Corporations Seek to Improve Disaster-Aid Efforts

Chief executives at 30 corporations are collaborating with charities and government agencies to improve disaster-aid efforts, reports USA Today.

Frustrated with the government’s slow response to Katrina, a committee created by the Business Roundtable aims to put in place an emergency protocol that includes a direct phone line to the Department of Homeland Security and a Web site that has real-time news about what businesses can do for government agencies after a catastrophe.

Business leaders said it was not just government that made coordination difficult, but also the large number of charities competing for aid. “There was a lot of carpetbagging going on,” Kevin Martinez, an official of Home Depot, said. “We’re saying to charities: Don’t work in a vacuum. Work with each other. What exactly are you fund raising for?”