Response to Editorial

With all the talk that has and will be going on in the classroom about volunteering, I thought it was only appropriate to respond to this article, entitled “How you can help Japan, and why you should”:

http://www.stanforddaily.com/2011/03/28/op-ed-how-you-can-help-japan-and-why-you-should/

This article basically covers which sort of relief organizations are out there working to help the affected area, what they do, and which organizations would make the best use of our donations. Immediately following the disaster, I donated some of my money to the American Red Cross, only to be yelled at by my mom. As the head of a non-profit organization, she is appalled at how much money the directors of the Red Cross get paid each year, and has sort of been against them despite what they do. Looking back on it now, I realize I should have done more research on the various organizations and what they do rather than donating to the most obvious/available choice. I agree with this article that local organizations “on the scene” have a better understanding of situation, and therefore would most likely put the donation money to better use than other organizations. It’s fantastic that so many people had it in their hearts to donate, but I wonder how much of our money is used effectively given that large groups such as the Red Cross have to deal with overhead charges and must pay fuel costs when sending over people and supplies. It also never occurred to me that these smaller local organizations will be on the scene long after the Red Cross and other groups are gone, and so it is important to fund these groups to ensure that the relief effort can continue and be effective as long as necessary.  As the article states: “By knowing as much as you can about the organizations to which you donate, you can ensure that your money will be sent to those with the greatest need and with the greatest efficiency”, and I really appreciate that the author(s) took the time to investigate such agencies and make them better known to the public. This article was extremely informative and I wish I would have read it or similar articles when I was first donating after the crisis.

On another note, I had never thought about how a country’s resources and level of development could affect how donations are used and how effective the donations are. Although I wouldn’t wish a disaster of this magnitude on anyone, I am curious to see how lesser-developed areas would distribute and utilize large monetary donations during a time of crisis. If an area is devastated, for example, but they do not have skilled doctors, access to markets/stores to purchase supplies, or necessary equipment, how would the money be used? How would the country care for its injured people, and how would they work on rebuilding the infrastructure of a large area? The money could possibly be used to immediately help displaced people (i.e. provide food, clothing, etc.), but I wonder to what degree the donations would benefit the nation in the long-run. Perhaps in this scenario using donations to fund skilled physicians, construction workers, etc. and the purchase of advanced machinery to send to the affected area would be more practical. The north of Japan has suffered a great tragedy, but luckily the rest of Japan and its skilled people, along with people from around the world are here to support and rebuild the affected area. Recovery may be slow, but I am confident that one day not too far in the future Japan will be restored to its original glory.