ShelterBox

ShelterBox is an international disaster relief charity that provides temporary shelter and life saving supplies to displaced families.^[1]

Founded in 2000, it has responded to just under 200 natural or man-made disasters in 75 countries^[2], supplying aid to more than 600,000 people, and delivers emergency shelter, warmth and dignity to people made homeless worldwide.^[3]

The contents of a ShelterBox are tailored to the nature and location of the disaster.^[4]

Each ShelterBox typically contains a tent designed to withstand extreme weather conditions, water purification kit, blankets, tools, and other necessities to help a family survive after a disaster.^[5]

ShelterBox Response Teams distribute boxes on the ground, working closely with local organisations, international aid agencies and Rotary clubs worldwide.^[6]

ShelterBox was founded by Tom Henderson, OBE, a Rotarian and former Royal Navy search and rescue diver, in the Cornish town of Helston.^[7]

He saw the humanitarian response in most disasters was in the form of food and medicine. Little or no assistance was being given in terms of safe, secure shelter to help families survive the first days, weeks and months as they rebuild their lives. ShelterBox was created to fill this void.^[8]

The first consignment of 143 boxes was sent to earthquake victims of the 2001 Gujarat earthquake. Over the next three years the project matured and by the end of 2004 nearly 2,600 boxes had been dispatched, following 16 major disasters. The company significantly expanded its work in response to the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami.

As of 2009, ShelterBox had provided help to more than one million people.^[7]

In 2010, the Australian and Canadian branches of ShelterBox split from the main organization and formed new organizations called Disaster Aid Australia and Disaster Aid Canada, respectively.^[9] However, new teams in Australia and Canada were immediately put in place and the charity's work was unaffected by the breakaway groups.^[10]

Currently, ShelterBox has branches in the United States, France, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Brazil, Belgium, The Netherlands, Denmark, Norway, Luxemburg, Germany, Poland, Switzerland, South Africa, Portugal, Sweden, Indonesia and the Philippines, along with a branch associated with the Scouts.

After the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami in Japan, ShelterBox provided assistance to about 1,600 families in the disaster region.^[11]

In August 2012, the Board of Directors of ShelterBox removed Tom Henderson as CEO. Whilst claiming it was a unanimous decision.^[12]Sir John Banham , a trustee, claims this was not the case^[13].

ShelterBox has tracking systems to monitor weather systems around the globe and anticipate the likely scale of hurricanes and cyclones. In addition, an earthquake alert system gives immediate notice of any seismic activity that could result in a humanitarian disaster. ShelterBox has strong relationships with international aid agencies and Rotary clubs worldwide who also relay information when they become aware of an urgent need for shelter.

ShelterBox aims to get the first shipment of boxes dispatched to a disaster area within 2–3 days where a ShelterBox Response Team (SRT) meets it. Often ShelterBox is the first outside aid agency on the ground.^[14]

ShelterBox relies entirely on donations to make their work possible. About half of the funds come direct from the UK public, the rest is raised by international affiliates.^[14]

ShelterBox has also recently joined a network of experts who can be called on by the UK Government in times of international crisis, such as famine, floods and earthquakes. The new facility allows organisations with experience in disaster response to access funding within hours, thereby reaching affected people faster and saving more lives. It will mean the best organisations from across the UK can be mobilised in the critical first 72 hours following a disaster.^[15]

Public donations continue to be of vital importance to ShelterBox as the new Rapid Response Fund will only be activated in the event of a large-scale crisis.^[16]

In August 2007 HRH The Duchess of Cornwall became the charity’s President and Royal Patron, following her visit to the Helston HQ that summer.^[17]

Rotary International signed an agreement with ShelterBox in March 2012 which increases their joint capacity to help families around the world displaced by disaster. The agreement formalises the twelve-year bond between the two organisations and cements the place of Rotarians around the world at the heart of ShelterBox activities. It is the first time that any organisation has become an officially recognised ‘Project Partner’ of Rotary International.

Rotary clubs across Great Britain and Ireland raise around £1.5 million each year for the charity and some Rotarians are ShelterBox Response Team members who go out to disaster areas and provide hands-on help during times of need. These disasters can be anything from dealing with the aftermath of tsunamis to helping refugees from war-torn countries who have fled conflict.

ShelterBox was founded by Rotarian Tom Henderson OBE in 2000 as a Rotary Club Millennium Project of the Rotary Club of Helston-Lizard in Cornwall, UK. It has since become one of the world’s leading humanitarian aid charities providing emergency shelter and supplies to over 107,000 families worldwide following disaster.^[18]

In May 2009 ShelterBox launched an official partnership with The Scout Association. This relationship offers the opportunity to engage scouts with worldwide issues such as natural disasters, man-made conflict and humanitarian aid, encouraging groups to contribute positively to a global society. For example, Scout groups joined the ShelterBox organization in its response to the 2009 L'Aquila earthquake in Italy, as well as the violent protests in east Kenya in 2008.^{[citation needed]} In August 2011, at the World Scout Jamboree held at Rinkaby/Kristianstad, Sweden, ShelterBox France entered into an official partnership with the Scouts et Guides de France.

• "CNN Heroes: ShelterBox mobilizes quickly for Japanese in need". CNN. 17 March 2011. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
• ShelterBox at Flickr

Wikimedia Commons has media related to ShelterBox.

• Official ShelterBox website

Video

• ShelterBox at work