How to Help Victims of the Earthquake in Central Italy
Last week’s 6.2-magnitude earthquake in central Italy is still front-page news here in Italy, but it has faded from the radar for many internationally. The death toll is at least 290 people, and has continued to be revised over the past 5 days. Destruction, especially in the town of Amatrice, has reduced much of the town to rubble. And nearly 2,000 aftershocks continue to rattle the region.
While the discourse here in Italy is already shifting to some of the recently-constructed buildings that did not survive the quake and a concern about keeping the mafia from participating in rebuilding efforts, there is much on-the-ground work already in motion tending to the urgent needs of the displaced. Inspirational stories have emerged, including survivors being located and refugees offering their financial and hands-on assistance. However, these support and rebuilding efforts will continue for many months to come, and monetary donations are critical to fund the ongoing needs — which are no less critical than immediate relief.
I’m not the first person to write a post describing donation options, however I felt compelled to compile my own list because many of the existing efforts direct donations to the Red Cross, an organization which I simply can no longer support. The Red Cross has a very poor track record in allocating donations that obtain on-the-ground results. In fact, although it raised $500 million for Haiti earthquake relief, the only concrete result was the construction of just 6 houses (no, that is not a typo!).
If you are planning to donate toward relief efforts for the recent earthquake, please consider these alternate options:
Global Giving
https://www.globalgiving.org/projects/italy-earthquake-relief-fund/
“All donations to this fund will exclusively support locally driven relief and recovery efforts from this disaster.”
Italian American Relief
http://www.italianamericanrelief.org/
“Italian American Relief is working to identify a specific project or projects for funding in the coming weeks. Meanwhile, we assure you that all proceeds will go to the rebuilding efforts of a community badly damaged by this natural catastrophe.”
Save the Children
Donations to the Italian branch
“Save the Children, in coordination with the Italian Civil Protection from Lazio Region, will be launching a response in Amatrice tomorrow, setting up a child-friendly space, a safe and protected environment where children and young people can receive support from trained staff and participate in various activities.”
–> If you know of other organizations collecting donations for relief efforts, please add them in the Comments section below. And also keep the victims and survivors in your thoughts.