Galvanized by the tragic events of September 11th, 2001 seven of the nation's leading nonprofit disaster relief organizations came together to assess the lessons learned from that unprecedented tragedy.

One of the most important findings of this assessment was that disaster relief agencies, whether national or local, did not have a unified way of sharing information with one another. While each agency might have a high degree of information management competence within its own sphere, they were not able to fluently share data.

Ultimately, this meant that the people who need help the most in the wake of a natural or man-made disaster were left to their own devices to find a way through the web of relief services offered.

To ease this burden, the Coordinated Assistance Network (CAN) was established. CAN partners participate in community-led preparedness and response coalitions that focus on ways to best leverage resources to most effectively serve those in need. CAN works with these coalitions to develop innovative solutions that make tangible improvements in how relief and recovery services are provided to individuals and communities as a whole.