Network for Good

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ADRA; The Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) is coordinating with local governmental authorities and hasbeen appointed to support an evacuation enter in Wakabayashi ward located in Sendai City of the Miyagi prefecture. This center is currently housing approximately 1,300 displaced persons of which 350 are receiving 24-hour care. ADRA immediately dispatched a two-ton truck loaded with food and non-food items, fuel and cooking gas, which arrived at the evacuation center in Sendai in the early morning hours on Thursday.

AMERICAN JEWISH JOINT DISTRIBUTION COMMITTEE; JDC’s current, on-the-ground response includes working with Japanese, U.S., and international partners to distribute critically needed food, water, and other emergency supplies in the hardest-hit Miyagi and Fukushima prefectures.

AMERICAN RED CROSS; The American Red Cross is currently supporting and advising the Japanese Red Cross, which continues to assist the government in its response. You can help people affected by disasters, like [floods, fires, tornadoes and hurricanes], as well as countless other crises at home and around the world by making a donation to support American Red Cross Disaster Relief.

AMERICARES; AmeriCares and its relief workers in Japan are working to deliver medicines and supplies to hospitals, shelters and health responders to treat and care for survivors. The AmeriCares team began mobilizing within hours of the first reports of the dual disasters, dispatching an emergency response manager to Tokyo to direct the efforts of our relief workers in Sendai, the largest city closest to the impact zone. Our team is in direct contact with local officials, evacuation shelters and hospitals treating the injured in Miyagi, Fukushima and Iwate to determine health needs.

AMURT; Members of AMURT & AMURTEL’s team in Japan are currently traveling to Sendai with a military convoy to evaluate the situation and make an initial plan to respond to the disaster.

CATHOLIC RELIEF SERVICES; Working in partnership with Caritas Japan to assess the needs in that country where the tsunami has caused extensive damage.

CONVOY OF HOPE; Deployed a team with 100 water filtration systems and have wired funds to in-country partners for the purchase of emergency food and supplies. Because of the radiation threat our team diverted to the Philippines where they are making preparations to ship food and supplies into Tokyo. Convoy of Hope partners in Japan are asking for blankets, tents, food, water and more. Because of the size and scope of the disaster the need for food and supplies will be ongoing. (message from Hal Donaldson, president of Convoy of Hope)

DIRECT RELIEF INTERNATIONAL; Emergency response team has mobilized and will continue to monitor the situation worldwide to provide assistance as appropriate and needed in support of the recovery effort.

EFCA; TouchGlobal Crisis Response is in contact with EFCA ReachGlobal staff in Japan assessing the situation to provide relief to those affected by the Japan earthquake and resulting tsunamis.

GLOBALGIVING; Established a fund to disburse donations to organizations providing relief and emergency services to victims of the earthquake and tsunami. We are working with International Medical Corps, Save the Children, and other organizations on the ground to provide support. Our partners on the ground are working hard to provide immediate relief.

INTERNATIONAL MEDICAL CORPS; A team of doctors is now accessing isolated communities north of Sendai that have not yet been reached. We are finding shortages in water, food, fuel, and medicine, as well as an acute need for mental health support for survivors. We continue to coordinate with local health authorities and partners on critical gaps, providing technical expertise and assisting with logistics.

INTERNATIONAL RESCUE COMMITTEE; Supporting the relief efforts of Japanese aid groups assisting survivors of Friday’s powerful earthquake and tsunami in ravaged northeastern Japan.

ISLAMIC RELIEF USA; Emergency teams are on standby to deploy to Japan and we're also preparing to channel aid through partner agencies on the ground.

LIONS CLUB INTERNATIONAL; Providing over US$1.25 million, or 100 million Japanese Yen, for immediate relief. This includes major catastrophe and emergency grant funds as well as designated donations from Lions around the world. LCIF is also monitoring the impact to other Pacific Ocean nations..

MERCY CORPS; Mercy Corps is helping provide emergency assistance to earthquake survivors in Japan with our longstanding partner, Peace Winds. Donations will be used to meet immediate and longer-term needs of families affected by this disaster.

OPERATION BLESSING INTERNATIONAL; Disaster relief team arrived in Japan on Monday and are distributing high protein food items and bottled water in the hard-hit area of Sendai. We are also working with Humedica, a partnering NGO from Germany that specializes in disaster medicine.

OPERATION USA; Preparing to aid Japan as necessary as part of the relief efforts following the earthquake. Operation USA appeals for donations of funds from the public. The organization also calls for bulk corporate donations of health care materials, which it will ship to the region from its base in the Port of Los Angeles. .

RELIEF INTERNATIONAL; Relief International is working with Japanese aid groups to provide immediate medical support to survivors. Relief International is providing support to and through local doctors on the ground now working in the city of Sendai in the most devastated Miyagi Prefecture. Local doctors are treating those seriously injured in hospitals, as well as setting up medical units where communities are seeking refuge temporarily.

