Ben Smilowitz

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2008

Ben Smilowitz

Disaster Accountability Project

http://www.disasteraccountability.com

West Hartford, Connecticut, United States

Community Improvement & Economic Development

The Bold Idea:

Improving the nation's disaster management systems through public accountability, citizen oversight and empowerment, whistle-blower engagement, and policy research.

Three years after the United States government’s ineffective response to Hurricane Katrina, thousands of recommendations to improve the nation’s disaster systems are collecting dust because there is no comprehensive, continuous oversight system. Indeed, throughout the nation’s history, oversight of disaster management—preparedness, response, relief, and recovery—has been uneven and public scrutiny is generally limited to the immediate aftermath of a disaster, followed by long periods of neglect. Deprived of information needed to demand better disaster services, citizens have had little input in the government’s top-down planning process.

The Disaster Accountability Project (DAP) proposes to empower the public to fill this vacant oversight role. Through a network of monitors and a toll-free hotline, DAP will provide an opportunity for previously unheard citizens to find their voices. DAP will engage citizens across the country to ask questions and assess disaster plans to ensure they are inclusive and comprehensive. DAP will hold government agencies and nonprofit organizations accountable for ensuring that past errors are not repeated and will track the implementation of post-Katrina recommendations for improvement.

Ben Smilowitz pitching at Echoing Green Selection Weekend (May 2, 2008)

Biography:

Soon after Katrina devastated the Gulf Coast, Ben Smilowitz directly witnessed the failed response as the manager of a Red Cross Client Service Center in Gulfport, MS. With a background in civic engagement and issue campaigns, Ben started DAP to confront the root causes of the bungled disaster response. Ben received a BA in Political Science and an Advanced Graduate Certificate in Nonprofit Management at Washington University in St. Louis and is currently pursuing a law degree at the University of Connecticut School of Law.

Moment of Obligation: What experiences led to the desire to start your own organization?
I never imagined I’d be doing this work until I served as a volunteer for the Red Cross after Hurricane Katrina and managed Client Service Centers along the Gulf Coast. While witnessing the gaps in critical disaster relief services firsthand, I was unsuccessful in my efforts to get the Red Cross to improve conditions. I told myself that if an organization did not exist to receive information about gaps in services from whistleblowers during disasters, and provide public oversight to the organizations that comprise the U.S. disaster prevention, response, relief, and recovery systems, I would start it.

Gall to Think Big: What has given you the ability to dream big and take on deeply entrenched social and difficult problems? (Such as experiences, skills, events, etc.)
I have had incredible and supportive parents and mentors who believed in the power of young people and encouraged me to think big. My state senator introduced me to politics in elementary school. At fifteen, I heard someone speak about the burning churches in the South. He asked why we were not doing more to respond. Soon after, I organized a vigil in my town center that attracted statewide media, a congressperson, and other local leaders. That experience helped me realize my power to make a difference—beyond traditional community service opportunities. Months later, I started an organization to organize other high school students across the U.S., to help them realize their power and advocate for their interests. In Connecticut, we passed successful legislation to create student seats on the State Board of Education. That campaign, and subsequent experiences leading national issue campaigns, developing a Youth Cabinet for a governor’s office, studying and serving on nonprofit boards, and my current coursework in law school, all provide a wealth of tools useful for government oversight and accountability work. My personal motto is to be as effective as possible in all I do. After my experience in Mississippi, focusing my attention on disaster accountability made the most sense.

New and Untested: What's innovative about your new idea for social change?
DAP was created to change the way disaster preparedness and emergency management are viewed, understood, and prioritized. Donating money and volunteering to help disaster survivors are the traditional avenues through which Americans “get involved” when it comes to disaster preparedness and response. Unfortunately, this approach has provided the organizations and agencies responsible for disaster work with a blank check to maintain the status quo in their activities.

The organizations that focus on government accountability generally have centralized operations in Washington and do not rely on concerned citizens to play a major role in accountability work. Because effective oversight of disaster prevention, response, relief, and recovery activity requires oversight on all levels of government, DAP focuses on creating a network of citizens engaged year-round in disaster planning, thus addressing potential system failures before they can occur.

Seeing Possibilities: What are the most important qualities to be a successful social entrepreneur?
Always working to improve the following: perseverance; being comfortable with making mistakes and being able to learn from them; expecting lots of losses and occasional big wins; determination; picking issues/battles/projects carefully and thoughtfully; starting a project or organization because it needs to happen, for the right reasons; openness to all forms of criticism; building a team and having effective delegation skills.

Which musical artists/albums get you going and keep you inspired?
There’s something about Bollywood and Israeli music that I love—maybe because it reminds me of Indian food and messy falafel. I appreciate artists that use their fame to further social justice causes.

What books do you recommend (pleasure, work and anything in between)?
Well, the law student in me wants to recommend the Connecticut Penal Code. The disaster whistleblower in me would recommend the lacking National Response Framework. But if you’re looking for lighter reading, I recommend Holy Cow! or the latest Government Accountability Office report on FEMA and/or Red Cross deficiencies.

Which websites do you visit often (work and/or personal)?
Besides DAP’s own websites,

• disasteraccountability.org
• blog.disasteraccountability.org
• facebook.com probably wins the most daily hits (join our Cause!)

Google News Alerts keep me visiting

• sunherald.com (the Biloxi Sun Herald),
• nola.com/t-p (NOLA Times Picayune), and
• sun-sentinel.com (South Florida Sun Sentinel) especially during hurricane season.
• craigslist.org and
• idealist.org are great for recruiting volunteers.

And of course:

• cnn.com,
• nytimes.com, and other staples. Oh, and the FEMA website,
• fema.gov for some reason, because I can never find what I’m looking for!

What advice or quote do you keep close to your heart as a social change leader?
The two that stand out the most are probably Dr. King’s: “We have come a long, long way…but we have a long, long way to go.” And Hillel’s: “If not now, then when? If not me, then who?”