I believe that this will make people feel more involved and have more of a vested interest in disaster and crisis relief. It will allow them to know their efforts are being put to good use and that they are doing something to help their fellow man. The right way I believe to go about this is through a grant of some sort ( I know it would be a big grant but until i have done further research it's the best idea I have). This would allow the Humanitarian organizations to come to different places across the world and begin teaching classes about what is needed during crisis response and how to go about the most efficient way of doing that. Also how they can make their information so it can fit in the system. This would then lead to a test to see if a person who wants to help and become a certified specialist (i.e. mapping, collecting and organizing data from social websites like Facebook and twitter, coordinate where to send relief, etc) has enough understanding to do so.
This would lead to a re-tooling of the Humanitarian and global community in hopefully such a way as you see below. Yes it is still a top down method but it is one where the everyday average Joe is involved which is great for morale of the individual and the global community. It will make everyone feel more invested in each other. Also with this hopefully there will be a re-purposing or re-distributing of tasks of Humanitarian and governmental disaster relief organizations to fit into this hierarchy.
The Red Cross could be in charge of water response, allow some of the volunteer and technical communities to work with some of the more well known Humanitarian organizations to help them re-purpose and have the UN OCHA oversee the whole process. I know not a one of these organizations is going to like this idea. People want to be involved though and I feel the best thing we can do is to try and find a way for them to be. It would as I have said bring us closer together as a global community but it would also raise awareness to how the system currently works for Humanitarian and relief efforts. Then hopefully the more people who want to be a part of this will also realize this is an out dated system and needs to be amended and some of these very specialist who we just helped train could be the ones that revamp the entire way things are done in disaster relief.
In conclusion yes this will not be a fix all, it is just a stop gap but a very important one that will hopefully increase public awareness of not only the short comings of the system in place but also of the fact that we are all part of one global community and we can do a lot more good by working together than being compartmentalized and competitive as we are now especially when peoples lives will be hanging in the balance. Also this system could open the door to many technological advances that will help Humanitarian organizations. By trying to get the Organizations, government organizations, and the UN all in one system they can hopefully put together one day their vast collective knowledge of crisis response in one place under the same format which will allow for endless possibilities I feel.
Any critiques or ideas on how I could better flesh this idea out are welcome, or if you want to tell me I'm bat shit crazy and talking like Miss America, that we will never work together as a global community feel free and tell me that too. As always thank you for your time. As always here is a pallet cleanser Captain Planet
Hi Thomas – I don’t think you are bat shit crazy. In fact, in my blog post entitled, “Back to the Drawing Board,” I discussed the possibility of rebuilding the humanitarian aid system from the ground up. My reasoning is basically centered on the belief that the humanitarian system is facing issues (i.e. the results of terrorism) that it was not designed to handle. And, there seems to be no simple fix. I do agree that the humanitarian community should be global. Those who want to participate in relief efforts should be welcomed into the community as valued volunteers.
ReplyDeleteBut, it is also important to remember that volunteers are just that, volunteers. Their commitment may be strong when they first get involved in a cause. The trick is determining whether or not a volunteer’s long-term commitment exists. However, I still feel it is very important that the humanitarian community finds ways to allow those interested in donating time to help with the efforts. It just may not be a good idea to rely too heavily on those who may not maintain a long-term interest. Money and resources should go towards programs that can make the most impact. So, the question arises, how can humanitarian communities determine a volunteer’s commitment? Understandably, people may be unable to volunteer much of their time, if for example, a year after “signing-up” they are facing tuff times in their career or a family member is sick.
Technology, specifically the Internet, can play a huge role when it comes to recruiting volunteers and determining their reliability. Humanitarian organizations can design online classes or webinars where they teach “classes about what is needed during crisis response and how to go about the most efficient way of doing that,” as you already explained. Then, once the courses are completed, an online certification exam can be given. Initially, volunteers can be given simple, general, but still important tasks. Their progress can be tracked and evaluated. As they stick with the tasks, eventually, they could rise up through the rants, so to speak. Gradually, more important, specialized tasks can be given to higher-level volunteers who have showed commitment and hard work. Groups of volunteers can be monitored by a specific humanitarian organization. Training webinars or online classes could be an efficient and cheap way of teaching universal standards that coincide with specific activities that volunteers would be performing.
Feel free to let me know what you think. Comments, criticisms, and questions are also always welcome.