Why Cash is Best
- Cash allows disaster relief professionals to procure exactly what is needed in a disaster situation.
- Cash is the most efficient donation because it does not use up scarce resources such as transportation routes, staff time, and warehouse space and because it can be transferred very quickly.
- Cash donations do not require transportation costs, which can outweigh the value of materials donated.
- Cash supports the economy of the disaster-stricken region.
- Cash donations prevent culturally, dietary, and environmentally inappropriate giving.
Material Donations Material donations from individuals consist of new or used items that is donated to
a relief effort. If you do decide to donate materials rather than cash, then there are steps you can take to ensure that your donation is made in such a way as to benefit the affected people while avoiding some of the problems often associated with donated material.
- The most important step when donating materials is to contact an established, professional relief organization before you collect anything. For information on how to appropriately donate material, see Appropriate Ways to Make Material Donations.
- If you have already collected material to donate to disaster victims in another country and now can’t find a reputable relief organization to accept it, see Uses for Material Donations for some suggestions.
Volunteering
In the aftermath of humanitarian crises, it is critical that the response of the international community is immediate and well-coordinated in order to save as many lives as possible.
- Volunteers are asked to have previous disaster or international experience, technical skills (for example, medicine, communications, logistics, water/sanitation, engineering, etc.), and are usually from neighboring communities not affected by the disaster.
- Well-intentioned foreigners, lacking technical skills, disaster experience, and familiarity with the local culture and language, can seriously complicate relief efforts.
- Those with technical skills or international experience who would like to volunteer should register with the Center for International Disaster Information (CIDI) after reading this page.
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More Information
American Red Cross
Center for International Disaster Information
Federal Emergency Management Agency
Pan American Health Organization
Lessons Learned
"We have made some people angry in the past by turning down and discouraging their well-intentioned offers of used clothing or canned goods. There is no question in our minds, however, that we have made the right decision. It is as much our duty to educate the public about what is needed and when, as it is to provide assistance to the victims of a disaster."
Jose Aponte
American Red Cross
"The biggest waste of precious time we must invariably deal with in every disaster visible to the public is unsolicited, inappropriate, and unneeded relief commodities. Educating the American public to channel their admirable humanitarian instincts into more productive routes remains one of our most serious challenges."
Andrew Natsios
U.S. Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance
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