Just as Canadians were responding in heroic ways to the Alberta fires — including digging deep in their pockets — a most unhelpful and self-appointed nonprofit watchdog named Charity Intelligence took to the public airways in a manner certain to confuse donors.

With the devastation at Fort McMurray and the horrific plight of nearly 90,000 Canadians, both the federal government in Ottawa and the provincial government of Alberta moved with lightning speed to encourage immediate donations to the Canadian Red Cross — Alberta Fires Appeal — by promising to match every dollar the organization receives for its from private sources.

By the time I tuned in to the CBC on Friday evening the Red Cross had already collected close to $30 million. And then, on the program As It Happens, up popped a Kate Bahen, Managing Director of Charity Intelligence of Canada.

Her advice on giving to this disaster was simple — and simple-minded:  don’t give to the Red Cross, send your money to local charities in Fort McMurray because these groups will put the money to immediate use while the Red Cross will take years.

Questioning why the government would favor one charity over another with the matching funds Ms. Bahen — intentionally or unintentionally — sewed the nasty seeds of donor confusion and intra-mural charity competition. You can listen below to the entire interview with Carol off of the CBC.

Later, CBC posted a response from Conrad Sauvé, President of the Red Cross (listen below), who explained why both short-term and long-term money is needed.

Same for the Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale, with the statement:

“The situation on the ground is complex and fluid, changing day-by-day. The Red Cross is providing essential immediate relief and assistance. 

The matching program will support Canadians’ generosity right away. Over the long term, there will opportunity to consider the support required for recovery and the partners to provide it. The Red Cross will be working alongside those affected not just today, but for the weeks and months and even years that follow as they recover.”

But by then the damage was done. Donors and potential donors were angered or confused or both. A few random examples from the CBC site:

• Veronica Tann wrote “It never ceases to concern me that the red cross gets so much attention…when there’s a disaster…anywhere in the world. Such a small percentage of each dollar goes to actually helping.”

• Dan54 answered: @Veronica Tann where do you get your information? Red Cross is supported because they have built expertise and efficiency through responding to thousands of disasters around the globe every year. In Canada, their network of trained volunteer disaster responders dwarfs that of all other NGOs combined. Their admin costs for large scale disasters are often less than 5%. Next time do some homework.”

• City Girl: “How petty, a charity competing with another for money….seriously! If you donate to the Red Cross the Alberta government is going to match your donation plus the Canadian government is going to match your donation, that makes $3.00 for every $1.00 donation, why would anyone donate to another charity where there are no matching dollars? The Red Cross has the experience, and manpower to get things up and running and keep things running long term plus they have a proven track record which is why the governments match their donations and not small unproven charities.”

You get my point about helping to forming a circular firing squad among those who merely want to help fellow Canadians.

I don’t know anything about Charity Intelligence except the backgrounds of its Managing Director and other leadership seems to spring largely from the financial services/investment sector. Not unlike Charity Navigator, the leadership’s lack of experience and expertise where the work of nonprofits is concerned never stopped them from serving up up their brand of self-righteous wisdom.

What’s the motivation behind this hatchet job on the Liberal government and the Canadian Red Cross? Because Charity Intelligence doesn’t disclose the source of their funding, I have no way of telling if they have some particular axe to grind.

My cursory search of the web picked up a post by Your Working Girl describing them as a “small unaccountable group” and noted that one of its directors at the time of the post was one Peter Crowley, an executive in the Fraser Institute that has been described as “conservative” and “right-wing libertarian”  and has been a consistent challenger/climate change denier.

[For the Conspiracy Theorists among Agitator readers I’ll simply note these interesting coincidences before moving on:

• Koch Industries, a major holder of interests in the Alberta oil sands is both a climate change denier and…
• A major contributor to the Fraser Institute.
• The Red Cross is a major advocate for accepting the reality of climate change and dealing with it while warning that an increasing number of natural disasters — like wild fires — will result with catastrophic consequences.

I’m just sayin’… ]

Let’s not go there nor even think for a moment that Charity Intelligence is somehow politically motivated by its roots and maybe its funders to strike a blow against the Liberal government and hit a climate change troublemaker like the Red Cross while it’s at it. After all, in the interview its Managing Director even said, “I’m not good at politics.” I’ll take her at her word.

BUT … one fact is indisputably clear despite the science deniers: Increasingly we are seeing more and more nature-related disasters. From Katrina, to the Southeast Asian Tsunami, to the Philippines Typhoon and on to today’s Albert Forest Fires.

AND … this means that disaster and relief organizations like the Red Cross — and many more — need to increasingly make the case for the manner and timing in which they deliver aid … explaining to their donors the timelines and the needs that go with each phase of a relief and recovery effort.

By being clear — in advance — and by also letting its donors and the public know why their help is so critical, these humanitarian organizations can prevent public confusion and mistrust.

And perhaps even bring some much-needed clarity to watchdogs like Charity Intelligence.

Roger

P.S. I’ve sent my contribution off to the Canadian Red Cross and appreciate having it matched by the Canadian government. Here’s the Giving page of Red Cross if you’d like to do the same.

And because all of us know who our best friends are we’re making a contribution to the Edmonton Humane Society Fort McMurray Wildfires.

Our prayers and most powerful good wishes to all those affected or threatened by this disaster.

Roger