Saturday, September 07, 2013
Friday, August 30, 2013
Thursday, May 06, 2010
Preparations underway
We are currently preparing to leave for Port au Prince for what will initially be a three-month block of work in Haiti, and have identified some resources and technology that are still needed to assist us in our work there.
We are very proud of our past record of extremely low overhead as a non-profit, and our organizational goal is to continue that trend and be responsible and transparent with any money and resources that are entrusted to us. As we prepare for this trip, we are still seeking donations to cover our travel costs to and from Haiti, and also welcome any in-kind donations of services or goods that are able to fill the needs we have identified below.
Tents - There are still many people who are without even the most basic of temporary shelter as the rainy season approaches, and so the CCRP is currently exploring multiple partnerships within Canada to secure tents that can distributed to those most in need in Haiti.
Laptops - We are in need of two lightweight laptops/netbooks to aid us in our efforts on the ground in Haiti. With these resources and our background in radio and telecommunications, our teams will be able to share the reality of the devastation and rebuilding with Canadians and the rest of the world, to ensure that Haiti is not forgotten as the news cycle changes. They will also be essential to basic communication with our partners in Haiti, Canada, and the United States.
Digital SLR camera - As part of our commitment to accountability, and in answer to concerns from some Haitians regarding lack of transparency of some non-profits on the ground, we are in need of a digital SLR camera so that we can document the work of the CCRP on the ground.
Webcams - We are looking for a large quantity of webcams or similarly small digital video cameras, as we explore options for increasing security in the various internally displaced persons (IDP) camps.
Shipping services - With the collection of materials such as tents, we are also in need of shipping services from various points in Canada to our warehouse space in New York City.
As the CCRP is a registered charity in Canada, we can offer tax-deductible receipts for the value of all donations received.
The economic situation in Haiti is such that costs are much higher than typical in the region -- as a basic example of supply and demand affecting costs. Some basic needs (food, water, etc.) have been described as expensive to urban American standards, and as such, any financial and in-kind donations go a long way to helping us in our goal of assisting in the development of both short-term and permanent solutions to the problems facing Haitian communities today.
We are very proud of our past record of extremely low overhead as a non-profit, and our organizational goal is to continue that trend and be responsible and transparent with any money and resources that are entrusted to us. As we prepare for this trip, we are still seeking donations to cover our travel costs to and from Haiti, and also welcome any in-kind donations of services or goods that are able to fill the needs we have identified below.
Tents - There are still many people who are without even the most basic of temporary shelter as the rainy season approaches, and so the CCRP is currently exploring multiple partnerships within Canada to secure tents that can distributed to those most in need in Haiti.
Laptops - We are in need of two lightweight laptops/netbooks to aid us in our efforts on the ground in Haiti. With these resources and our background in radio and telecommunications, our teams will be able to share the reality of the devastation and rebuilding with Canadians and the rest of the world, to ensure that Haiti is not forgotten as the news cycle changes. They will also be essential to basic communication with our partners in Haiti, Canada, and the United States.
Digital SLR camera - As part of our commitment to accountability, and in answer to concerns from some Haitians regarding lack of transparency of some non-profits on the ground, we are in need of a digital SLR camera so that we can document the work of the CCRP on the ground.
Webcams - We are looking for a large quantity of webcams or similarly small digital video cameras, as we explore options for increasing security in the various internally displaced persons (IDP) camps.
Shipping services - With the collection of materials such as tents, we are also in need of shipping services from various points in Canada to our warehouse space in New York City.
As the CCRP is a registered charity in Canada, we can offer tax-deductible receipts for the value of all donations received.
The economic situation in Haiti is such that costs are much higher than typical in the region -- as a basic example of supply and demand affecting costs. Some basic needs (food, water, etc.) have been described as expensive to urban American standards, and as such, any financial and in-kind donations go a long way to helping us in our goal of assisting in the development of both short-term and permanent solutions to the problems facing Haitian communities today.
Friday, February 19, 2010
Camp St Louis de Gonzague
A very serious and potentially dangerous situation has arisen in one of the largest refugee camps. 12000 people are living in a tent city called Camp St Louis de Gonzague which is about 2 square kilometers in size. The conditions in the camp are abhorrent. Endless rows of tents, donated by MSF sit inches from each other. Kids with nothing to do and only very basic necessities wander aimlessly around the camp, many of them without adequate clothing and seemingly more than half without shoes.
