Mirebalais is Going Through a Rapid Transformation
I returned this week from a 20-day trip to Haiti, the longest in recent years! I took advantage of the long stay to reconnect with very some old friends and acquaintances from Haiti and the Diaspora; I also participated in the festivities surrounding the feast of Mirebalais Patron Saint, St. Louis, including the very thoughtful Soirée des Hommages, organized by the local chapter of Rotary Club, the traditional celebrating Mass at the Catholic church, the visit of President Michel Martelly to Mirebalais, and live shows by the popular Djakout and the sensational Tropicana, at Wozo Plaza in Ledier. My trip had two primary purposes:
- I was in Haiti to receive several pallets (26) of donated goods by wonderful friends of FATEM from the US, to be distributed to students and parents at all 15 schools within the FATEM school network; the goods made their way to Haiti through the generous assistance of the US Navy, via its Handclasp Program. The distribution went very well, thanks to ingenuity of FATEM local staff and our wonderful volunteers! Kudos to all of them!
- I attended to 1000 Jobs/Haiti as well, looking into our compressed earth block training that was being conducted by Prof. Satprem Maini from India, visiting our block-making site in Domond and our vocational school in Corporan, and looking into our water project in the Hinche area.
Construire l'Avenir à Mirebalais!
Par Ladenson Fleurival, MHAVE Staff - Au moment où les problèmes de l’éducation, du développement économique et social, se posent dans toute leur acuité dans la société, certaines organisations, soucieuses d’un avenir meilleur pour les enfants d’Haïti, s’engagent à venir en aide à de nombreuses familles, en butte à des difficultés de toute sorte. La Fondation pour l’avancement technologique et économique de Mirebalais (FATEM,) en est un exemple.
What's Next for Haiti?
By Shai Reshef - It’s been a year and half since Haiti’s devastating earthquake where approximately over half a million individuals were either killed or injured and a million were left homeless. A little over thirty days ago, Michel Martelly was inaugurated as Haiti’s new president. As the flow of aid was interrupted following election chaos, and much of the money pledged to Haiti after the earthquake has as of yet not been delivered to aid projects, we all hope that now reconstruction can begin in earnest and Haiti can intensify the pace of rebuilding to begin anew.
Notes from my recent trip to Haiti
On May 2, 2011, I returned to Massachusetts from a seven-day visit in Haiti, on a 1000 Jobs/Haiti mission, along with my colleague, Joe Parenteau, 1000 Jobs/Haiti’s Director of Design and Construction.
Technology in Education: Global Implications
By Shai Reshef, Founder, University of the People - The subject of technology in education (see Harvard’s take on the subject: http://blogs.hbr.org/innovations-in-education/) ranges in girth from the iPad and mobile technology to location based services, artificial intelligence, augmented reality and more. While technological advances and the implications of technology to add greater sophistication and depth to learning are fascinating, the most important question remains to be addressed in widespread discussion: How can technology be used to benefit education for the greatest number of people in the world and not just the privileged few?
Higher Education: A Good Promoter of World Peace
By Shai Reshef, Founder, University of the People - Higher Education can make world peace closer through the amalgamation of two effects online higher education fosters: the betterment of individual lives and an appreciation for diversity.
It is a well known worldwide that the higher an education a person receives can correlate with an increase in salary. Higher education brings empowerment to individuals and the skills necessary to get a job or create a business to support one's family and earn a living. In general, when people have higher education, not only do they get a better job but they also can see a brighter career future and are unlikely to create disruptions to their future. In essence, people who have good jobs don't want a war; they want peace.
What can a wireless network do for the Central Plateau region?
Inveneo recently announced that as part of their Rural Broadband Connectivity Program they will build a model that will reach and serve clients (schools, NGOs, enterprises and others) cost effectively, through the accelerated deployment of a high speed, broadband wireless network in rural population centers; they will train and certify Haitian IT entrepreneurs to deploy, operate and support this network; they will teach sustainable business model to local network ownership and operations for the broadband wireless network. All this will make it possible to deploy new and relevant technology in education to increase ICT knowledge and usage. They also announced that they will have the first training for these IT technicians in Mirebalais. What does this mean in terms of economic opportunities for Mirebalais and the entire Central Plateau area? A reliable, high speed, unlimited Internet access means the following: