Disaster Accountability Project

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Disaster Accountability Project DAP is an independent watchdog of disaster relief and humanitarian aid. Creator of SmartResponse.org

DAP saves lives and reduces suffering by maximizing the effectiveness, efficiency, and equity of disaster preparedness, response, relief, and recovery through oversight, transparency, advocacy, and public education. We are a leading nonprofit organization that provides long-term independent oversight of disaster management systems. We engage a dedicated community to advance policy research and advocacy, promote transparency, and encourage public participation in oversight, community-based organizing, and disaster preparedness and relief discussions. Our focus areas are:
1) SmartResponse.org data collection and sharing, assessments, monitoring and evaluations
2) Investigative reporting
3) Advocacy and public education

When disasters strike, local organizations are usually first to respond — but they're often the hardest for donors to fi...
08/18/2026

When disasters strike, local organizations are usually first to respond — but they're often the hardest for donors to find. Many local, last-mile groups have limited digital footprints and they're often invisible when funding decisions are made.

SmartResponse exists to close that gap. As a free, open-data platform that profiles vetted, locally-led relief organizations, we're an information resource, not an intermediary. We connect donors directly to local groups. More than 900 groups across 70+ countries have registered.

Our coverage in Colombia and Venezuela is thin.

On August 27 at 5:00pm EDT (16:00 Bogotá / 17:00 Caracas), we're running a recruit-a-thon.

Volunteers will identify local NGOs working in affected regions. We will invite organizations and Groups go through our vetting process before they're approved.

No prior experience needed; we'll train you. Spanish is a real asset but not a requirement.

We're also looking for information, not just volunteers. If you work with responding organizations, know groups that should be on our radar, or maintain a directory that could help, please get in touch. Regional networks, funders, and researchers often hold local knowledge that's hard to assemble from the outside.

Sign up here: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/4V4amQYHSTW1NVhqjnwM0Q

Cuando ocurre un desastre, las organizaciones locales suelen ser las primeras en responder, pero también son las más difíciles de encontrar para los donantes. Muchas tienen poca presencia digital y son invisibles cuando se toman decisiones de financiación.

SmartResponse cierra esta brecha. Esta plataforma gratuita y de datos abiertos que perfila organizaciones locales verificadas es un recurso de información, no un intermediario. Conectamos directamente a los donantes con organizaciones locales. Más de 900 organizaciones en +70 países ya están registradas.

Nuestra cobertura en Colombia y Venezuela es escasa.

El 27 de agosto, a las 5:00 p.m. EDT (16:00 Bogotá / 17:00 Caracas), haremos un "reclutatón" (evento masivo de reclutamiento).

Los voluntarios identificarán y documentarán las ONG locales que trabajan en las zonas afectadas. Las invitaremos a registrarse y completar nuestro proceso de verificación antes de ser aprobados.

No necesitas experiencia previa; te capacitaremos. Hablar español es una ventaja, pero no es necesario.

También buscamos información, no solo voluntarios. Si trabajas con organizaciones que están respondiendo en la región, conoces grupos que deberíamos tener en el radar, o manejas un directorio que nos pueda ayudar, por favor escríbenos. Las redes regionales, los financiadores y los investigadores suelen tener conocimiento locales difíciles de reunir desde afuera.

Inscríbete aquí: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/4V4amQYHSTW1NVhqjnwM0Q

New Op-Ed!  Read & Share:  Trump's new proposal to downgrade FEMA will hurt Pennsylvania.  And PA's members of Congress ...
06/18/2026

New Op-Ed! Read & Share: Trump's new proposal to downgrade FEMA will hurt Pennsylvania. And PA's members of Congress have the swing votes to stop it. Will they?

FEMA Federal Emergency Management Agency

Communities still waiting for aid from past storms face a grim future if proposed federal cuts force the state to shoulder disaster response alone — without the resources to do it.

New Op-Ed! Read & Share: With a new Ebola outbreak, Congress must take these 6 actions *now* after allowing Trump to dis...
06/03/2026

New Op-Ed! Read & Share: With a new Ebola outbreak, Congress must take these 6 actions *now* after allowing Trump to dismantle U.S. outbreak response.

The Trump administration has dismantled public health infrastructure, leaving the U.S. vulnerable to the current Ebola outbreak, and Congress must act now to restore outbreak control capacities and…

03/25/2026

New Op-Ed in The Hill! 94% of Americans live in a Congressional district that received FEMA support since 2011. Imagine what will happen to communities across the U.S. without FEMA when local resources are overwhelmed - the very definition of a !

Members of have the ultimate decision on the future of , despite threats by Trump to dismantle the agency.

They should consider the political when people are stuck without any help and support from the federal government after future , , and .

https://thehill.com/opinion/congress-blog/energy-environment/5796548-trump-administration-cuts-fema/

01/21/2026

Check out Disaster Accountability Project's new op-ed on the ways North Carolinians will suffer from Trump’s FEMA cuts.

NC's delegation in Congress has the key votes to prevent this. Will they?
What will Congressman Chuck Edwards do?

https://www.newsobserver.com/opinion/article314337294.html

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Washington D.C., DC

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