Jayci Corwin of Maui Gold Pineapple unloads cases of fruit being donated to west Maui wildfire victims in August.

As we enter the season of giving, many of us will be motivated to donate to a good cause. Nonprofits will take to social media to make the case that they are the organizations that most deserve our financial support, often requesting aid for the victims of the latest natural (or unnatural) disaster.

It makes good marketing sense: Most of us want to help others, especially during the holiday season. When we see images of wildfires, droughts, hurricanes or earthquakes, we feel compelled to help stop the suffering — right now. This is true throughout the year as well. When a major disaster hits, countless opportunities like these pop up. These pleas for aid come from established relief organizations, brand-new charities or crowdfunding campaigns, but they all culminate in the same message: Donate now.

I admit that until recently I was one of the many who occasionally did, giving $50 here or $100 there purportedly to help victims all over the globe. But I don’t anymore. And I don’t think you should, either, because I’ve become convinced that donations to disaster aid — whether in the immediate aftermath or as part of a nonprofit’s annual holiday drive — often provide only limited relief and sometimes none at all. There are a few main reasons why.

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