Mercy Corps

Mercy Corps has established itself as an innovative leader in global disaster response through a model of community partnership building and utilization of local knowledge, customs, and expertise. Mercy Corps is a nonprofit, nongovernmental organization (NGO) focused on facilitating development and administering humanitarian aid in crisis and disaster-impacted regions of the world. Headquartered in Portland, Oregon, Mercy Corps employs a worldwide staff of 3,500 in more than 35 countries. Formed in 1982 as a charitable, direct-relief organization, its program coordinators have been active addressing humanitarian crises engendered by war, poverty, hunger, and disaster. Since then, it has evolved and gained international recognition for its ability to provide quick response to disaster situations and coordinate innovative, high-impact, and cost-effective programs addressing human crises.

Their particular relief model involves working with and within affected communities to address social justice issues that arise from poverty and oppression, while strengthening the civic institutions that support solutions to these problems. Once immediate needs for food, shelter, clothing, and medical care are addressed, their work turns toward building capacity for long-term stability. This community development model of crisis relief aims to turn crisis situations into an opportunity for civic renewal and engagement. By empowering citizens to brainstorm and implement culturally relevant solutions to local problems, Mercy Corps has addressed four major areas: hunger, by teaching residents to farm and garden and to build improvised cook stoves; poverty, by promoting savings programs for individuals and microenterprise for small businesses; emergency situations, by delivering emergency supply kits, blankets, and mosquito nets to displaced residents; and access to clean water, by constructing reservoirs, wells, and water filtration systems.

Focusing on the local cultural context and history, and using local languages when possible, Mercy Corps programs seek to work within the cultures in which they serve by using local knowledge and social networks to enact efficient, culturally appropriate responses to crisis situations. Their ultimate aim is to provide sustainable support in disaster-stricken communities by empowering citizens to develop local solutions to local problems. Through strategic partnerships with existing community [Page 414]organizations and groups, Mercy Corps seeks to develop an entrepreneurial spirit within disaster-stricken communities by enlisting local leadership, so citizens can more sustainably assess and address their pressing needs.