From fires and floods to earthquakes and war, devastating crises call for aid in the most complex of circumstances. As the frequency and intensity of disasters escalate globally, how can givers understand and effectively fund crisis support?

Watch our expert panel on crisis giving with Tony Stuart, CEO of UNICEF Australia, and Natalie Egleton, CEO of the Foundation for Rural and Regional Renewal (FRRR). Designed for givers and hosted by APS Head of Philanthropic Giving, Kate Stone, we explore the critical issues of disaster readiness, response, and recovery in both in Australia and overseas.

This webinar was recorded live in February 2024.

Key takeaways

Disaster response requires complex co-ordination

Governments are often criticised for disaster mismanagement, but there are few situations more complex than disaster response. When multiple stakeholders (local and district actors, Federal government, NGOs, private sub-contractors) are on the ground helping, intermediaries are essential for managing effective responses across this ‘cluster’. Crucially, backbone organisations managing clusters also need to be able to work with and respect and incorporate local knowledge and community plans.

Think twice about what is needed most

When a crisis strikes, human instinct and heartfelt generosity means communities can be inundated with donations of support for items that don’t match their needs (e.g. baby formula in an ageing area). Organisations that effectively manage resource requests, in-kind donations and distribution (e.g. GIVIT.org.au or Good360 Australia) can play an important role here, taking a huge burden off communities.

Young people are key to disaster adaptation and resilience strategies

Children and young people are often hit hardest when disasters strike; ensuring that their needs and rights are supported during disasters is an integral part of community planning and resilience building. Young people are also natural thought and practice-leaders in planning and deploying climate-suitable responses and adaptations in their local environments. As climate-related disasters increase, so too should the role of young people in community planning, response and management.

Philanthropy can supply ‘patient capital’ for longer-term resilience

After disaster strikes, immediate relief is provided and the media spotlight moves on, private funding can be an important (and rare) source of ‘patient capital’ for supporting medium-to-longer-term community renewal initiatives. Such initiatives will differ by disaster and community context, often involving  ‘shadow crises’ that aren’t well-known, which philanthropy is agile enough to appreciate and is uniquely placed to support.

Investing in community preparedness is always worth it

While it can be hard to measure the value of disaster-readiness strategies (how can you measure what doesn’t occur?), investing in local social capital always yields benefits. Community-building can take many forms – including initiatives that focus on building community trust, cohesion and culture –  but will ultimately function to build strong local networks, response plans and information flows in preparation for when disasters strike.

Australian Philanthropic Services

APS is the leading independent not-for-profit, philanthropic services organisation in Australia. We make structured giving simple, so our 800+ clients can focus on supporting the causes that matter to them. Collectively, APS clients have over $2.14 billion in assets committed to the community and gave $162 million in charitable gifts last year.