Nepal

I lost a friend this weekend. He was one of over 4000 lost in the great nation of Nepal. As I'm not in a position to help anymore it has been hard to sit and watch... ...but I know Dan would be annoyed if I didn't speak my mind.

Early thoughts

Emergency relief and recovery are only two parts what will be needed. Right now it is, without question, the most important and immediate support needed. If you truly care, you cannot walk away after CNN does and forget two other important pieces of the rebuilding puzzle: reconstruction and economic recovery.

This is probably the MOST important document to circulate to NGOs in Nepal or working in Nepal. The 101 Post-Earthquake rebuilding manual developed by Architecture for Humanity in Haiti.

Want to help in the long term?

Think beyond the images // Nepal is more than cities and mountains. There are many rural areas impacted that media has given little attention too. Wait to see how you can help there.

Think 4 years, not 4 days // It is possible to build back better and there are many lessons on how funding can be poorly or very well utilized to build a country's system of roads, housing, water, education and health systems to decrease such devastation in the future. Some folks call this resilience, I call it common sense.

Invest in local talent, don't air-drop // The heroic efforts of those working on the ground right now are Nepali. The unwavering strength of the Nepali people will continue to shine through. If you are not bringing exponential support, you are a burden to the situation. You are taking a roof from someone's head, food from their plate.

I'm waiting to hear from 2 more friends in country but here are four groups we've partnered with and one orphanage which my friend Dan worked with.

Health: https://life.indiegogo.com/fun…/nepal-earthquake-relief-fund
Community: http://included.org/donate
Water: http://www.wavesforwater.org/project/nepalreliefinitiative
Holistic Agricultural Development: http://www.belt-project.org/

Children: https://www.crowdrise.com/CelebratingDan (in honor of Dan Fredinburg)