Stanford Social Innovation Review

William Brindley spent most of his career keeping financial institutions at the leading edge of technology. Now, as CEO of the nonprofit consortium NetHope, he is using those same skills to help nonprofits do the same. NetHope now has 25 member organizations, among them Save the Children, Mercy Corps, Oxfam, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, and Catholic Relief Services.

When disaster strikes, government often rely on nonprofits and businesses to pitch in with relief efforts. But making up for the public sector’s shortcomings is neither an appropriate nor effective use of the private sector’s strengths. Instead of mopping after government failures, nonprofits and businesses should lobby governments to focus more on disaster mitigation and less on disaster relief. An ounce of the private sector’s advocacy would be worth more than a pound of its response.

Build Change, a Mill Valley, Calif.-based nonprofit whose mission is “to greatly reduce deaths, injuries, and economic losses caused by housing collapses due to earthquakes in developing countries,” is shaking up construction practices in earthquake-prone areas.

Humanitarianism has failed, say the authors.

Humanitarian organizational leaders share their management struggles.

International development aid should be dissolved, argues Dichter.