40 results for author: Sasha Kramer

A decade later, we remember

Dear Friends, Here in Haiti, this weekend is one of collective reflection and remembrance. Sunday marks 10 years since the earthquake struck, changing millions of lives here and around the world. As the sun was setting at 4:53 pm on January 12, 2010, the streets of Haiti bustled with the energy and hope of a new decade. Families made their way home at the end of a long day, tap taps crawled through the winding streets, the National Palace and cathedral cast proud shadows over the capital city. In less than a minute, the dream of a new decade was shattered as Port-au-Prince crumbled to the ground in one of the world’s deadliest natural disa...

Taking a Ride with SOIL’s Sanitation Heroes

Happy new year to SOIL supporters near and far! As we all settle into the new year, I have been reflecting on 2018 and some of the moments that most inspired me. One experience pops immediately to mind, and I wanted to share it as a reminder of the importance of all that goes on behind the scenes at SOIL that makes this work possible. As the years have gone by and my roles and responsibilities have shifted, I find I have less and less time to spend in the field. In the last months of 2018, I was honored to be able to take the time to accompany our EkoLakay collectors on their early morning collection runs in several of the neighborhoods we work ...

What You Do Want To Know About Haiti’s Sewage Problems

Photo: Tony Marcelli. How Haiti’s Innovative Sanitation Solutions Are Spreading Across the World Earlier this summer I opened my voicemail to a message from my dear friend Anne, who had left a message for me during her evening commute. She called me from the side of the road after having been so deeply moved by an unexpected NPR segment on the sanitation crisis in Haiti and the courage of Haiti’s latrine cleaners, the bayakou, across the country. Unlike Anne, who has long known of SOIL’s work to transform waste in Haiti, most loyal NPR listeners in the US learned about Haiti’s sewage system - or lack thereof - for the first time that day ...

With Thanks and Gratitude

Dear friends and supporters, On behalf of the entire team here at SOIL, thank you. Together, we surpassed our goal and raised over $17,000 in support of SOIL's lifesaving household toilet program, EkoLakay. Because of your kind support, our team will be able to hit the streets and spread the word about our growing service. This year, we're focused on reducing the costs of providing the service to clients, increasing the number of EkoLakay clients in our service areas, and testing a variety of improvements to the EkoLakay service. Our goal is to provide a truly sustainable household sanitation service of the highest quality possible, and your ...

Hurricane Matthew: Lessons Learned

On October 1st, Hurricane Matthew turned just a few degrees to the east putting the southern peninsula of Haiti directly in its path. Three days later, 142 mph winds ripped over small mountain villages and coastal cities damaging or destroying nearly 150,000 homes and more than 80% of regional crops and livestock. Communities were inundated with rains, flooding latrines and septic tanks. Less than two months later, just as Haiti disappears from the headlines, the true effects of Hurricane Matthew are starting to hit. More than 3,500 suspected cases of cholera, a disease unknown to Haiti before it was introduced by the negligence of the United ...

JOB OPENING: EkoLakay Program Advisor

Job Announcement: EkoLakay Program Advisor Location: Port-au-Prince with limited travel to Cap-Haitien Application Deadline: October 8th, 2016 Start Date: November 15, 2016 or as soon as possible JOB DESCRIPTION SOIL (Sustainable Organic Integrated Livelihoods) has been working in Haiti since 2006 to promote dignity, health, and sustainable livelihoods through the transformation of wastes into resources. The SOIL leadership team is pleased to announce an opportunity to join the SOIL Advisory Team in our Port-au-Prince office to support the development of our innovative social business (EkoLakay) for the provision of ecological household ...

Cross Country Cycle for SOIL- The Grand Finale!

On August 24 - just hours behind schedule - the now legendary Dr. John Kilbride rode the last leg of his journey accross the island of Manhattan and into Battery Park. Raising support for SOIL along the way, our favorite British physician pedaled his bike more than 4000 km, from the end of the Santa Monica Pier in Los Angeles to Battery Park New York City in just over one month's time! John battled wildfires (on day one in the Los Angeles hills), blazing desert heat (117 F in Barstow!), a road that was not a road (curses on Route 66!), pokey brambles popping his tires (who knew, Kansas?), indigestion (from too many corn dogs and MacDonald's meals in ...

SOIL Celebrates Ten Year Anniversary

Last week SOIL kicked off our 10 Year Anniversary with celebrations in Port-au-Prince and Cap-Haitien. Few people know how to throw a party better than the SOIL team, and everyone was extra excited to be celebrating such a significant milestone. We will be celebrating our 10th Anniversary throughout the summer, but we wanted to kick things off with a celebration of our team, who have carried SOIL to so many successes over our ten-year history. Several SOIL staff have been with us since the very beginning, and we wanted to take a moment to honor each of them with a special award to recognize their incredible passion, dedication, and commitment ...

Remembering the Day After

Today as I reflected on what to write on the 6th anniversary of Haiti’s earthquake, I asked my colleagues to share their thoughts on how the earthquake had changed their lives. I learned things that I had never known. I learned that some of my co-workers lost children. I learned that some of them lost their jobs when the places where they worked collapsed. I learned of children who lost their schools and teachers. In losing loved ones, and limbs, and homes, thousands of Haitians lost the life they knew and the future they had imagined. I was reminded that we all lost something that day, all of us who live in Haiti, all of us who love Haiti. We lost ...

January 2015 Newsletter: A Day of Reflection

Dear friends, Today is a day of reflection in Haiti. It is a day to remember Haiti as it was before the earthquake, a day to examine the changes over the last five years, and a day to dream of a future beyond the shadow of tragedy. There are those of you who have been with SOIL since our humble beginnings in 2006 and those of you who learned of our work after the earthquake. All of you are connected to SOIL because you believe in our mission to move beyond disasters, to a Haiti where everyone’s basic human rights are respected and supported by vibrant local economies. We are still a long way from that Haiti, and many question if we’ll ...