The beautiful oceanfront town of Jacmel in Haiti is known for its gorgeous French Colonial architecture and art. Once a bustling producer of coffee and sugar, today Jacmel is mostly known for its incredible vibrant art and cultural scene. I spent two days in Jacmel in February as part of my tour for #Bloggers4Haiti to learn about the impressive papier-mâché artisans who produce some of Haiti’s finest works of art.
Exploring the gorgeous colonial streets of Jacmel was one of the main highlights of my trip. I fell in love with the dusty streets layered in culture and history. We spent the morning wandering around the colonial part of Jacmel before our afternoon tour of the many papier-mâché studios and shops in town. Here are a few photos that I wanted to share.
It always amazes me how incredibly fast time goes. It felt like just yesterday when I signed up to join Solar Sister in a quest to climb Mount Kilimanjaro this July in honor of their five-year anniversary of providing light, hope, and opportunity to over 1,000+ Solar Sister Entrepreneurs across Sub-Saharan Africa. Now there are only six weeks left until I am on the way to Tanzania and I have much training and fundraising left to do.
I must admit that I am already tired out with all the training and it is only the tip of the iceberg. The hike will be 50 miles and almost 20,000 feet so I have much work to do. I have been trying to exercise every day and increase my miles on foot. I’ve walked three lakes, hiked regional and state parks, run up hills and have also been biking. I’m tired but whenever I get drained I realize that I am on my way to achieving my goal both physically and financially.
On my way around one of many urban lakes in Minneapolis.
“For many people around the world, the bicycle is a crucial form of life-changing transportation. It can meant the difference between getting to school, seeing a doctor, and making a living – or not”.
World Bicycle Relief is a not-for-profit organization that is dedicated to mobilizing people through The Power of Bicycles®. World Bicycle Relief accomplishes its mission by designing, manufacturing and distributing high quality bicycles that withstand the challenging terrain and conditions in rural Africa. This month marks bike month and World Bicycle Relief has launched a new campaign called “This is Not a Bike” to help promote the importance of the bicycles as a mode of transportation that changes people lives.
In honor of this cool campaign, I am featuring a guest post written by Ruth-Anne Renaud the Director of Global Marketing at World Bicycle Relief.
When we think of farmers we often think of men. But, the reality is that many farmers in the US are women. The same goes for rural developing regions around the world. Farming is a challenging and tough job no matter where a woman is farming. But, women in rural Africa for example, face more challenges than farmers in developed nations. Transporting their product to market is one of them.
Imagine a farmer’s profit was held hostage by the amount of produce or milk that she could physically carry to the market on foot. This is what farmers face everyday in developing parts of the world where there are no affordable transportation options. Farmers are left to carry their goods to the market on foot and, consequently, their profits suffer.
Meet Georgina, a farmer in Zambia, who uses the Buffalo Bicycle.
Now, imagine a farmer in rural Africa having access to a rugged, durable bicycle built for rough, rural terrain and a rear rack that can carry 220lbs. Suddenly, she can transport greater loads and reach more distant markets- both increasing her overall productivity, sales and the price she can access in markets farther away. For a farmer in rural, developing areas, a bicycle can have a dramatic impact on her business – lifting her and her family out of a chronic cycle of poverty and saving lots of time.
Riding a bike is four times faster than walking. Imagine getting to work or school four times faster every day. Speed and efficiency translate into increased profits and accelerated learning.
Georgina and her bicycle.
For the developed world, where we have access to a myriad of transportation options, we have limited experience with what it is like to only have one option: walking. When an individual who relies on walking finally gains access to a reliable bicycle, amazing things happen to her, her family and her community. This is what World Bicycle Relief has discovered after delivering over 225,000 specially designed, rugged bicycles to entrepreneurs, students and health care workers in Africa, Asia and South America.
This is not a bike- at least not in the terms we consider in the developed world; rather, it is an engine for economic and cultural empowerment. The magic with a bicycle is the untapped potential it releases in individuals. Riding a bike is four times faster than walking. With this increase in efficiency, an individual can accomplish many more tasks in her everyday life. Besides farmers and entrepreneurs increasing their efficiency and profits, students and health care workers also use the bike to great benefit. World Bicycle Relief’s Education Report from Zambia in 2012 noted a 28% increase in attendance and 59% increase in academic performance. Health care workers with a bicycle often double the number of patients they can visit in a day. A bicycle is a powerful catalyst that supports three important pillars of a healthy and thriving community- economic growth, access to education and health care.
Bicycles have played a part in the recent economic achievements of India and China. In China, it is estimated that 435 million people own bicycles with many using their bicycles as their primary mode of transportation. In Africa, where 40% of the population lives below the poverty line and survives on around $2 per day, affordable, reliable transportation is crucial to development, but often out of reach for these individuals. The inefficiency of walking has a profound effect on economic development, as well as educational and health care outcomes.
