s in is al jazeera america. i'm tony harris. with a look at the top stories. mayhem of tornadoes ripped across the mid states of the united states. pat quinn declared the region a disaster area. and do you see this, the dow rose, and sales did retreat in a midday sell off but did finish in a record high. and in philippines aid is still coming in.

and new spacecraft known as ma maven blasted off in florida today. it is part of nasa's first mission to study the atmosphere of mars. it will cost $600 million. and george zimmerman has been arrested again. police responded to a disturbance call. the details of the arrest has not been released. zimmerman was acquitted in the deadly shooting of black teenager trayvon martin in july. "inside story" is next. >> the hard job of getting relief to the people is frustrating filipinos and aid workers alike. as americans open their wallets

for the cause, the best practices of giving is the "inside story." >> the sheer scope of the disaster in the philippines is hard to imagine. thon edition of inside story we're going to talk about the long haul and the best way to help the victims and the government of the philippines to rebuild after haiyan. is it cash or physical aid or a combination of the two? we'll look to recent natural disasters such as hurricane katrina and the earthquake in haiti as a guide. but first a look at the recoverly effort. >> it's been 11 days since

haiyan hit the country with record force. survivors continue to wait for the basics, food, water, and medicine. >> our situation here is not so good. it smells bad. it's hot, and it's very cold at night. there is also a shortage of food. >> reporter: aid is slowly trickling to the hardest hit and most remote parts of the island nation. helicopters from the u.s. navy aircraft carrier george washington have been dropping supplies to isolated communities in and around tacloban, the city most damaged by the super typhoon. it's a mounting humanitarian crisis. millions are living in tent cities, and the government is beginning to face criticism for slow response. >> search waiting to help us, to help get our people situated in a better situation as quickly as possible. >> reporter: the united nations

estimate 13 million people are affected by the typhoon. 4 million have been displaced. when the storm hit the u.n. asked $3.1 million in aid to the philippines. as of the weekend only $72 million of that has been given. the u.s. just announced an additional $10 million in relief aid brings the american government commitment to $37 million. nearly 9,000 u.s. troops are supporting operations in the philippines where the united states was the colonial power for half a century. the navy has delivered 626,000 pounds of relief supplies. the powerful pictures of suffering filipinos broadcast around the globe have a positive affect on disaster relief donations, according to the united nations' world food program, individuals relate to something known as the identifiable victim affect and open their wallets to help even

if they have no relation to the country or the people who live there. this spark of charitable giving usually lasts for three months. this was true after the 2010 haiti earthquake. hurricane katrina in 2005, and the indonesia tsunami in 2014. in that disaster americans donated $1.6 billion. the philippine crisis is in its early days but cash is rolling in to relief organizations. the salvation army says it now has received more than $1 million. another reports it has received $1.5 million from just over 10,000 individual donors. although aid is on its way, widespread infrastructure damage continues to hamper the relief efforts. >> we're not able to move, and residents of tacloban has not reached much so far. it's not anyone's fault. it's just the complexitier

access. so aid is on its way. >> there is some process. many roads have been cleared, cellphones are beginning to work again, but aid workers struggle with the 4,000 dead. victims being buried in mass graves before families could even identify them. experts warn now is the peak period of danger for infectious diseases to spread. >> joining us now to discuss the aid and the huge task ahead in the philippines, bob, let me start with you. the fact that there is an organization specifically dedicated to disaster philanthropy suggests this is a different discipline a different

area of relief supply. how is it different, and what are you up against in a disaster relief situation that you aren't in other charities? >> well, what we've begun to learn is that disaster giving is a very ad hoc thing. people are motivated by stories that they see on television and read in newspapers, and they want to give. they want to do something immediately. but what we're learning is that 90% of all dollars given to disaster philanthropy is given within 90 days after a natural disaster. we're trying to get people to focus on the full arc of what needs to happen in disaster relief. more money going into planning and preparation and more money being focused on the long-term recovery and rebuilding. >> robert, how do you strike that balance between wanting people to make a sustained relationship with an

organization like yours, and the increased interest that comes around a disaster like the philippines typhoon? >> well, i think that bob points out a good thing. at save the children we do deal with this full arc. we pre-position supplies. we buy supplies beforehand, specialist type things like medical supplies for newborn and pediatric supplies, and we pre-position those in key places around the world so that when a disaster happens we are able to get the right things in at the right time. when the disaster is in full motion we use local staff and key national staff that surge in and deal with the disaster for then and then also stay around for the long term for the recovery period. >> alexander, we're talking about a different pool of givers, aren't we? when we're talking about disaster philanthropy, and how do you keep people from being ripped off? >> yes, absolutely. i think a lot of people are

