How to REALLY Help in Haiti: Ensure that Your Contribution is Helpful instead of Harmful

I've been very frustrated with a lot of the coverage I've seen about Haiti, and I've seen a lot of wonderful, generous people make potentially damaging decisions in how they want to help with the effort in Haiti. I have written a note on how I feel about aid initiatives in Haiti since the international outpouring of generosity has been almost overwhelming - literally. My opinions on this subject are born out of field experience, extensive networking and formal education. I would appreciate it if you read it and spread this knowledge amongst your peers.


It is not uncommon to see an outpouring of grief and compassion from the international community and from individuals across the globe during times of mass casualty. The overwhelming international response to the 7.0 earthquake that hit Haiti on January 12, 2010 is no exception. Just like in the case of the Asian Tsunami of 2004 and the Pakistani earthquakes in 2005, individuals across the globe have demonstrated an astonishing desire to contribute to relief efforts through mass fundraising, individual donations, and warm-hearted gestures of generosity towards the Haitian peoples.

Unfortunately, such generosity can often cause stagnation of relief efforts at the emergency site if they are not properly executed by the proper authorities and using the proper means. Since there is such an outpouring of charity and kindness and a strong desire by so many people to help, I have compiled a list of warnings on how altruistic gestures can backfire and how you can prevent this through your own efforts.

Send Money, and Only Money: In the wake of an emergency such as this, there is often a desire to send supplies to the suffering country. Please do not do this unless specifically requested by an NGO (Non-governmental organization) that you trust, and whose credentials you can verify. You will notice that most major international organizations are not appealing for you to donate goods; they are asking for money. This is not an act of corporate greed and should not be presumed as such. The reality is that in the wake of an emergency, the majority of supplies that we in the Western world may think are required in an emergency situation are often not immediately required on the ground, or are not relevant to the climate and culture of the state in trouble. Items such as diapers, baby food, donated clothing, and even canned foods can lead to stagnation of relief efforts. Ports become clogged with materials that NGOs or the State have to eventually pay duties on, vehicles, aircraft and vessels become swamped with materials that cannot be collected by port authorities on arrival, and field workers are removed from their original positions of front-line humanitarian assistance to sort through items that may just be thrown away because they cannot be used or stored.

It is important to recognize that NGOs with staff deployed in the field are conducting needs-assessments and evaluating what goods are required. With your donated money, they can buy the proper equipment and goods they know they need and which will not impede them from doing their work efficiently. If you cannot provide funds and wish to donate materials to your local NGO, there are many that are requesting specific donations, such as satellite phones with minutes, or surgical supplies. Please donate only the field-specific goods that the NGOs ask for, as sifting through donated materials uses manpower that may be used more effectively elsewhere. At a later date, your donations of other material goods may be needed: Please save them until that time when they are more likely to be used liberally and most importantly, effectively.

Do not earmark funds: Organizations that have deployed staff to the disaster site have a stronger understanding of how and where to spend your monetary donation than you do; please let them make this decision for you. While it may be very generous to donate funds towards a specific geographic area within the disaster, the organization will be required to spend all the earmarked funds in that specific area irrespective of whether the site improves. If a neighbouring area is still in crisis, your earmarked funds cannot be donated to help and will continue to fund programs in the original region you specified them for, potentially leading to more crises in neighbouring regions.

The purpose of your monetary donation is to help individuals in the field provide a maximum of life-saving measures to improve the quality of life of those suffering from the crisis. By being in the field they are better equipped to determine who requires the most help, and what kind of help they need. If you do not believe that the organization you are donating to will use the funds properly, please do not donate to them. Find one you trust and then do it: trust them.

Do not go to the disaster site: While for many people this is obvious, many do-gooders feel that they can best contribute to relief efforts by traveling to the disaster site to provide emergency help. Please do not do this. Haiti does not need “extra hands,” and your well-intentioned presence is not required. Front-line humanitarian aid workers are highly skilled professionals who have been trained to deal with emergency situations – physically and psychologically, but also professionally. In a state of crisis, trained logisticians have a strong understanding of supply-chain management, how to direct goods and how to manage needs in the event of an emergency. If you arrive on-site, your presence is likely to disrupt coordinated relief efforts and you risk hindering the relief process, as well as hurting yourself and/or others.

This rule also applies to trained doctors and nurses. While your skills are absolutely desired, if you arrive on site and are not under the responsibility of a coordinated relief effort, you risk disrupting humanitarian aid and will become a burden for the person who ends up being responsible for you. If you are a medical professional with significant surgical or trauma training and experience and would like to volunteer with the relief effort in Haiti, please contact Partners in Health directly for information. They are seeking anesthesiologists, nephrologists, orthopedic and trauma surgeons, trauma nurses, and surgical technicians.

Do NOT adopt a child: In the wake of a disaster such as Haiti’s, stories of homeless, parentless children left alone to fend for themselves in the rubble are rampant on the internet and in the news. You may feel a strong desire to give an orphaned child a home and to protect him or her from any further danger. However, the reality is that many children “orphaned” by disaster are not actually orphans and indeed have family members who may be frantically looking for them. While you may think that you are being charitable, inter-country adoptions during disasters often encourage the growth of child trafficking. In these cases, seemingly-legitimate organizations arrange for inter-country adoptions in contravention of international laws and may ultimately place the child in grave danger. Inter-country adoptions should never take place during emergency situations precisely because of the instability of the adoption process. If you are interested in helping a child during the emergency, please consider giving generously to UNICEF, Save the Children, Plan International , or War Child. You may also find a charity which suits your needs at Charity Navigator.

Do not forget about Haiti: While the media blitz that has occurred in light of the Haitian earthquake tragedy has raised awareness about poverty and resulted in mass donations from people across the world, it’s important to recognize that the rehabilitation and rebuilding effort will take many years to complete. In time, your material donations may be very valuable and useful to the survivors of the earthquake who will be struggling to obtain more than just basic tools for survival and will need your donated items; please save your goods and give them generously at that time, when they can be used effectively and reach your target audience.

----

The reality is that nobody needs your old sweaters or your canned beans. Please donate cash to an organization you trust instead, and allow them to make the decision for you on how to help according to their long-standing experience and knowledge of disaster recovery and development initiatives. Please also don't hesitate to cross-post this or to inform other individuals accordingly, as misguided material donations can waste hundreds of millions of dollars in post-disaster recovery and harms the very people who you are trying to help.