Recognizing the great need for transportation in these areas, World Bicycle Relief has tapped the bicycle industry’s expertise to design a high quality, low cost bicycle for individuals at the bottom of the economic pyramid. World Bicycle Relief takes both a philanthropic and a social enterprise approach to delivering bicycles. The organization provides bicycles to students and health care workers through study-to-own and work-to-own programs. Its social enterprise side sells bicycles to individuals (farmers, metal workers and builders) and development organizations like World Vision who use bicycles to better implement their programming. Looking to the future, World Bicycle Relief envisions a market-driven solution that would provide sustainable, affordable access to transportation that would address the profound transportation gap that exists in rural, developing areas globally. With affordable, durable bicycles available on the marketplace, access to transportation infrastructure doesn’t have to end when the pavement does; the most remote villages could be connected to the larger transportation system.
One of the great common denominators of humanity is that we all need transportation. By extending transportation options to everyone no matter where they are on the economic ladder, every individual will have the transportation tools they need to build a better life.
World Bicycle Relief is dedicated to mobilizing people through The Power of Bicycles®. World Bicycle Relief accomplishes its mission by designing, manufacturing and distributing high quality bicycles that withstand the challenging terrain and conditions in rural Africa. Entrepreneurs use the bikes to increase productivity and profits. Students with bikes attend class more regularly and academic performance dramatically improves. And, health care workers with bikes visit more patients, more often, providing better, more consistent care. World Bicycle Relief also promotes local economies and long-term sustainability by assembling bicycles in Africa and training over 1,000 field mechanics. Since 2005, World Bicycle Relief has delivered over 200,000 bicycles. For more information, please visit: www.worldbicyclerelief.org / Follow us @PowerOfBicycles and Like us at facebook.com/worldbicyclerelief
Author’s note: This post is a continuation of my February trip to Haiti as part of a #Bloggers4Haiti trip on behalf of Heart of Haiti. To view all posts in this series, click here.
One of the highlights of our trip to Haiti was a visit to the lovely oceanside town of Jacmel which is known as one of Haiti’s main cultural and artistic meccas. Founded by the French in 1698, Jacmel is a lovely laid-back town of about 40,000 people with beautiful colonial architecture, white sand beaches and lots of colorful art. Once a prominent economic hub producing coffee and sugar, today Jacmel has become a must-see place for tourists and Haitians alike, wanting to experience its beauty, culture and arts especially during Carnival time. Jacmel is on the list of becoming a World Heritage Site which gives all the more reason to visit this lovely place.
The drive to Jacmel from Port-au-Prince is not long – perhaps three hours or so depending on traffic leaving the capital. It is a gorgeous drive bringing you through Haiti’s tropical coast, up and over the mountains and rural villages and back down to the beautiful Carribean Sea.
Arriving into Jacmel
We went to Jacmel to see the incredible papier-mâché artisans who work around the clock to create products for Macy’s Heart of Haiti line,a “trade not aid program” developed by the Clinton Bush Haiti Fund and Willa Shalit in partnership with Macy’s to promote sustainable income in the arts for Haitians. Jacmel is known internationally for its vibrant arts and craft scene, including nearly 200 papier-mâché artisans, as well as a school of painting and a music and film school that is recognised among the best in Haiti.
This post was first published on Motherly, a new digital community to help modern women thrive that was launched today.
Mother’s Day is always a special time of year as it is a time for mothers to be celebrated, appreciated and loved for the endless work we do to raise, nurture and love our children. Being a mom is one of the most wonderful gifts I’ve ever received and as a world traveler and writer on global health issues, I’ve realized how lucky we are as mothers to have the things we need to raise healthy children.
It wasn’t until I began traveling in the developing world that I got a sense of the enormous inequities for billions of mothers and their children who don’t have access to health care, clean water and sanitation, food and immunizations to protect themselves and their families. As an American, middle class mom of two, I took all these things we had for granted until I visited India, Ethiopia, Haiti and parts of Central America where I witnessed the struggles and tragedies that many mothers around the world face. So many moms lost their lives in childbirth delivering at home with no help or lost their babies due to preventable causes. It is heartbreaking and incomprehensible.
Stepping into the Gallery Isidor in Haiti feels like stepping into a dream. The scent of incense flavors the air and the walls are filled with a riot of colorful, imaginative voodoo flags intricately designed by world-famous bead artist and voodoo priest Jean Baptiste Jean Joseph. To be inside Jean Baptiste’s studio and to see his work, gives one a true sense of Haiti’s rich, intricate culture and religion.
