 |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  | | | PRACTICAL WISDOM FOR LEADING CONGREGATIONS |
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Faith-based organizations are good at providing immediate relief, but have less capacity to support sustained recovery in areas devastated by natural disasters, said Carol J. De Vita, senior research associate with the Center on Nonprofits and Philanthropy, a branch of the Urban Institute, which is a nonpartisan public policy research organization in Washington, D.C.
Planning ahead, working with large, established organizations and connecting with local people are keys to successful relief efforts, De Vita said. In 2007, she served as a principal investigator for an Institute study conducted for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services on the role of faith-based and community organizations in relief efforts after Hurricane Katrina.
She spoke with our colleagues at Faith & Leadership about the Katrina study, lessons for relief in Haiti and the role of church and faith-based organizations in disaster relief.
Q: Can you give us an overview of how disaster relief typically works and where churches and faith-based organizations fit into that process?
We often think, after a disaster, of immediate recovery, the immediate response effort -- making sure people affected by the disaster have food and water and shelter. But we really need to think along a continuum. The immediate relief effort is just the beginning of what needs to be done. After a while -- and it depends on the size of the disaster what timeframe we're talking about -- you move into more of a recovery effort and these can take months and even years depending on the size and the severity of the disaster. Read more of the interview with Carol J. De Vita » |
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| IDEAS THAT IMPACT: NATURAL DISASTERS & MINISTRY
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Every time a storm like Katrina, Rita, or Matthew crashes ashore, we are reminded of the importance of excellent disaster preparedness, training and response. Here is a beginning checklist for congregations and their leaders to prepare for the unfortunate day when the disaster hits your town. |
Years after the devastating storm hit New Orleans, three community leaders talk about how Hurricane Katrina changed their ministries and their lives.
Read more from Courtney Cowart » |
On the fifth anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, Courtney Cowart, the former co-director of the Office of Disaster Response for the Episcopal Diocese of Louisiana, reflected on her experience working in New Orleans in the months after the storm.
Read more from Courtney Cowart » |
| | UPCOMING ALBAN COURSE: PREACHING ADVENT |
An Alban Online Short Course October 31 - November 18, 2016
Advent, the four-Sunday season preceding Christmas, is approaching rapidly. Because you may be looking for a little help in preparing to preach Advent this year, Alban is offering a three-week online short course that will provide you with new insights into Scripture and with specific ways to engage your congregation's imagination during this sacred season.
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Every year, an estimated 1.6 million Americans participate in short-term mission trips, spending over one billion dollars-figures that have increased exponentially in the last two decades. About one third of U.S. congregations sponsor such trips each year. While they are referred to as "mission" trips, many trips focus not on conversion or evangelism, but on service projects-building a playground, providing medical care, or serving free meals to the poor. Short-term mission participants have a genuine desire to transform conditions of poverty, yet they don't always know how to go about it; many people involved in short-term mission work virtually reinvent the wheel when they design and plan their service projects.
Making a Difference in a Globalized World: Short-term Missions that Work is a guide to leaders of such trips. The book presents clear insight and research from anthropologists and development professionals, and encourages individuals to lead mission trips that make a greater impact on the communities that they are serving. |
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