to think that if you donate money to stop people drowning, you shouldn't have an issue if aome of that money is used to stop people drowning in poorer countries

[chomalungma]

Yes - the RNLI

They have been spending 3% of their income on supporting projects in poor countries to help prevent people drowning - even though it has had to lay some staff off.

They give a project to buy burkinis so women in Zanzibar can learn water safety skils.

They help support a creche because children are often left unsupervised as their parents have to work and many children drown each day. The creche project has helped reduce drowning deaths by 82%.

I can see that some people would be annoyed that a tiny percentage of their donations is going towards supporting poorer people in foreign countries and reducing their chances of drowning at a time when the RNLI lay off staff.

But it's a good thing to teach people water safety even if they are not in this country, isn't it?

Yippee I was just about to post about that, kept reading down the thread waiting for someone to mention it. I only opened the thread to see what it was actually called

No disrespect to lifeguards but I’m struggling to understand what’s so complex about the training that you need a team from thousands of miles away to come and show you.

Surf lifesaving and beach Lifeguarding is actually quite a complex skill set. It's not standing by a pool with a whistle.

Damn. The bold one n the first part of my list didn't work. Was replying to s PP!

I didn't know this, but it won't stop me donating. I always put whatever change I have in an RNLI bucket.

I think what they do is great and I'm delighted they are bringing their knowledge and experience to other countries. That's kind of how sea rescue works. No passport check before you rescue someone- my dad's ship was torpedoed in the war so this means something to me.
And RNLI works in Ireland too. Which is fucking awesome.
My favourite charity.

trips to foreign climes are much nicer than cold seas off Aberdovey, bet the bigwigs of the RNLI love the fact finding trips

MadM0rn1ng382

I have raised & donated money to RNLI
I thought they were a UK/Irish charity

Were you donating to them because you have a specific budget for "monthly donations to UK/Irish charities" or were you donating to them because the cause of saving lives on the UK coast is important to you?

If you just want to donate to a random UK/Irish charity, then crack on.

If it's about saving lives at sea, then you're cutting your nose off to spite your face. Name me a single other charity that does what the RNLI does within the UK!

This guy sums it up pretty well.

You can donate to the rnli and request that the money goes to specific station or item. The boats are named after benefactors, but if you want them to use your money for lifejackets for example or waterproofs go ahead.

If you want your money to go to help people overseas them there are s lot of Mediterranean refugee ferry charities who will take your money.

I'd be annoyed.
If I'm asked to support the RNLI I do. DH's family were all lifeboat men in Ireland so we support the RNLI at every opportunity.

If I was asked to donate to promote water safety or train lifeguards etc in other countries I'd probably do that too. But that's my choice, not the RNLI's.

The RNLI is BU in giving 3% of my donations to other causes without telling or asking me.

That Twitter is just provocative and he doesn’t sum up anything. Preventing children from drowning? That’s supervision. Far second and third is learning to swim and cpr, but it’s basically watch the kids! How dramatic ... don’t agree with me and you have no soul. Do fuck off, drama llama.

The RNLI is BU in giving 3% of my donations to other causes without telling or asking me.

They tell you on their website.

I’ve got no problem with RNLI using a tiny proportion of their funding in this way. I also don’t believe for a second that most of those ranting in the DM comments or on Twitter actually donate to the charity in the first place.

They tell you on their website

Does everyone check a charity's website before putting money in a tin rattled at you as you walk into Sainsbury's etc? If that tin says RNLI on it, then that's where I expect my money to go to.

I'd probably also donate if the tin said "lifeguards for The Gambia" on it, but would likewise not be happy if a percentage of that money went to something else too.

Seems quite sensible to maintain some rigour as to where the money actually goes.

The charter of my children's primary school PTA, for example, required that all proceeds go to local charities.

I love tbe idea that people are getting in a fizz about "National " and don't realise that Ireland is "international ".

I wonder whether people who think it's bad for the RNLI to spend 3% of their monies abroad (for all we know possibly using funds expressly given for this purpose), would think it's worse for them to spend more than 3% of their time rescuing non-British nationals from our seas? Maybe they should have a quota system?

Well, I thought this thread was about something else entirely.

You must have a horribly sad, angry little life, if you object to humans saving humans. Just because they don't have a UK passport.

Ask yourself how you became so hatefully racist. What happened to you? Sit with that for a bit.

I think it's great that it's trending on Twitter and so many people are donating towards it.

The Daily Mail and The Times need to take a strong look at themselves....again

You must have a horribly sad, angry little life, if you object to humans saving humans. Just because they don't have a UK passport.

That's pretty much the dictionary definition of "racist" ....

Apparently one of the overseas projects was funded mainly by a donor who specified that they wanted their money to go to that specific project. And extending the work of the RNLI overseas was something that its founder specifically wanted and envisioned from the start.

If you care very much about exactly where your donation goes then yes you should check the website or otherwise inform yourself. Same as for any charity donations - many charities support other charities work.

"No disrespect to lifeguards but I’m struggling to understand what’s so complex about the training that you need a team from thousands of miles away to come and show you"

It's complex. Watch saving lives at sea. That'll give you a small idea.