Rebuilding Haiti in the Aftermath of the Earthquake

by Jessica Brown - Women's Well-Being and Development Foundation

On January 12, 2010, at a few minutes before 5 in the afternoon, a massive earthquake struck Haiti, registering 7.0 on the Richter scale. At least 240,000 people died as buildings everywhere collapsed, and more than 300,000 were left injured and one million homeless. Considered the poorest country in the western hemisphere, Haiti was just beginning to recover from 3 crushing hurricanes in 2008 when this most recent catastrophe hit.

Within 24 hours of the quake, volunteers of the Women's Wellbeing and Development Foundation(WWD-F) began collecting funds and materials to send down to the devastated area. WWD-F's partner in Haiti, AMURTEL, assessed the situation and made an urgent request for food and medical supplies. As WWD-F pulled together a major shipment of goods to Haiti, its Director, Ana Jabra, travelled down to stricken country on January 26th to gain a clearer understanding of the situation and assist with the relief operations. During this visit, AMURTEL and WWD-F set up medical camps, provided food, tarps, and hygiene kits to thousands of earthquake victims, and constructed latrines for the refugees.  After three weeks of intense relief activities, Ms. Jabra returned to the US to accelerate WWD-F's collection campaign.

On April 12^th, Ms. Jabra returned to Haiti for another 2 weeks. By then, AMURTEL was managing 14 refugee camps where it was responsible for the needs of 8,000 people. With its skilled women animators, it began organizing and empowering approximately 2,000 women of four camps to work together to create small businesses and economic development in Port-au-Prince. AMURTEL also was engaging over 400 children every week with musical and educational programs. Ms. Jabra worked with local organizers on an action plan to normalize life for the refugees and improve their lives. 

Today, WWD-F and AMURTEL are developing long-term sustainable living solutions for the Haitian refugees, such as the creation of eco-villages. AMURTEL already has begun the eco-village process in the city of Anse-a-Pitre by investing in land and by collaborating with Sadhana Forest, a group committed to the environment and to training children and adults in new agriculture techniques and water catchment systems. With many local governments and individuals interested in offering land and resources for viable solutions, there is ample opportunity to build long-term sustainable projects together with the Haitian people. 

If you add one new healthy habit each day for seven days, you will be on the road to better health than you've ever experienced. Some of the simplest things in life work the best and this is certainly true of the health tips in this article. A healthy diet is not about restriction, it's more about 'crowding out' bad foods and replacing them with good ones. It doesn't have to be complicated. Just read on and see for yourself!

Day 1: Drink 6-8 glasses of water a day. Your body is estimated to be about 70 percent water. Blood is mostly water, and your muscles, lungs, and brain all contain a lot of water. Your body needs water to regulate body temperature and to provide the means for nutrients to travel to all your organs. Water also transports oxygen to your cells, removes waste, and protects your joints and organs. Without enough water, the liver can't do its job well. And its job, as you know, is to detox the whole body-a pretty important task in these modern times. Also, did you know that about 80% of the population is chronically dehydrated? Do you feel tired a lot and have headaches? Is your skin dry and do your moods shift frequently? These can all be signs of dehydration. The cure? Drink more water every day!

Ever feel puffy and bloated? Drink more water! It can help to ease the fluid retention and bloating associated with premenstrual syndrome. Trying to lose weight? Drink water. It naturally suppresses the appetite and helps the body metabolize fat.

It's important to keep in mind, however, that it is possible to drink too much water. A good rule of thumb is to drink between six to eight glasses per day. Try filling a large water bottle (32 oz.) and keep it with you throughout the day to start, and then try to drink two of them a day once you've gotten used to drinking more water.

Day 2: Walk 20 minutes a day. Exercise is just as important to good health as drinking water and eating nutritious foods. Some of the reasons why are: exercise improves your mood. Need to blow off some steam after a stressful day? A brisk 20-minute walk can help you calm down. Worried about heart disease? Hoping to prevent osteoporosis? Regular exercise can help you prevent, or manage, these conditions along with high blood pressure as well. And there's more. Regular exercise can help you prevent type 2 diabetes. If you need more convincing, you'll have more energy and burn calories making it easier to control your weight. If you're new to exercise, try taking two 10 minute walks a day, and if you can take your walk outside, you'll get the added benefits of fresh air and vitamin D from the sun!

Day 3: Eat more greens. Green vegetables are the foods most missing in modern diets. Learning to cook and eat greens is essential to building good health. When you nourish yourself with greens, you will naturally crowd out the foods that make you sick. Greens strengthen the blood and respiratory systems. In Asian medicine, green is related to the liver, emotional stability and creativity. Nutritionally, greens are very high in calcium, magnesium, iron, potassium, phosphorous, zinc and vitamins A, C, E and K. They are loaded with fiber, folic acid, chlorophyll and many other micro-nutrients and phyto-chemicals...