Jean Baptiste Jean Joseph was born in 1967 in La Vallé Bainet and was raised in Croix-des-Bouquet, a community known for its metal artisans in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. At a young age Jean Baptiste became passionate for folk art and textiles. Following his dreams and passion for beadwork, he worked in a small factory where he honed his skills by sewing pearls and beads onto wedding dresses. Then in 1991, thanks to the receipt of a small loan from a friend, Jean Baptiste opened Isidor Gallery in Croix-des-Bouquet.
Fast forward two decades, and Jean Baptiste’s beadwork is world renown. Besides his famous voodoo flags, Jean Baptiste and his fellow artisans make purses, bags, voodoo dolls, and various other handicrafts. Like his fellow master artisans in Croix-des-Bouquets, Jean Baptiste has been instrumental in training new artisans in his field, helping the community prosper and ensuring this beautiful form of art does not die out.
“We cannot stop natural disasters but we can arm ourselves with knowledge: so many lives wouldn’t have to be lost if there was enough disaster preparedness.” – Petra Nemcova
News of the devastating earthquake this past Saturday has sent shock waves throughout the world. Once again, Nepal is struggling to help rescue survivors after another catastrophe. For me personally, my heart is broken. A place that has meant so much to me has continually suffered and is now in ruins. A place where I found my voice and was inspired to start this blog.
Me and my Dad at the start of the Annapurna Trek. November 2010.
They sometimes say that bad things happen in threes. In Nepal’s case, I certainly hope it ends at three. A series of natural tragedies over the last year has brought heartache and struggle to this tiny mountain country, one of the poorest countries in the world.
“Racism is still with us. But it is up to us to prepare our children for what they have to meet, and, hopefully, we shall overcome”. – Rosa Parks
I’ve always been an avid reader and the more I travel, the more I want to read and learn about different cultures and perspectives around the world. Lately however I’ve been on a quest to learn more about our own country and identity, and reexamine my own personal beliefs and perspectives. What is the American culture and where is it headed? As a nation based on immigration and “life, liberty and justice for all” why does racism and other intolerances and hatred still continue to exist and why does it exist so strongly?
Recent events have made me question our country and the intolerance of some people who judge others based on race, sex, homosexuality, class and religion. As these issues come to a head and play in our minds, some are improved (such as gay marriage rights) while others continue to be ignored. The increased police brutality against black young men has been on the news 24/7 yet has our conversation really even begin to touch the real roots of racism? Are we as a nation truly able to speak honestly and openly about race and what it means to be black in this country? No.
In order to answer these questions, I’ve done a lot of soul searching and reading. I devoured Maya Angelou’s famous book “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings” and just last week I completed the brilliant novel “Americanah” by Nigerian author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie which brings the issue of race, class and status of immigrants in America to an entirely new level. Quite honestly, this book has really made me think about race issues in America and in a very different, unsettling way. It has also dismantled the American Dream quite easily but I’ve never been that naive to believe that simply coming to America would be a cure for all.
Our multi-cultural team to Haiti. How I wish these lovely ladies all lived here! All my friends in Minnesota sadly look like me. Although the population has become much more ethnically diverse over the last 20 years, communities are still segregated economically and racially.
This post is part of a series on my recent trip to Haiti as part of Heart of Haiti’s #Bloggers4Haiti trip. To read more in this series, click here.
After we landed in Port-au-Prince on a Thursday afternoon, our team of three bloggers, one daughter, and three representatives from Everywhere Agency (who sponsored our trip and works exclusively on the Heart of Haiti initiative for Macy’s) gathered in our van and drove to neighboring Croix-des-Bouquets,a famous artist community in Port-au-Prince known for its metal art.
We were thrilled to all be spending the next four days meeting with Macy’s Heart of Haiti artisans, and there couldn’t have been a better way to jump-start our trip than by visiting Croix-des-Bouquets and seeing for ourselves what Haiti is known for: Spectacular metal art.
In Croix-des-Bouquets, we were going to visit several metal artisans’ studios and get a real live demonstration on how the art is made. We also would learn a bit more about the history of Croix-des-Bouquets, a unique artist community that has grown into one of the largest, sustainable metal art communities in Haiti.
En route from Port-au-Prince we finally reach the famous Croix-des-Bouquets community.
Over 60 years ago, Georges Liautaud began a movement in creating metal art from recycled products that became the thriving metal artisan community of Croix-des-Bouquets. Today, Croix-des-Bouquets has over 1,000 metal artisans making their fabulous metal art with over 60 different shops and studios creating social change and opportunity in this growing community in Port-au-Prince. Croix-des-Bouquets is where the most famous, accomplished metal artisans reside who have traveled the world with their art and have become instrumental within the community by creating apprenticeship opportunities for Haitians to learn their trade.