concerned about getting ripped off. we also see a lot of people, like bob said, giving responsebly and to media solicitation rather than doing their due diligence and research that they might do in normal long-term giving. we urge people to seek out these resources and give proactively instead of the phone call, the e-mail and the solicitation in the mail. >> but people are people, and when they feel called, moved, motivated, they want to act quickly, don't they? is that where a lot of mistakes are made? not in a sustained relationship, charity that you give to year after year, but want to go respond to a specific event. >> yeah, that's right. i think that we see that it leads to problems sometimes. the other panelists mentioned most of the money is given early on in disasters and if you look at early disaster response it's not always money. you see logistical problems in

airports and because of the infrastructure in these places have been destroyed. often money earned in early stages is not a bottleneck to recovery. >> we're going to take a short break now and continue our discussion in a moment. this is "inside story." >> international outrage. >> a day of political posturing. >> every morning from 5 to 9am al jazeera america brings you more us and global news than any other american news channel. >> tell us exactly what is behind this story. >> from more sources around the world. >> the situation has intensified here at the border. >> start every morning, every day, 5am to 9 eastern with al jazeera america.

>> welcome back to "inside story" i'm ray suarez. we're talking about international aid efforts to help the victims of typhoon haiyan in the philippines. still us with from new york, bob, from the center of disaster philanthropy. robert of save the children, and in san francisco, alexander. robert, you mentioned earlier in the program pre-positioned, being ready for things that happen around the world. in this case given the particular profile of the typhoon, did that help? >> it definitely helped. we had two planeloads, two 747s that we dispatched one from europe, one from dubai with those specific medicines and clinical supplies arriving in cebu over the weekend, and if we

had not done that, we would have to wait for more donations to come in to be able to mobilize and try to actually try to purchase those things. having that beforehand we got the right things in at the right time. >> wasn't there a last mile problem that stuff was making it to the philippines, to the archipelago, but could not necessarily get from where it was to where it was needed? >> well, that's clearly by one of the problems over the past week. we have been able to find barns and other things that we've been able to get from cebu to the leyte, to tacloban. that has been one of the bigger challenges. that's always one of the bigger challenges. but we're starting to see that move, and we're starting up our six clinics soon. it is starting to move now. >> bob, if we had shown the people at home video reports

from living conditions, the other 51 weeks of the year, which in some parts of the country are pretty bleak, they might not be motivated to give. there is a tendency to be wary of efforts to give aid for systemic problems as opposed to disasters. what is that difference? what is thecal clues that is going on in people's heads? >> you pinpointed one of the challenges with disaster philanthropy. the philippines problems did not start with this particular cyclone. they've had earthquake and 20 big typhoons during this past year. there is a lot of issues that have been in place in the philippines for a long time. a very poor population vulnerable coastal areas, poor

infrastructure. but those are the sorts of things that as you said it's harhard to get doer dollars to o to that if any sort of sustained meaningful way. it takes those devastating pictures we see on television or read about to really motivate donors to want to do something, to really inspire them to understand the situation. and i think disasters like this sort of rip the veneer that hides a lot of things that are going on within our country or in a city like new orleans that we either don't know about or would like to ignore. >> so bob, having said exactly what you just said, is it considered good practice? is it considered honest to take some of the enormous flow that accompanies disaster response, people move through their

compassion to help others elsewhere in the world, and to use that money to make sure that the next typhoon is not as destructive? >> well, that's where we need to really focus our attention now, building resilient communities. resilience means being table bounce back. take the blows and not have the kind of utter chaos we have experienced in this most recent-- >> yes, yes, i got that, but how much of an obligation is there on the part of the agencies to say yes, we're taking your money. we're buying medicine. we're buying portable kits to purify water so people don't start to get water-born diseases, and we're going to do the things in the philippines that are necessary to make sure that the next typhoon does not kill as many people? >> yes, i think there is an obligation for oh non-profits to

be transparent about that, but also for donors to be intentional about what they're going. right now we have a disconnect, many non-profits want to do more in recovery, rebuilding, resilients, but that's not clearly understood among donors. donors need to be intentional about why they're giving the money that they're giving, and i think non-profits need to be more transparent and more accountable about what they're doing and why they're doing it. >> alexander, are they obliged to be that much more transparent even if it might mean that people would give less money? >> yes, absolutely. i think charities and non-profits need to fulfill their side of the bargain, which i think means they need to be transparent about how and why they're spending the money. i think donors have a misconceived ideas about where their money should go and what the most effective forms of

giving would look like. it's incumbent on charities to till us what this looks like in a more thoughtful fashion. you were talking about why don donors heart strings are pulled by disaster but not necessarily development issues. i don't know going problem probn the philippines don't always get this type of media coverage. >> would that change the behavior of people who want to help, alex? >> i think so. i think a lot of people who are giving in response to disasters are motivated on by the fact that it's on the news every day for the week. not only are the images bad but it's news worthy. this matters right now. when you hear about ongoing development issues they don't have the same salience because they're not reported in the same way. >> so if you find out after the

