Haiti: more than flavor of the month

The Haitian tragedy offers a chance to create something that Katrina and the Tsunami did not get: persistent attention that makes a difference. We’re going to help focus that attention.We’re going to do that by partnering and pointing to the best that other people are doing, and inviting the people making a difference in a way that respects the Haitian people to join us at Socap10, Oct. 4-6.
Relief 2.0, a gathering next week in Stanford is one part of that swirl of concern that is getting smarter through a collective intelligence approach to looking at the issues in a new way. David Hodgson, who is leading a Haitian working group at Socap10 will be bringing some of the amazing team he has assembled to the event.
At Socap10, we are going to be taking a systemic look at Haiti, as well as the issue of sustainable food systems; sessions that could go for a half day and bring together experts as well as provide ways for interested volunteers, donors and investors to get involved to whatever depth they want. I’m going to be closely involved in this working group as it evolves because it’s just the kind of complex, multidimensional problem that pesistently holds my own attention.
We’re going to be looking at what works and what doesn’t. Not just best practices but how things went wrong. We’re going to be asking questions about empowerment, understanding the difference between our intent and our impact. And we’d love to be part of solving the puzzle of  why people care and then stop caring or taking action about places like Haiti, or New Orleans. We’d like to make our connection to Haiti one that lasts and that is good for them and for us.
Other groups working on this include the Rebuild a Sustainable Haiti Facebook group.