Good Intentions Are Not Enough: Why We Fail At Helping Others (PDF)

-->Disaster strikes, transforming cities and towns into graveyards and wastelands in a matter of minutes. But help is on its way: news channels and social media relay the information to all corners of the globe in real-time, mobilising hundreds of people and organisations to aid. Yet, with standard relief packages regardless of the location, and a lack of effort taken to match volunteers' skills with tasks, just how effective are we at helping others?Many people want to do good, but they like to do it at their convenience. These attempts at helping often fail, and the blame invariably falls on the disaster victims, rather than looking at the suitability of aid provided. Such help, offered without a thorough understanding of the context or the impact of actions, can create situations that leave the victims worse off than before.So how can we create real sustainable impact?Most communities have a lot of unused human capacity. When offering help, many aid providers fail to engage the local communities, thus excluding a critical group of people with the knowledge of local ways and needs.This book elaborates on a simple principle essential to effective aid — Never Help: Engage, Enable, Empower and Connect.It is important that we fully understand the problem before we try to solve it, and who better to help us with solutions than the local community? -->Contents:IntroductionShifting Morals and EthicsWhy We Fail at HelpingTraveling Overseas to Help? Whom are You Helping?ScapegoatingThe Dangers of Social InterventionThe Curse of ExclusionParadox in the Social SphereThe Great ConvergenceEmpowering State of MindHaving More Social Enterprise is Not EnoughCase Study 1: Rescued ProstitutesCase Study 2: Internet Comes to El LimónCase Study 3: The Flower LadyThe Unequal Distribution of ResourcesGiving Done WrongFree Destroys the EconomyGood Intentions FailCase Study 4: Sanitation WoesCase Study 5: They Ate the ChickensCase Study 6: Community Involvement Program Gone WrongSocial TechnologyPeace Technology, Social Innovation and EntrepreneurshipCSR 2.0Social IntrapreneurSocial BusinessDesign Thinking and Social InnovationSocial CommunityCrabs versus TurtlesRisk versus InnovationNever Help, Engage, Enable, Empower & ConnectCase Study 7: Amazon Disaster RegistryCase Study 8: Disaster Recovery through Art and TourismCase Study 9: Relief B2B (Business to Business)Case Study 10: Relief B2V (Business to Village)Case Study 11: Relief EnterpriseHuman-Centric Community EmpowermentSocial CapitalCircular EconomyCase Study 12: Prison EntrepreneurshipCase Study 13: Solar ForwardCase Study 14: The Sustainability Place of Destiny ("SPOD")Jump Start Self-OrganizingConscious Consumerism — The Needed ChangeIteration versus InnovationSocial Innovation is Not an Easy TaskResponsibility & ReciprocityConclusion --> -->Readership: Volunteer welfare organisations, charities, foundations, people involved in post-disaster relief, social workers, schools/universities/students interested in volunteer activities. -->