Dec
1
Coalition Seeking to Play Wider Role
It’s apparent, in the light of the last ten months, that things have not gone well with the relief effort in Haiti. More than a million people remain in tent cities; most of Port-au-Prince remains in ruins, with much of the rubble untouched; the displacement of as many as a million other people has also placed severe stress on nearby communities; and the billions promised by the donor countries have yet to materialize. An outbreak of cholera, and of violence, was entirely predictable.
In the midst of a Presidential election which seems as much a desperate search for anyone who will serve, and can unite even a fraction of the country, the urgency of offering sustainable solutions is greater than ever. The challenge of rebuilding Haiti is a complex one — it has economic, historical, social, political, and cultural dimensions — but it needs to begin and end in the restoration of its ecosystems and of the relationship between people and their environment. But above all, it needs to begin, and begin in earnest.
Whatever has and has not been accomplished by the relief effort now needs to be evaluated, and the condition of Haiti’s institutions established. We are currently preparing a position and discussion paper for the incoming administration, offering our services. The Coalition is rapidly becoming a broker for entrepreneurial and humanitarian efforts to take positive steps to restore the economy and civil society; an advocate for the sustainable development of Haiti, following the guidelines of the Millennium Development Goals, the UN World Food Program, and the Action Plan for National Recovery and Development of Haiti; and a clearinghouse for information and resources for members.
We’ll be publishing information on these initiatives as they begin to demonstrate results, both here and on the ground in Haiti. In the meantime, we invite you to partner with us to create a more sustainable future for Haiti. To find out more about our ability to facilitate your project, please contact Doug Cohen <dacohen@sustainablehaiticoalition.org> or Jonathan Cloud <jcloud@sustainablehaiticoalition.org>, co-founders.