In a recent post, I discussed how companies, charities, and individuals fell short in their response to the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.

Today I’d like to discuss how we can take a totally new approach—one with a different focus and a more ambitious, and important, list of goals in mind.

Nonprofit organizations, corporations, and individuals could have mobilized to do something that no single institution is equipped to do—deal with a major crisis by sharing the information people need to take real action. They could have developed reasonable alternatives to old, tired methods taken by government and other leaders. 

How might you put together such a powerful collaborative effort, based on the problems caused by the oil spill? Here are some of the key steps:

Launch an independent effort to assess the response to the oil spill, focusing on areas that President Obama’s commission won’t. This…

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The oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico is over. The well has been capped.

There is no way to quantify the full extent of the environmental or economic damage—now, or possibly ever. But already we know that the response to this catastrophic event has not delivered the kind of radical shift in how we deal with disasters and respond to crises that was needed.

Why not? Simply put, the organizations and people who shared ideas, proposed solutions, and took action were doing so in their own self-interest. For example:

• Nonprofit organizations raised millions of dollars for people hurt by the oil spill (and in the process expanded their own e-mail lists). But their efforts aren’t really helping to rebuild the economy of the Gulf.  

• Cause-marketing campaigns helped to brand corporations as philanthropic and committed to serious issues. But the money they have contributed pales in comparison with…

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