Have you ever had a dream for so long that it never stopped bugging you until you decided to just do it? For me, it has always been Kilimanjaro. I have wanted to climb this epic mountain for over 15 years since my father did it in October 1999 before my wedding. There really has not been any dream or travel goal that I have had for that long.
Like most dreams, there have been many obstacles and road blocks along the way. The first big one was timing. There was no way I could go climb Kilimanjaro when I was in the midst of wedding planning, and honestly at that time I had never ever even considered climbing a mountain before. I had hiked all my life but had never climbed a mountain. My dad was always the mountain climber in the family, the one who took these amazing trips and challenged himself to new heights. Not me. Yet still his 1999 trip started a fire inside my wanderlust soul.
“Children worldwide are living in extreme poverty, witnessing horrific violence and suffering the long-term impact of deprivations. Without our support, these children are at heightened risk of exposure to trauma and exploitation. Relay for Kids gives us the chance to make a difference in the lives of these children. Together we can raise awareness about children in crisis and give them the chance to enjoy the safe and healthy childhood they deserve.” -Lynn Croneberger, CEO of SOS Children’s Villages – USA.
One of the most heartwarming afternoons during my two-week trip to Ethiopia as a fellow for the International Reporting Project (IRP) last June was spent visiting a SOS Children’s Village. SOS Children is an independent, non-governmental international development organization that provides loving homes for abandoned and orphaned children in 133 countries for almost 82,100 children. It was founded in 1949 by Austrian Hermann Gmeiner with the first SOS Children’s Village built in Imst, Austria as a home for children orphaned by World War II.
Today, SOS Children works to provide abandoned, destitute and orphaned children with a loving, family based home. Every child in a SOS Village belongs to a family and is provided with a SOS Mother and “siblings” who are the other SOS Children living under the same roof. This allows the children to grow up in a family being loved and feeling secure. Within each village, there are up to fifteen families living together in a community and each family has up to ten children per house. It is a wonderful model and has had a huge impact on the children’s lives and futures.
A SOS Mother with one of her daughters.
Our group of ten fellows spent the entire afternoon at SOS Children in Ethiopia and it was one of the best memories of my trip. What I liked the best about their program is their model of providing each child with a loving, caring family that will raise them and help them succeed. I wrote extensively about my visit in my post “SOS Children: Providing Ethiopia’s orphans the home they need”.(To read post, click here).
A social worker holding the girl twin at Mihirat’s home.
Genet’s two daughters doing their homework after school.
Genet’s five year old daughter stole the show during our meeting and had to try all our equipment.
From March 23 through April 24th, SOS Children’s Villages has partnered with Johnson & Johnson, and the Huffington Post’s Global Motherhood on a campaign called #Relay4Kids that will help provide shelter, food and medical care to children in crisis. During the campaign, child advocates from around the world will work together to raise awareness and funds by posting and sharing stories on the Huffington Post as part of Relay For Kids, a month-long virtual relay with a potential to raise up to $30,000 to help improve the lives of children living in crises.
Mihirat with her twins. She has extra help during the night to help care for the twins and her 8 children.
“Johnson & Johnson has a long standing commitment to helping children around the world. Our partnership with SOS Children’s Villages is an extension of that commitment and has grown to include orphaned children, families in need, and youth striving for a productive adult life”, said Conrad Person, Director, Johnson & Johnson Corporate Contributions. “Now, through the Relay for Kids, we can work together to create a community of support for the greatest of causes, our children.”
This post is part of a series on my recent trip to Haiti as part of Heart of Haiti’s #Bloggers4Haiti trip. To read more in this series, click here.
On January 12, 2010 the earth rumbled and shook. Although it only 30 seconds, the 7.0 magnitude earthquake that struck Haiti, devastated Port-au-Prince and killed an estimated 220,000 people. Already reeling from a series of natural, economic and political disasters, the earthquake was nearly catastrophic to the people, infrastructure and economy of Haiti. Although thousands of lives were lost, more were forever changed on that fateful day.
The “Gingerbread” homes and slums that raise up the mountains behind luxurious Pétionville.
As news poured into the United States and around the world, governments, aid organizations and humanitarians across the globe came together to help. One woman, American Willa Shalit, an artist, producer, writer and social conscious entrepreneur, came to the rescue. A pioneer in a growing social-entrepreneurial movement, Shalit’s companyFairwinds Tradingjoined forces with the Clinton Bush Haiti Fund and retailer, Macy’s. Together, they developed the mission of providing unique Haitian products to U.S. consumers while at the same time, creating sustainable wages for the Haitian artisans who make them.
