After my post the other day on quake donations, I received some comments and emails about various aspects of this issue, including transparency, posted lists, and specific NGOs.

One clarification I received relates to the Red Cross and that list of approved/vetted NGOs. Apparently the Red Cross was not on that particular list because it never applied.

Just to be clear, my underlying post, and I think the point that was being made in the post I was excerpting was making as well, was about transparency in general. If the Red Cross was incorrectly singled out by me (even indirectly) based on not being on that list, then probably an "oops" is appropriate. I have no personal knowledge of this either way, so I’ll certainly defer to the experts out there.

Again, if you are contemplating making a donation, checking an NGO out first is definitely a good idea. There are a lot of rumors flying around out there. The question, I suppose, is how one should check these guys out in the first place. The Red Cross is pretty easy, but for some organization you may not have heard about - much more difficult.

I wish I was an expert on this, but I’m not. If someone were to ask me if I trusted Organization X, I would have no clue. Makes sense to me to double check with government agencies, large multinational organizations, and groups in the PRC that are quasi-governmental. Moreover, check out private web sites that have been disseminating good info in the past couple of weeks - these folks generally know what they are talking about and can point you in the right direction.

Enjoy the rest of the weekend!