There is no proper drainage, and no sizable open spaces. Recently, the situation in the camp has degenerated because the director of the school where the land sits (the school is will not be functional within the next six months), along with the local mayor have demanded that the population leave the area within 8 days. They have not, however provided an alternate location, let alone a location with the basic services and infrastructure required to sustain the population. The mayor has not provided adequate explanation for their expulsion.
There are rumors that the area will be shared, and there are also rumours that the area will be given for use to non-Haitian organizations in part due to its proximity to the MSF installation. The community has organized itself but some of these organizers have come under threat. Their situation is dire and the Haitian population has been through so much that civil unrest could very well be the result of these mass expulsions.
For Haiti, by Haiti
CCRP has assumed a partnership with a civilian people’s assembly which aims to establish a movement of direct community level rebuilding and development. Community leaders from all classes and segments of Haitian society are involved in organizing to rebuild an equitable and functional Haiti. These meetings are open to everybody, including outsiders and, like everything else in Haiti are fully multilingual. This organization is likely one of the few in Haiti that will be capable of establishing a Haitian driven, autonomous and effective response to the greatest disaster in the history of the Americas. This organizations is Haitians helping Haitians rebuild Haiti.
The CCRP has placed itself at the service of this organization. We will help with fundraising, networking, communications, mobilization of resources and international media access.
The organization itself is undertaking development in education, health, housing and all possible other sectors in which it has professional expertise.
Arts & Education
Geoffrey and Liam visited the national college des arts where they met “Camelot” who is one of the country’s foremost artists. In the earthquake, he lost his fingers while holding a young child he saved from the rubble. Unable to obtain immediate care, he went for ten days with severed fingers and no treatment. Due to resulting gangrene and infections, they had to be removed. Now, Camelot stares at a pile of blank canvasses unsure precisely how he will continue his artistic endeavors. The students at the national art institute are trained in music, traditional art, sculpture, painting and acting. This is the only institute of art learning in the country.
The art school sits across the street from the national college of nursing which still retains one third of the nations nursing students in it collapsed structure. They smell. The debris pile is so large that it is not going to be removed anytime soon. This scene repeats itself in different scales all over the city. The implications for the future of Haiti are dire. 2/3 of the nations nursing schools lost their entire 2nd, 3rd and 4th year of students. There is no remedy for this situation.
In all places in Haiti, the students are the intellectual backbone of the society. They are the people who think about, talk about and try to resolve the many problems that Haiti faces. They are the pillars of Haitian society. Thousands of schools were destroyed along with more than 250 000 other structures.
Deaths in the earthquake resulted from falling buildings. The larger the building, the heavier it is, the more people that died. Educational institutions are all of the largest buildings in Port Au Prince. It has been impossible to remove the remains.
Geoffrey and Liam were taken to see Theirry’s school which was thick with the smell of rotting students. Remains had not been removed as much of the rubble was unstable. Leg sockets sat in the sun Our folks were taken to see the Faculte de Sciences Humains where the met with the director to pass along offers of assistance from the University of Winnipeg. This school did not lose as many students however it did lose several faculty and the director told us that every single member of the faculty lost immediate family.
Arrival
At the outset of their trip, Geoffrey and Liam arrived by bus to Port Au Prince where we were met by our guide and chief local collaborator Thierry, who is Haitis greatest guide.
The largest problem facing normal Haitians is the extreme economic distortions caused by the earthquake. To hire a car for the day is costing many times more than it did before the earthquake and rental vehicles are outright inaccessible. Bags of rice are selling for at least 75$ Canadian, but Haitian incomes have not expanded in the same manner. Much of the aid sent is being sold through stores for profit. Tents are costing upwards of 125 USD.
A nun, Sister Mary of Matthew 13 house who has been working in Haiti for over a decade told us that tents are no longer being sent to Haiti as they are considered to be barriers to economic development. We are unsure precisely what that means as are the Haitians who are living under blankets.
Near Thierrys house is a small tent city which is housing 2000 people in an area the size of a large Canadian yard. People are living under blankets propped up with sticks. This is particularly a problem when it rains. Thierry tells us “the people of Port Au Prince have not slept”.
