Double your contribution to Haiti relief efforts!

I know that we all probably feel like we wish that we could do more to help the victims of the Haitian earthquake than just donate money, but right now it’s all we can do, and so I think it’s our duty to give as generously as we possibly can.  The Canadian government is currently matching donations made to Haiti relief efforts - details can be found here.  The government will match up to $50 million.  I’d like to think that each and every penny of that alloted money will be spent, thanks to the generosity of Canadians. In order to qualify, you must be a Canadian citizen and donations must by made by February 12.  Don’t miss out on the opportunity to double your contribution!  And remember, the more you give, the more money our government will donate.

If you’re living on a budget or fixed income, consider what you could give up for a week or month in order to make room in the budget for the gift. Could you sacrifice your clothing budget just for one month? Nix going to the bar with friends and stay in, instead? Give up your coffee habit from Tim Hortons and drink a home brew for 30 days?  Gail has some good suggestions on her recent post, “make do month,” on how to have fun by living more simply and frugally this January.  These little pleasures seem so frivolous, and sacrificing them pales humbly in comparison when you start to think about the tragedy and human suffering that is happening right now.  It’s not too much to ask, is it?

Get your friends or family in on the action, too, and you’ll make even more of an impact.

To donate to the Red Cross’s Haiti effort, click here.

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Update:

I haven’t had a chance to sit down and thoughtfully respond to the comments provided, but I’d like to finally take the opportunity to do so.   Rather than writing a whole new post, I thought I’d simply elaborate on my thoughts about giving locally versus globally.

There are inherent problems in distributing aid, but this is the nature of the beast. Working with local and national governments with problematic political structures, making sure aid gets to the right people, working with funding and mandate restrictions - these are but some of the problems that international aid agencies face. And the truth is, we share many similar problems right here at home.  Local organizations also face challenges when it comes to funding restrictions.  In order to get funding, nonprofits often have to prioritize certain goals that aren’t necessarily the most beneficial to the community.  And, unfortunately, some individuals are given more than their fair share of aid while others suffer in silence.  This is the tip of the iceberg. There are always problems, at home or abroad, when it comes to redistributing money.

But I believe that our role, as donors, is not to just give up on the cause, but to do our research and choose the most trustworthy organizations we can. No organization is perfect, and every time money changes hands there is a risk that some of it will be spent in a way we would not like. But by choosing organizations that are reputable, we can reduce the risk. And I should offer a caveat - when I say do your research, I mean hands-on research; be skeptical of media publications that tend to demonize NGOs. Most journalists do not have a great understanding of how funding works. The Red Cross got a bad rap a while back for not spending all the money on the tsunami in the year it happened, but the public is unaware that most NGOs have funding restrictions on when and how they spend the money.

I believe that supporting local organization is important, and am currently working for a local organization and seeing first hand how important it is for donors to give locally.  But I also believe that we are bound, as ethical human beings, to give globally. We are global citizens. We are all the same, none less deserving of basic human rights. We have a responsibility to look outside our worlds of comfort and give to those who have not had the fortitude of being born in a country where there are no earthquakes or civil war. Even selfishly, we are global citizens - our economy and environment are deeply connected to the rest of the world, so even if we want to escape into nationalistic narcissism, it is better not to from a self-preservationist point of view.

I’ve been working and researching in the nonprofit sector for nine years now. Having worked for both national and local organizations, I can tell you that giving to national organizations who have regional chapters (such as the Salvation Army) does not necessarily mean your money stays in the area from which it came. I can’t guarantee this is true of the Salvation Army, but in my experience of working for national organizations, they like the locals to think that their money stays in their community, but it does not. It becomes one big pool (province-wide, mind you) that is then distributed based on its annual priorities.

Personally, I give locally, nationally and internationally.  I have a couple local organizations in particular which are unique and which I’m proud to support.  I’m lucky because i have enough friends working overseas doing international aid work themselves that I hear first hand experiences with certain international aid agencies, which goes along way in building trust. But there are always ways to get more involved, including speaking directly to people who work there, and better yet, getting an insider’s perspective by volunteering.

The Canadian government pledged $555 million to Haiti over 5 years, back in 2006.  I’m proud that the government has removed the $50 million cap on doubling the contributions.

To read updates from MSF click here.