Bourik with St. Germain
This week Bourik On Street (BOS) on first assignment with pen and paper in hoof moseyed on out to Taino a small coastal town just west of Gran Gwav.
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Can You Hear us Now? Cellular Phones Give Haitians a Voice
For too long, Haiti has been in a communication stranglehold. Making a telephone call through the local Teleco station, when it worked, was a long and expensive ordeal. Sending a letter was like buying a lottery ticket - better to send it on the "Diaspora Express" by handing it to someone you know going to the U.S.A. But Haitians now have more communication options than ever before - the impact of cellular technology has been particularly dramatic.
Haiti Networking Event- Miami, FL (March 15)
Rotary Club of Miami hosted the first Haiti Networking Event last October in order to bring together organizations that provide assistance to the people of Haiti. The forum allowed for a greater understanding of the extent of aid being provided in various geographic areas of Haiti. More than 40 attendees, representing over 20 organizations, exchanged information in hope of developing partnerships. Several organizations had similar needs and concerns although many had different resources. This meeting became the perfect opportunity to promote discussion and collaboration to further expand projects in Haiti. The next networking event will be hosted by the Rotary Club of Miami and Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines on March 15 in Miami, FL.
Biking Haiti
I don’t fully realize why I put myself through it until days afterwards when the tightness subsides, the soreness in the muscles evaporates and the numbness of my body dissolves making movements like standing, sitting and walking possible without grunting or wincing. It is only after all this that I begin to recall and can share the stories of the many amazing people and encounters had along the road. And it is only after this that I have the mind to really appreciate the beauty of the experience. And equally be astonished by the absurd contrasts of unequivocal spirits against relentlessly hard living. The French poet and philosopher Andre Malraux after visiting Haiti for the first time decades ago said of it, “Surrealism finally has a country.”
IOM Releases Video on Child Trafficking and Abuse in Haiti
The International Organization for Migration (IOM) is active in Haiti in a number of different areas. One if its priorities is the prevention of child abuse. In advance of a forum in Vienna next week organized by the UN Global Initiative to Fight Trafficking (UNGIFT), IOM releasd a video to raise awareness of the plight of an estimated 173,000 Haitian children internally trafficked for domestic servitude, known as Restaveks.
Jatropha World 2008 in Miami (June 10-11)
The Singapore-based Center for Management Technology has been holding a series of conferences on Jatropha - what it is, what it can do, what it can't do. The next conference will be held in Miami on June 10th - 11th. For those interested in planting, harvesting, and processing the Jatropha plant in Haiti this could be an invaluable networking opportunity.
Haiti 101 - Florida International University
It was recently brought to my attention that Florida International University offers a Haitian Summer Institute Course each Summer through its Latin American and Carribean Center. The course is designed for individuals who would like to speak Kreyol and understand Haitian history and culture.
A War on Hunger in Haiti - What Would It Take?
I have seen several articles lately concerning the clay biscuits that the poorest of the poor in Haiti eat to make the hunger pangs subside. This is not a new phenomenon. Much of that clay comes from an area in between Hinche and Thomonde, where I served as a Peace Corps Volunteer. We all know Haiti is desperately food insecure, but with hunger being such a complicated issue, do we know what to do in order to respond? What would a Haitian “war against hunger” be like?