Please note that detailed Project Summaries for projects will be posted and updated on this site as frequently as possible. Please visit us again soon for updates.

(1) Youth, Development & Education

Rattrapage Tutoring Program (“Catching-Up”) is a daily tutoring program that brings teachers and students together to work on reading, writing, science three times a week to help children catch up and maintain their skills while schools remain closed. This program will remain in place and may be modified to adapt to evolving conditions after schools re-open to help students during what is expected to be a long education crisis. This program started in February 2010 and is ongoing in the communities of Terre Rouge, La Montagne (South East), Leogane (West) and Sibert, Cul de Sac (West).  

Background for Rattrapage
A significant number of schools in Port-au-Prince and surrounding rural areas were either destroyed or severely damaged. In addition, many students and teachers died during the earthquake. As a result, the education system in Haiti shut down since the earthquake. In response to this serious education crisis, we started organizing daily tutoring programs to help students catch up and maintain their skills in primary subjects such as mathematics, reading and writing. We will also seek partners with other organizations doing similar work and raise funds to continue reaching out to as many families and teachers as possible that lack the means to access such tutoring programs.

Les Enfants et La Planète is a bi-monthly ecological education series which includes the maintenance of a community garden and reading and writing lectures on ecology and nature conservation. This program will resume in April 2010. In addition to the regular program, this year sessions will include consultations with child psychologists and trauma experts to address coping mechanisms for children, families and teachers who have suffered massive trauma as a result of the earthquake and will also include drawing and painting workshops to help bring some normalcy and psychological balance to the lives of these children.

Project summaries and evaluations for the Rattrapage and Les Enfants et La Planète will be posted on this page starting April 2010.

For additional information regarding Rattrapage or Le Enfants et La Planète please contact Yanick Lelio-Joseph at yanicklelio@yahoo.com or please call 347-405-5552.

(2) ENERGY AND SUSTAINABLE PRACTICES

April 2010 Solar Energy Workshop - A Catalyst for Community Engagement and Development

When: April 26th to May 1, 2010.

Workshop Location: Terre Rouge, La Montagne, a rural mountainous region in the south eastern part of Haiti near the city of Jacmel.

Workshop Goal: Work with approximately 80 children ages 10 to 14 to build a solar powered modular lighting system and develop ideas and planning in connection with sustainable energy practices and community development.

The workshop will be organized as a creative group effort to conceptualize varied approaches in the composition and construction of a solar powered modular lighting system that can service the community. We will organize 8 teams comprised of 10 children each. We will provide guidance and expertise and work closely with the children. With respect to materials, we will provide the basic tools and connections for the "guts" of the product; however, we will leave use, design and construction to local ingenuity and materials. For instance, a coconut shell may serve as a cover for the lighting systems etc…

For additional information on the April 2010 Solar Energy Workshop please contact Robin J. Boucard at robin@ruralhaitiproject.org or please call 347-405-5552.

(3) ARCHITECTURE AND PLANNING

The Remote School System Pilot

When: Winter 2011

Where: Jacmel (urban area with schools) and Camenette (remote rural village).

Project Vision: Implement a pilot project to provide access to education in remote rural areas utilizing computer technology and internet based communication. The Rural Haiti Project will build, in both Jacmel and in Camenette, gathering areas with computer and internet service that can be used as education centers for students. For instance, teachers may be in the city of Jacmel and reach students in Camenette. The gathering areas may be used by the public during off hours, while internet and computer service revenues can be reinvested in the project.

Need: Rural areas of Haiti have very difficult access to information and education due to poor road infrastructure between villages and schools. Internet communication allows information and education of villagers without promoting relocation to urban areas, thereby enhancing the social and economic environment of the rural settlement.

For additional information on the Remote School System Pilot please contact Sarah Avvedimento at savvedim@gmail.com.

Innovations in Temporary and Sustainable Shelters

When: Fall 2010
The Rural Haiti Project seeks to build a hybrid structure that is able to accommodate different temporary uses and adapt to the changing needs of the local community over time. The structure would serve as a community center for children which would include a computer and internet facility and could be used as a temporary emergency shelter during adverse natural conditions (hurricanes and periodic seismic activity).

For additional information on the April 2010 Solar Energy Workshop please contact Colin G. Montoute at cmontoute@fxfowle.com or Hervé Sabin at j-herve@ruralhaitiproject.org.

(4) HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE

Food for Children in Tent Cities

When: March 2010

This month Rural Haiti Project started distributing food to children living in tent cities in the city of Jacmel (south east of Port-au-Prince), Leogane (west of Port-au-Prince) and Sibert, Cul-de-Sac (west of Port-au-Prince). The food distributed consists of a combination of locally grown or sold products (such as fruits, rice, beans and wheat) and, when available, food donated from relief organizations.

Rural Haiti Project will also continue to collect donated supplies to distribute to rural communities from time to time as shipping capabilities and air travel permit.

Evaluations for the Food for Children in Tent Cities will be posted on this page starting April 2010.

For additional information on Food for Children in Tent Cities please contact Robin J. Boucard at robin@ruralhaitiproject.org or Hervé Sabin at j-herve@ruralhaitiproject.org or please call 347-405-5552.