There are a number of factors, both internal and external, but the one I am going to focus on in this piece is the crippling effect of hand-outs, sometimes labeled as charity.

The people in the poorest parts of the country have been so poor for so long, and the subject of so many bonos and charitable projects, that they don’t know how to pull themselves out of where they are anymore. My town has had a Peace Corps Volunteer consistently for the past 10 years. I can tell you about every single one of my predecessors without even having met them.

When I leave, the expectation is that another volunteer will be sent to replace me, even though the truth is that this is no guarantee. When rural communities see someone from an international organization coming, there are people ready with their hands out because clearly the organization has something to give. Aid and donations have become an expectation, something the people here have grown to depend on. This is bad.

This side-effect of charity and prolonged poverty is called the “poverty of the mind.” Donation drives and short-term service trips can be a great boost to a community if the projects are well-organized and partner well with the community. However, there are many haphazard efforts that breed the dependence and desperation that many people here suffer from. For example:

Medical Brigades come, do their thing, and then they leave. Sometimes it’s years before the next one comes through town. Don’t get me wrong, they offer a great service, especially since they also provide access to treatments that some people would never see otherwise, however it is not improving healthcare. There was a kid who had waited 3 years for a dental brigade to come through my town because the last brigade had not been able to extract his tooth properly. Some brigades are well-organized and provide a great service, others are not and, as exemplified by this kid’s tooth situation, there is not a whole lot of consistency. These brigades are a nice band-aid, but the real issue here is consistent access to healthcare and the quality of healthcare received.

Big projects come through and build roads and latrines, but don’t show the people how they did it or how to maintain it. In 5 years, the latrines no longer function properly and the roads are filled with potholes. The people are back where they started. The same goes with food donations. There are donations of rice and beans that are sometimes sold to buy soda and junk food (no joke).

In contrast, there is the example of Manzaragua. This village nearby my site is considered relatively prosperous because they are successful producers of various crops which drive their local economy. Why? An agronomist came several years ago and showed them how to diversify what they produce, organize a cooperative to sell their products, and get the most out of their land without damaging it. It is the “teach a man to fish” concept in practice.

Sometimes, donations and bonos (a financial stimulus) are administered through the public sector. The government is not only corrupt, but poorly administered, which means that some families manage to get on several recipient lists, while others don’t even make it onto one; and sometimes, the amount promised is much more than the amount given. Even if the mayor or other community leader is not corrupt, there is still a lack of fundamental organizational skills which often leads to families who are not the intended recipients of certain donated goods walking away with them.

In some communities, medications, toys, and materials that are donated to them for projects are sold to purchase booze, soda, or incredibly large stereo equipment. One aldea (village) here received several materials to improve their houses (cement for the floors, lamina for their roofs, etc.). Not long after, those very same materials were being sold to the ferreterias (hardware stores) in town. The gesture was lost on them.

Charity, while well intentioned, has never been a solution to the problem. It is merely a band-aid. It can be great for the short-term, but it is not always enough and it can actually hinder the long-term solution process. Some people have given up on solving the problems that face their families and communities and have come to rely on aid to get by. I can’t tell you how many times people from my community, intelligent people, have told me, “North Americans are so much smarter than Hondurans because *fill in arbitrary reason here*:

Because we drink purified water, because we can build a church really fast (it’s amazing what teamwork can do), because we exercise, and the list goes on. They have very little faith in their own ability to learn and develop the skills they need to solve their problems because no one has tried to teach them or because they so strongly doubt their capacity to do so.

*      *     *

All of this being said, donations and aid are still necessary. The most frustrating thing about seeing the effects of poorly managed charity efforts is knowing that there are people who really do need the help. Considering all of the issues I just mentioned, there are organizations and initiatives that manage their money well and focus on training and working with communities to implement projects. If you are going to donate to a cause or an organization, do your research.

Some basic questions to ask are:

• What is the organization’s implementation approach? (Do they do projects? Facilitate donations? How do they do what they do?)
• Who are their in-country counterparts? (Do they partner with NGOs? Governments? Community organizations like churches, schools, patronatos, etc.?)
• Is there a capacity-building aspect included in the project? (Do they train local people or do they bring other people in to do the work?)
• How does the organization manage their money? (How much goes toward administration costs (salaries, website, office, etc) versus how much goes toward the projects it implements?)
• If they donate physical materials, investigate who administers the materials and how they are delivered to recipients.

One last note, it is almost always better to donate money rather than objects. Shipping items is more expensive, things invariably get lost, and sometimes you end up with 25 of one thing and only 2 of another. It is generally easier, faster, and more productive for the organization to purchase and transport the supplies they need themselves. This again, is another reason why it is important to know who you are donating to and how they operate.

And, if you are really interested in the cause, whatever it may be, you will do more than donate. You will educate other people about the problem in order to start working on real solutions and empowering those you aim to support.

Amanda is currently a Municipal Development Advisor for the Peace Corps in Honduras. For more on her experiences, check out her blog.

The outpouring of support for the victims of Tuesday’s natural disaster in Haiti has been overwhelming. As we look for ways to help, there are a few things to keep in mind.

Donations

From news reports and our organizational contacts, it seems the logistics of sending aid and support to Haiti is compromised by electrical outages, gas shortages, and destroyed roads. Most organizations have sent small teams of staff and are assessing needs on-the-ground at this point.

As our Director of Volunteerism Initiatives, Erin Barnhart, wrote on YP Nation yesterday: While many are willing and able to volunteer today—ready to hop on a plane to Port-au-Prince and lend a hand however they are needed—the reality is there may not yet be appropriate ways for most people to pitch in, especially in the days immediately following a disaster of this magnitude.

