Disaster Relief

The far-reaching Gulf oil spill tragedy has left many people feeling powerless to help out. But beyond the official Deep Horizon response, pockets of non-profits and people are starting to use social media tools to organize grassroots activities throughout the Gulf region. Here’s a quick look at four tools and efforts geared towards delivering aid and cleaning up crude oil in local coastal areas.

A grant-making organization founded in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina has started an aggressive fund-raising effort to make sure that grass-roots environmental groups and community organizations along the Gulf Coast have the money they need to respond to the oil spill.

So far, the Gulf Coast Fund for Community Renewal and Ecological Health, a project of Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors, has raised more than $110,000, and has awarded $47,000 in emergency grants to nine grass-roots environmental groups in the region. The fund dipped into its reserves to make the first round of awards.

LEOGANE, Haiti -- Bill Clinton returned to Haiti on a new mission Tuesday to invigorate recovery from January's devastating earthquake and help millions end lives of poverty and danger.

On his first visit since becoming co-chairman of the committee overseeing more than $5.3 billion in international reconstruction aid, the former U.S. president visited the seaside town of Leogane, next to the Jan. 12 epicenter. Less than a fifth of its buildings survived, and thousands of residents are at risk from floods and high winds.

The response from donors following January's earthquake in Haiti came in fast and furious — to the tune of tens of millions of dollars flooding in through every channel imaginable. From online donations to mobile text-to-give to traditional mail, the response was overwhelming. But questions also arose about today's giving environment, especially in a crisis. How do you keep new donors engaged? Is this the sign of a mobile revolution? How can you mobilize funds quickly and efficiently? How do you prepare for emergencies?

April 30, 2010, Miami Herald — Fred Sajous, a Haitian earthquake survivor armed with a video camera and a cause, is a man on a mission: to figure out how the American Red Cross spent the $430 million it raised for the disaster.

The former Broward Community College student visited the tent city across the street from the American Red Cross' Pétionville headquarters. Tent city leaders said they had not received anything from the Red Cross. With the organization's monthly report in hand, he went to a dozen more settlements.

``I couldn't find the $106 million,'' said Sajous, a 29-year-old mechanical engineer who left Fort Lauderdale for Port-au-Prince after being laid off last year. ``I didn't see a single sticker or anything.''

More than three months since the American Red Cross raised hundreds of millions to aid Haiti in the aftermath of the 7.0 earthquake that killed an estimated 300,000 and left 1.3 million homeless, the organization says it has spent about a quarter of the money.

But after consuming $106 million in the first 60 days, the Red Cross in the past month has tapped just $5 million more and has come under fire for what critics call anemic spending.

Other aid groups, members of Congress, bloggers and even a former board member are among the growing chorus asking what the Red Cross is doing with such a massive amount of money raised in such a short time.

April 21, 2010, Press Release — To help prepare their communities for, and respond to, natural and other disasters when and where they strike, the American Red Cross and Cisco today announced the creation of the largest corporate volunteer program in the history of the Red Cross. In an initiative called "Cisco's Ready," modeled after the Red Cross' "Ready When the Time Comes" training program for corporate personnel, Cisco employees around the world are undertaking emergency response training provided by the Red Cross. The announcement was made during 2010 National Volunteer Week.

Cisco employees will train for emergency response with more than 20 Red Cross chapters in the US and affiliates throughout the world. Volunteers will learn about applying essential principles to disaster response; providing mass care related to first aid, shelter, food and supply distribution; and about identifying volunteer opportunities. Trainees will qualify for Red Cross "Fulfilling Our Mission" and "Mass Care" certifications.

"Shame on you, America: the only country where we have homeless without shelter, children going to bed without eating, elderly going without needed meds, and 
mentally ill without treatment — yet we have a benefit for the people of Haiti on 12 TV stations."

When a devastating 7.0 earthquake hit the impoverished island of Haiti last month — causing destruction across the nation — the call for aid went out across the globe. Millions of Haitians were missing, left homeless and in dire need of food, water, shelter and medical attention. Literally millions around the world were quick to respond, and right in the front of the line were the folks at the International Rescue Committee (IRC).