SALVATION ARMY; The Salvation Army has been in Japan since 1895 and is currently providing emergency assistance to those in need. The Salvation Army in Japan immediately dispersed teams following the disaster to the most severely affected areas where they are distributing basic necessities to survivors. These teams will also assess the damage to discern the next steps in their relief efforts.

SAVE THE CHILDREN; Save the Children, which has worked in Japan since 1986, has an immediate goal of $5 million to launch longer-term recovery for children affected by Japan's March 11 earthquake and tsunami. Save the Children has opened the first child-friendly space in Japan, protective environments where children can gather to play and share their experiences under the supervision of trained, caring adults.

SHELTERBOX; ShelterBox responds instantly to natural and man-made disasters by delivering boxes of aid to those who are most in need. The box includes a tent for a family of 10, cooker, blankets, water purification, tool kit and other items survivors need to rebuild their lives in the days, weeks and months following a disaster.

WORLD VISION; A World Vision assessment team reached Sendai, Japan, within 48 hours of the tragedy and began exploring how the organization's relief expertise can support the government-led response. Truckloads of World Vision relief items that arrived Thursday are en route and will be distributed Friday in Minami Sanriku, a devastated town where 9,600 people have been displaced into 40 shelters. Japanese authorities organized the distribution.

Charity Navigator's Tips For Giving In Times Of Crisis

• Give To An Established Charity

Don't let an unscrupulous charity take advantage of your goodwill. Find a charity with a proven track record of success with dealing with the type of disaster and in the region in which the disaster occurred. Avoid fly-by-night charities created specifically to deal with the new crisis. Even well-meaning new organizations will not have the infrastructure and knowledge of the region to efficiently maximize your gift. If you do feel compelled to give to a new charity, be sure to get proof that the group is in fact a registered public charity with 501 (c) (3) status.

• Designate Your Gift

Worried that your donation will go towards the charity's general operating fund or saved for a future crisis? This is a very understandable concern. Many charities do encourage donors not to designate their gifts so that the charity can decide how best to utilize the money, but depending on your confidence in the charity's ability to make that determination, you may want to tell the charity exactly how to use your gift. By designating your gift, you'll ensure that your donation will be used as you intended. Most charities with online giving portals offer a check box feature so that you can tell the organization how to spend your contribution. If you are mailing in a check, then write a note in the memo section of the check specifying that you want your gift spent entirely on the current crisis.

• Avoid Telemarketers

Be wary of fundraisers who pressure you to make a contribution over the phone. Never divulge your credit card information to someone soliciting you via the phone. Instead, ask the fundraiser to send you written information about the charity they represent and do some research on your own. Once you feel comfortable with the charity, send the organization a check directly in the mail, or give through their website, thus ensuring 100% of your gift goes to the charity and not the for-profit fundraiser.
Read Charity Navigator's Guide to Handling Telephone Appeals

• Research And Follow Up

As always, take the time to find a charity you can trust. Use our free financial evaluations to search for well-run charities worthy of your support. And be sure to follow up with the charity in a few months to find out (a) how your donation was put to use and (b) if the organization needs additional support to complete the recovery effort.

• Give Online

The inherent speed of online giving provides instant gratification to donors and offers charities immediate access to much needed funds. At Charity Navigator with the simple click of a mouse you can make a secure online gift to the charities we rate. Each transaction is processed by Network for Good, a trusted industry leader for online giving. Network for Good handled $24.5 million in contributions following the 2004 tsunami, Hurricane Katrina and the Pakistan Earthquakes.

Reprinted with the permission of Charity Navigator, www.charitynavigator.org, America's leading independent charity evaluator.

SPECIAL NOTE ON VOLUNTEERING: In the wake of a large-scale disaster, like the earthquake and tsunami in Japan, cash donations are needed most.  Due to dangerous conditions in Japan, please do not travel to the areas affected by the disaster without explicit instructions from a qualified emergency response organization.  In the weeks and months ahead, sanctioned volunteer opportunities may become available.  You can check with one of these volunteer opportunity providers to learn more:

DOSOMETHING.ORG

In response to the massive earthquake and devastating resulting tsunami that hit Japan earlier today, DoSomething.org is appealing to young people across the United States to share their love and support for the Japanese people with “Paper Cranes for Japan". Learn more at www.facebook.com/PaperCranesForJapan

 

The ask is simple:

CRISIS COMMONS

Technology volunteers outside of the effected area (Canada, India, New Zealand, Switzerland and the United States) are monitoring events in the Pacific Rim.  Currently a CrisisCamp Asia Pacific Public Skype Chat has been established for monitoring and a wiki page devoted to the collection of media links, data feeds and publicly available datasets.  A volunteer sign up has been established for monitoring or other actions upon the request of local authorities or humanitarian relief agencies.  At this time CrisisCommons has not received a request for support. We will continue to monitor and post resources which may be shared via the CrisisCommons Wiki.