The Public-Private Alliance Foundation is receiving offers of assistance and inquiries from companies and individuals about getting involved in work relating to the immediate crisis in Haiti, as well as longer-term actions.  PPAF is working with several groups on providing generators and warehouse space, as well as longer-range programming.  Feel free to send your ideas and offers of assistance for collaborative work to: ppafoundation@gmail.com

We want to share important sources for learning about what is happening beyond what is reported in the press.

(1)     The Interagency Standing Committee of the United Nations

Only through pooling information from many relief sources can one start to understand what is happening on the ground. The Interagency Standing Committee (IASC) of the United Nations is the main mechanism for interagency coordination of humanitarian assistance, involving key UN and non-UN humanitarian partners. See http://www.humanitarianinfo.org/iasc/

The IASC  is chaired by the Emergency Relief Coordinator (ERC), Sir John Holmes. The full members are the heads of the UN humanitarian agencies. Standing invitees include Office of the High Commission for Human Rights, World Bank, International Organization for Migration, International Committee of the Red Cross, International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), Inter-Action, International Council of Voluntary Agencies (represented by World Vision International) and the Steering Committee for Humanitarian Response (represented by Oxfam).

The Logistics Cluster of the IASC is an excellent source for daily news updates which give information on the logistics situation in Haiti and in the D.R. for Haiti, as well as other extensive information. See the http://www.logcluster.org website.   The World Food Program is the lead agency for the Logistics Cluster.

(2)  The Center for International Disaster Information

The Center for International Disaster Information (CIDI) encourages Americans to respond appropriately and responsibly to the earthquake in Haiti. Those who wish to best help the victims in Haiti are asked to donate cash as an alternative to in-kind donations such as clothing and canned goods. Cash donations are widely recognized as the most efficient and effective means of relief, a policy supported by CIDI’s funding partner, the United States Agency for International Development’s Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance, and those in the established international disaster response community.

This extensive site provides guidelines for giving aid, information for individuals, non-profit organizations, corporations and teachers, and links to the federal business opportunity site for “requests for proposals.”

For those who want to volunteer, the CIDI website provides information about the types of volunteers who are needed and accepted by most agencies: usually people with relevant language skills, at least ten years’ experience in disaster relief, with specific skills in medicine, health, communications and logistics, and willing to spend at least three months in country.  Full details are available on the website.  There is a place to register your availability; relief agencies review the database and independently contact potential volunteers.  See http://www.cidi.org