233 results for tag: In Haiti

A Conversation with SOIL’s Human Resources Director, Wisner Jean-Louis

Wisner Jean-Louis in the Cap-Haitien office The year continues to be a very challenging one in Haiti – full of uncertainties for all Haitians caught in the midst of political, social, and economic instability. As an organization we are proud of our field team's courage and dedication providing consistent access to life-saving and dignified sanitation services for some of Haiti’s most vulnerable families, despite the other uncertainties that impact daily life.  To give you a better sense of what motivates the SOIL team we are continuing to engage in conversations with members of our sanitation staff in Cap-Haitien to hear about how they are ...

A conversation with SOIL’s Romel Toussaint

Our Haitian staff members remain safe in Cap-Haitien as we continue to navigate the current challenges with a robust emergency response plan and an incredibly dedicated group of employees.  This week we spoke with Romel Toussaint, SOIL’s Senior Manager, about running the service during these challenging times, how his family is doing and how his work has changed with the ongoing crisis.  It almost goes without saying that Romel is one of SOIL’s tireless leaders - dedicated to supporting his staff, and working to ensure that service continues for every family with a SOIL toilet. We are deeply appreciative of his commitment, compassion and ...

Navigating the challenges in Haiti: A Conversation with SOIL’s EkoLakay Manager

Our Haitian staff members remain safe in Cap-Haitien as we continue to navigate the current challenges with a robust emergency response plan and an incredibly dedicated group of employees. The team has, against all odds, continued to provide weekly sanitation service to over 2000 households subscribed to the EkoLakay service.  We want to take the time to highlight a few of SOIL’s sanitation heroes who have tirelessly worked with adjusted schedules, often in the very early hours, to ensure that service continues for every family with a SOIL toilet. We're pleased to introduce EkoLakay Manager Sebastien Jabouin Jacques! Interviewer: How are ...

Update from Haiti: October 2022

For the past several weeks, Haiti has been experiencing a new period of “peyi lòk,” or “country lockdown.” Thousands of Haitians have taken to the streets to protest the political, economic and social instability, and soaring fuel prices. Roadblocks and unrest, combined with ongoing insecurity and armed gangs blocking key transport pathways, have led to severe fuel shortages and a near total communications blackout in many parts of the country.  These challenges have forced many critical institutions in Haiti to suspend operations in recent days including hospitals and at least one major distributor of potable water, due to lack of fuel ...

SOIL Board Member, Tanvi Nagpal, featured in DEVEX

SOIL Board Member and Sr. Fellow at the Foreign Policy Institute at John Hopkins, Tanvi Nagpal, recently shared an opinion piece on the online media platform, Devex, titled Why localization is the only way forward in Haiti. Nagpal explains that given Haiti’s current situation, localizing development is the only practical and effective way forward as the country struggles with increased political uncertainty, violence and food and fuel shortages. The piece highlights three actions that the donors and policymakers should take: Redefine local capacity. Support effective institutions, not projects. “Accompaniment” in crises. Read ...

SOIL’s 2021 Annual Report

We are pleased to share with you our Annual Report for the 2020-2021 year. This is a special year, marking SOIL's 15 year anniversary of providing essential sanitation services in urban Haiti. We are grateful for the incredible support we have received this year and hope you take the opportunity to read through what we have been able to achieve together over these years. Thank you! Please check it out by downloading a copy or scrolling through below: Want to read more? See past annual reports from SOIL here. Support SOIL SOIL depends on individual donations from people like you to fund our work in Haiti. Please consider ...

New U.N. Climate Report

The devastating impacts of climate change continue to mount around us, especially in vulnerable frontline communities like the ones SOIL serves in Haiti. The dread of climate change has become an indisputable reality, exacerbating pre-existing vulnerabilities, including the global sanitation crisis. Haiti is responsible for only 0.01% of global carbon dioxide emissions, but bears the impact of climate change more severely than most nations. Haiti’s increased climate vulnerability is due to multiple factors including geographic location, topographical features, population density, and lack of infrastructure. Last month, the Intergovernmental Panel ...

Climate Risks: Understanding Haiti’s Climate Vulnerability

photo credit Vic Hinterlang As we celebrate Earth Day this year and acknowledge all that our planet has to offer, it’s important to also remember what we are up against. Our ongoing exploitative transactional relationship with the Earth’s environment has resulted in the rapid depletion of natural resources, animal extinctions, forest destruction, increased natural disasters and pandemics. Vulnerable communities, like those we serve in Haiti, suffer disproportionately from these occurrences and it's important we shed a light on the true climate risks these populations are experiencing and will continue to face. Though Haiti’s geographical ...

Haiti Update: SOIL Board Member, Johnny Cèlestin, Speaks with DeRay Mckesson on Protest Movement

For months now, Haiti has been experiencing an alarming level of political turmoil and social unrest. The most recent protests around the country are the result of a myriad of stressors including worsening living conditions, allegations of government corruption, police brutality, and an uptick in kidnappings. In the past few weeks, calls for action, like #FreeHaiti and #HaitiSolidarity, began to appear across social media platforms, as the situation in Haiti started to make international news. SOIL has been working for over a decade to promote human rights, environmental protection, and sustainable urban communities in Haiti, and our team continues ...

SOIL and CBSA Study: Comparing Costs of Urban Sanitation Solutions

With more than four billion people still lacking access to safe sanitation globally, we know that it’s going to take a multitude of innovative solutions to successfully tackle a crisis of this proportion. A one-size-fits-all solution to the global sanitation crisis is not realistic, instead focusing on expanding access to safe sanitation that meets the need of the local context is likely the most impactful way forward. But, for so long, the data necessary to successfully operate a localized approach has been inaccessible, incomplete, and challenging to compare. Thus, it is essential that decision makers have the data to assess how the safety and ...