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Compassion for Haiti - How Long Can It Last?
February 5, 2010Three weeks after the Haiti earthquake, experts at leading aid group World Vision, say the impact of a crippling recession and high unemployment on disaster donations has surprised them. The charity's disaster fundraising expert Randy Strash says Haiti is an example of "compassion resilience," or Americans' ability to remain generous in a mega disaster even as the economy makes giving difficult. "To many Americans, the Haiti quake feels more like Katrina than the Asia tsunami. Haiti is right on our doorstep, many of us have travelled there or have family there. It feels closer, so we give more sacrificially, even in these tough economic times," Strash explained. World Vision, which has worked in Haiti for 30 years and began distributing aid within 24 hours after the quake, has raised more than $30 million in the US so far. This is roughly five percent ahead of the charity's Asia tsunami fundraising at the same stage in the response. Full release.