Social Media 4 Good

“So … how is Haiti these days?” – this is probably the question I have been asked most since I’ve come back. The problem is: the question is misleading because it assumes that it’s possible to make significant changes in a couple of months.

Last year, when I heard about World Humanitarian Day for the first time, my first impulse was that this sounded pretty self-righteous. I mean, where is the World Firemen Day or the World Truckdriver Day? Two professions that are very dangerous and that probably contribute more to people’s lives than most professional aid workers do. Since then I have changed my minds slightly. For one thing, there is never anything objectionable about remembering colleagues who have died. But more importantly[...]

Knowing when to leave can be a difficult thing. Here are a few signs that might indicate it’s time for you to pack your bags and run for the nearest airport.

One of the biggest mistakes that international organizations make is not taking enough time to explain to journalists why thing are complicated and take a long time. But taking that time and investing into communications pays off.

One of the biggest obstacles to building transitional shelters in Haiti is the amount of debris that is lying everywhere. Do me favour and look down your street. Now imagine that up to 60 per cent of all the houses  just collapsed (the percentage of destroyed houses depends a lot on which part of town you are in in Port-au-Prince). Can you imagine how much rubble this would be? From a shelter perspective the problem is that before you build[...]

Thoughts about tents and tarps and a collection of photos from an aerial assessment of the major IDP camps in Port-au-Prince in June 2010.

I’m currently meeting loads of really interesting people. One of them is the author of the blog “Good Intentions are Not Enough“, subtitle “an honest conversation about the impact of aid.”  I think it’s great and I think we need more blogs like this. Not only to make agencies accountable but also to educate individual donors about why certain things are just really, really bad ideas and why some well-meant initiatives can actually cause harm. Check it out: http://informationincontext.typepad.com/

Dehydration – it is something that has never been on my mind before except for when doing long hikes in the Alps in July or August. That has changed. I have been in hot countries before (Myanmar, Cambodia, Australia) but somehow nothing compares to the heat in Haiti. The recommendation by our staff health advisor is to drink between 3 and 5 litres a day, and even though I’m doing that, I’m still getting dehydrated. The worst time is at[...]