Eric Gunderson of Development Seed, our web designer, came up with this spot of genius. While I am slowly working backwards through our site to update all of the photographs, check out Matt Marek’s post on Project Medishare to see an example. The genius lies in the wonderful interoperability of the net. Read more »

In what is hopefully a sign that stability and security are beginning to return to Haiti, this week the US Embassy announced that they have given clearance for all personnel to return to post. I realize that considering elections are just about a month away, I should be running to find some wood to knock on. But, perhaps this is an indication that after a shaky start, the UN forces are finally doing their jobs, the Haitian National Police force is gaining strength, and the Haitian people are committed to ending the violence and civil unrest. Read more »

Hydrocephalus is a congenital disease that affects 2 out of every 1000 births. In most places, shortly after birth, a somewhat simple operation allows a child a greater chance at a normal life. Read more »

Beyond doubt, elections need to be held in Haiti and they need to be held soon. During this period of uncertainty and interim everything [for one, a government that the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) has rejected resoundingly] it has never been more important that Haiti move forward and have a participatory democracy. Read more »

POP QUIZ! Which of the following scenarios are relevant to Haiti’s development?

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Throughout 201 years of independence, politics has been at the forefront of Haiti's existence but rarely in a positive way. Haiti Innovation is a nonpolitical organization but that doesn’t mean we don’t recognize the role, positive or negative, politics play in ordinary Haitians’ everyday lives. However, we also recognize that politics do not consume the everyday lives of ordinary Haitians. Read more »

If you want to know what it is like to be Sisyphus in Congress, just ask Senator Mike DeWine (OH). This week, the Senator reintroduced the Haitian Economic Recovery Opportunity Act (HERO). The bill, which would amend the Caribbean Basin Economic Recovery Act to allow certain apparel articles to enter the United States duty free, has been introduced by the Senator in each of the last three sessions of congress. Read more »

There was a period of time in the late sixties and early seventies when public health specialists thought the war on infectious disease was being won. This over-confidence proved disastrous. Old scourges have re-emerged to become public health problems of enormous consequence. Tuberculosis, perhaps as old as man itself, is an excellent example. The Greeks referred to TB as "phthinein”, meaning “to waste away.” In the middle ages it was known as "White Death". Later, it became "Consumption". Considering the length of time it has been with us, the name "tuberculosis" itself is relatively new. Read more »

Last Friday, two Haiti Innovation Board members sat down with Mr. Adolfo Franco, Assistant Administrator of the Bureau for Latin America and the Caribbean along with Beth Cypser, Director of the Office of Caribbean Affairs, and Jerry Barth, Senion Advisor on Haiti at USAID to share our vision of sustainable development in Haiti. Read more »

There are two indicators that the international community uses to judge the extent of a humanitarian crisis. These are Crude Mortality Rate, which measures the rate of death from all causes in a given population per day and Global Acute Malnutrition, which measures the rate of moderately and severely malnourished children in a given population.

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