how your support was used if you don’t hear back.

Read the full article about supporting disaster relief and recovery by Ashley Post at Charity Navigator.