fact that the money you sent to help people who were made homeless by katrina, to help people who need immediate assistance after the haitian earthquake, that it's still stuck in the pipeline, is that make you likely to give more or less the next time something terrible happens in the world. >> the real question is if that's the right decision. in haiti the money needed to go to the rebuilding effort instead of classical natural relief on the first day. that can be good, but it can also be a problem. the government of haiti had little control of how it was going to be spent. and there could be issues. how exactly you find the right accountability and transparency to ensure that donations are spent well, i don't think it's an easy, one-size fits all answer. i think donors need to think

harder going into this. >> robert, you have so much to say, i'll come back with you right after the break. we'll continue our discussion of aid and typhoon haiyan in a minute. this is "inside story." consider this: the news of the day plus so much more. >> we begin with the government shutdown. >> answers to the questions no one else will ask. >> it seems like they can't agree to anything in washington no matter what. >> antonio mora, award winning and hard hitting. >> we've heard you talk about the history of suicide in your family. >> there's no status quo, just the bottom line. >> but, what about buying shares in a professional athlete?

>> welcome back to "inside story." i'm ray sores. we're talking about the as the y to help natural disasters like typhoon haiyan, and what about the longer view. bob with the center of disaster philanthropy. robert with save the children is here with me in washington, and

in san francisco, alexander of give well. you just heard that exchange between new york and san francisco, and save the children is trying to cultivate long-term relationships with donors but is called upon in the moment when disaster strikes. how do you do both duties well? >> the focus right now is on the immediate needs, and i think that is what we need to focus on for several weeks and months to come. i was a first responder in indonesia after the tsunami and was there for several months. we worked on a program there for five years. i have to say that the resources need to be spent in the immediate period, but there need to be resources for the massive recovery and rebuilding that is going to happen in the philippines over the next decade, actually. this is a huge disaster and it

will take a long time. look at all these people in the natural disaster centers. their homes have been destroyed, wound care, basic sanitation, critical things right now that are necessary. but five years from now we're talking about getting people back in their homes. we're talking about economic systems, getting back up and going. this is--we're in it for the long haul. >> does that move people who give you money in the same way, and can you open a dialogue with them that informs them what the real needs are? you got their attention. here is this terrible event, but the need goes on long after that first aid is delivered. >> right, and i think th that te are certain donors who only want to give during that period, and we honor that and focus in on that, but we recognize that it's not a hard stop. it's a continuum. i think the public is astute.

they understand that it takes an ounce of prevention to help. so the numbers that die are less, and the impact on people's lives are less, and that things just don't happen immediately. in the states we see things like katrina. we see the issues don't always get resolved in the first couple of months. it does take time. i think in general the public donors understand that. >> bob, in the last day while getting ready for this program i saw very smart, very well thought out device saying tie giving if you're worried and you want to make sure that the money goes where you want it to go, and untied giving because the people you are giving it to know how the money would best be spent. which is it? if i am sitting at home, and i want to help out, do i give it to a specific use or do i want to send that money in and say

make a decision and use it the best way possible. >> usually providing unrestricted donations is better for the non-profit organization. in natural disaster relief we do have organizations who are very skilled in this area. they have the people on the ground. they've got the expertise, communications, transportation, and i would sadie sasster relief is a time when you want to find those professionally run organizations, and give them the freedom to make the right decisions of how it needs to be allocated. and the trend is to make gift more restricted, and what is leading to a lot of that is some uncertainty about how those dollars are going to be used. if an organization can be more transparent about its response to disaster fill pla philanthrou

want to put your trust in them. it's trust that you got to earn, but you want to allocate those dollars in the most effective and meaningful way possible. >> alexander, recent public opinion research found the more money you've got, the more money you intend to give, the more likely you are to make it a tied donation, that is for a specific purpose because you worry more about whether the money gets properly spent. >> yes, i think that's part of it, and it's a little more complicated. bigger more sophisticated donors are doing their work and they're more aware of their options, probably. they may be taking advantage of things that people who are giving a $5 to $10 through cell phonphonecalls, and i agree, ife

donationings are unrestricted, otherwise it ties their hands. >> how do you talk to donors, and they may not be in a position to do real due diligence. things they can do to protect themselves and their money during a disaster splurge of giving? >> i think two things. the first piece of advice i give is to give cash and not clothes or actually goods. this is the instinct that people have. i see people on tv, they're really badly off. anything i can give will help. but the logistical nightmares of getting something from the united states to the philippines that, aid can be amenful. it can clog up logistic systems and be destructive. don't give clothes or canned goods, give cash, and give it pro actively. don't wait for an organization to call you on the phone or e-mail you. find an organization that you

want to support, maybe one that you've supported in the past and you feel confident in, and give, don't wait for them to come knocking on your door. >> by giving cash resources it allows aid organizations to buy things in country and more culturally appropriate that people we're trying to reach know how to use and are familiar with. a lot of stuff that you see clogged on the tarmac after big large-scale disasters, that's kind of the stuff that people send from around the world that actually is clogging up that flem that's it from the team in washington dc. but you can keep the debate going by logging on to our facebook page. or twitter financ twitter. thanks for watching.

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