Thus, the fastest and most efficient way to assist disaster victims at this time is to donate money to a reputable charity that is responding to the disaster. Many charities like the Red Cross/Red Crescent, Mercy Corps, and Oxfam specialize in providing relief in acute disaster areas, yet they face significant financial barriers to getting their staff, equipment, and supplies to the affected regions. Other organizations like Partners in Health, UNICEF, and the Grameen Foundation have a long history in Haiti and are positioned to make a huge impact in the aftermath of this week’s disaster. Find other organizations supporting Haiti relief efforts on CNN.com or at Network for Good.

Your donation, no matter how small, helps put experienced disaster responders on the ground, and gives them the tools they need to help victims recover. Be sure that you are taking precautions to donate to a reputable organization. You may want to review this article on internet scams that have arisen surrounding the tragedy in Haiti.

Note that organizations are asking for financial donations—not supplies—because they prefer to purchase exactly what they need from secure supply chains, using delivery means that can ensure the safety of the shipment. Where possible, purchasing materials available locally is also a boon to the local economy in the wake of a natural disaster. Read more about why cash donations are preferred.

Some organizations have organized text messaging donation drives: you can text “Haiti” to 90999 to donate $10 to the Red Cross; text “Yele” to 501501 to donate $5 to Yele; or text “HAITI” to 25383 to donate $5 to the International Rescue Committee. Organizations should send you a text to confirm that you want to donate, and if you accept, the amount will appear on your next cell phone bill – which you can use as your receipt for tax purposes. These have been very popular and successful; however, it is worth considering that the money may take up to 90 days to reach the people and efforts on the ground, as there are processed through the cell phone company and possibly other parties. Read more here.

Volunteering Locally to Support Efforts in Haiti

If you are not in a financial position to donate, you can still help the relief effort in a variety of ways, often right in your own community. Most organizations don’t want to receive supplies such as clothing, but you can post a donation banner for an organization you support on your blog or website, volunteer at the local office of a charity that has sent staff to the affected area, or organize initiatives in your community that raise awareness about, and funding for, the relief effort.

Such efforts shouldn’t be downplayed: raising money, spreading awareness, or lobbying community leaders to support the relief effort can all generate tangible results for disaster victims. Check out our section on DIY volunteering for tips on how to create your own volunteer project, or visit Idealist in NYC for a list of drives and events being organized in New York City.

Volunteering in Haiti

If you are mainly interested in volunteering on the ground in Haiti right now:

* Please be patient. Volunteer managers are likely overwhelmed by the outpouring of goodwill and may be unprepared to receive the numbers of people stepping forward to help out. It will take a long time for Haiti to dig out from this disaster, and the long-term volunteering needs will become more apparent as the months (and years) pass. We recommend that you continue to check Idealist.org over the coming weeks and months for these kinds of opportunities. You can search for volunteer opportunities on the site by clicking on Find Volunteer Opportunities, and/or read more about Disaster Relief Volunteering.
* [UPDATE] As far as we know, Partners in Health and Doctors Without Borders are faced with long waiting lists of physicians who want to travel to Haiti. They ask that you please consider a monetary donation for now instead.
* Volunteers with “needed skills” can also register for possible volunteer positions at the Center for International Disaster Information’s registration page.

Talking money with the carpenter who builds things for my classroom, such as this easel.

For every traveler or volunteer living in an impoverished country, the question of money donations arises.  The sad-looking woman with her tiny baby and the plastic bowl for coins by her side on the street; the man with one leg and his hand out….these are the obvious ones, and each person decides for him or herself whether to drop a coin in, or not.

I understand there is no social security disability payment in Guate for those not previously regularly employed (70% of the population or more,) thus sitting in the street may be the only avenue for some disabled folks, and even some who are simply unable to find work. On the streets of Antigua, where I walked to the market nearly every day, there was a line of these folks, somewhat evenly spaced.  I became acquainted with several in my passing over a year and a half’s time and there were always smiles and greetings, whether I gave or not.  I simply decided that I would give when I felt to do so – maybe when I had coins accessible or hadn’t given recently – but I would always smile and say “Hola” and always chose to treat them like human beings.

So you make the decision to give or not give money and/or food based on your philosophy, your feelings, and of course, your ability.  Harder is the situation that arises when you actually live in an emerging country and get to know the people well.   And the better you know them, the more likely you are to hear their stories: “My wife needs to go to the doctor, she is in so much pain”  or “I can’t pay the mortgage because I lost two months work when I had appendicitis.” They don’t throw the stories at you and there isn’t a direct request…but how can you let your friend’s mortgage lapse, or their wife go without medical care? Worse yet, their child? And you have the money in the bank, or in your pocket. You know you do, and they probably know you do. What do you do? So far, I’ve given. And in each of these cases, I haven’t regretted it – although of course when the day comes to repay, it’s just as hard for them to repay as it was for them to come up with the money in the first place.

Probably the best advice is don’t do it; money between friends is difficult, in any country.

And if you do, be clear that it’s a loan, not a gift, and set a date for repayment, or probably better yet, find some non-monetary way they can repay you e.g. some work that you need and they can do.

In the case of the projects I work with, I find money is the last resort. I’d much rather do something to help – translate, write flyers for their activities in English and distribute them in local hotels, give guidance (when asked) based on what I know about good organization and procedure. But at my school it’s all about materials, especially good children’s books in Spanish, wooden puzzles, etc…-  things which are simply unobtainable here. Thank Heavens for my benefactors; I run through my own money pretty quickly.