Cyclone Devastates Myanmar; Thousands Dead, Thousands More Reported Missing
IRD Sends Emergency Response Team to Coordinate Aid Shipments

Irawaddy region, Myanmar — Updated May 16, 2008 — The full effects of the devastating Cyclone Nargis in Myanmar are still not fully known. Latest estimates from state and local television reports put the death toll at 78,000, with an additional 56,000 missing. Read the BBC reports here.

"We are only seeing the peak of the iceberg, and the situation risks becoming a lot more dramatic if there isn't an acceleration of humanitarian aid," said Elizabeth Byrs, spokeswoman for the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). The entire hard-hit Irawaddy region is still inaccessible.

IRD has sent an emergency assessment team to get better estimates on the scope of the damage and continuing needs. The team is considering potential in-kind donations that can be shipped, particularly emergency non-food items, as well as exploring the extent of the water and sanitation needs of survivors. Previously, IRD has been able to obtain, ship, and deliver drugs, medical and first aid supplies, medical equipment, hygiene and sanitation goods, household utensils, blankets and other appropriate goods totaling in the tens of millions of dollars to emergencies around the world.

IRD is also working to lend its regional expertise to support the work of local organizations responding to the disaster. IRD already works in throughout the region to address food security and relief needs. It is important to remember that here at home we can still make a difference, that even the smallest contribution can help.

Delivering aid to Myanmar has presented some difficulty for international aid agencies. In this video, IRD Director of Relief Adam Koons talks about IRD's staging area for aid to cyclone victims in Thailand, the resources we have in place and some of the challenges he expects to face.

Videos are in Adobe Flash Player format. Click here to get Acrobat Flash Player.

IRD Responds to Rising Food Prices Worldwide

Washington, DC — May 1, 2008 — In the past months, rising food prices have created an international crisis that the U.N. recently called a "silent tsunami". Every year, over 10 million children under five die from readily preventable diseases; more than half of those deaths are directly attributable to malnutrition.

IRD currently directly distributes food aid in four countries—Cambodia, Chad, Laos, and Niger—to address short-term food needs. By tapping into local expertise and developing market-based solutions, IRD ensures that in the long term, vulnerable people are better able to cope with increasing food prices and keep their families healthy. DONATE NOW >>

IRD Releases New Study Highlighting Malnutrition And Obesity Facing American Indian Populations

Kansas City, MO — Updated April 30, 2008 — The full study is now available online as a pdf.

Malnutrition is a growing issue for marginalized and underserved segments of the U.S. population, especially rural and reservation-based American Indians, finds a new study, commissioned by IRD and conducted by Dr. Michele Companion of the University of Colorado. The study examines the “double burden” of poverty: malnutrition along with a rapid rise in obesity and diet-related chronic diseases in American Indians. MORE>>

IRD also announced a petition to raise awareness about malnutrition among American Indians, originating with Mayor of Kansas City Mark Funkhouser, available to sign online. Help us make your voice heard on this issue.

Read both the Kansas City Star and Associated Press coverage of the event and the International Food Aid Conference in general. (Clips are in PDF format. Click here to get Acrobat Reader.)