Five years after formation for relief work in New Orleans following hurricane Katrina, the Canadian Communications and Relief Project has undertaken an information, networking and relief mission to Haiti in the wake of the disastrous earthquake which has killed over 200 000.
The goal of our mission is to collect the information, networks and partnering organizations necessary for the initiation of an ongoing long-term to permanent campaign of direct solidarity, support and assistance which aims to directly connect grassroots Canadian organizations to their Haitian counterparts.
Due to the quality and impact of our work in Hurricane Katrina, we were asked by New Orleanians to assist, if possible, with the transportation of religious figures from Haiti to New Orleans. Once we began this work we realized an opportunity for direct on-the-ground involvement had presented itself.
Due to a sense of apprehension caused by the less than effective response of official relief organizations to Hurricane Katrina (more than a million dollars per person affected of relief money and still no rebuilt city), several Canadians and their communities contacted CCRP to inquire as to what might be the most effective means of helping with the relief effort. Because of the lack of solid, reliable information coming out of Haiti, we decided it best to put feet on the ground and physically find the contacts necessary for the creation of the ongoing, meaningful support relationships that both Canadian and Haitian grassroots organizations seek. We have made our connections, found our contacts and will arrive in Port au Prince on the 16th of Feb.
Aside from community based requests, we have been asked by the University Of Winnipeg Haiti Task Force, which formed as a response to the earthquake, to assist in the location and screening of Haitian students for potential transfer of studies to the University of Winnipeg which is organizing housing and community support for more than 30 French speaking Haitian civics students.
Finally, through myriad contacts with, and connections to community, corporate and state media, not to mention web based outlets, we hope to help the situation in Haiti remain active within the media long past the end of usual media cycles. The rebuilding of so much of a country will require the ongoing attention and participation of supportive communities the world over.
CCRP sets itself apart from other relief organizations not only by our scale but also by our direct person to person approach. By making direct contact with and staying directly in affected communities rather than bases and hotels, we are able not only to collect direct information on the needs and situations of the communities themselves but also to acquire direct local guidance so that future work is locally driven rather than imposed from the outside. We strongly believe that the activation of inherent local capacities and their complementation with outside solidarity and, whenever possible, resources will be key to the rebuilding in a sustainable, culturally appropriate manner.
Upon the completion of our initial week long information gathering, we will return to Canada for 6 weeks of organizing and fundraising work, following which we intend to return to Haiti for a longer, larger and more impacting term in which we will be able to bring to bear directly the resources of supportive Canadian communities which will assist Haitian civil organizations in reestablishing in a way conducive to the organizational and community flourishing necessary to achieve a future in which these communities, which are of such immense historical significance, can flourish.
The goal of our mission is to collect the information, networks and partnering organizations necessary for the initiation of an ongoing long-term to permanent campaign of direct solidarity, support and assistance which aims to directly connect grassroots Canadian organizations to their Haitian counterparts.
Due to the quality and impact of our work in Hurricane Katrina, we were asked by New Orleanians to assist, if possible, with the transportation of religious figures from Haiti to New Orleans. Once we began this work we realized an opportunity for direct on-the-ground involvement had presented itself.
Due to a sense of apprehension caused by the less than effective response of official relief organizations to Hurricane Katrina (more than a million dollars per person affected of relief money and still no rebuilt city), several Canadians and their communities contacted CCRP to inquire as to what might be the most effective means of helping with the relief effort. Because of the lack of solid, reliable information coming out of Haiti, we decided it best to put feet on the ground and physically find the contacts necessary for the creation of the ongoing, meaningful support relationships that both Canadian and Haitian grassroots organizations seek. We have made our connections, found our contacts and will arrive in Port au Prince on the 16th of Feb.
Aside from community based requests, we have been asked by the University Of Winnipeg Haiti Task Force, which formed as a response to the earthquake, to assist in the location and screening of Haitian students for potential transfer of studies to the University of Winnipeg which is organizing housing and community support for more than 30 French speaking Haitian civics students.
Finally, through myriad contacts with, and connections to community, corporate and state media, not to mention web based outlets, we hope to help the situation in Haiti remain active within the media long past the end of usual media cycles. The rebuilding of so much of a country will require the ongoing attention and participation of supportive communities the world over.
CCRP sets itself apart from other relief organizations not only by our scale but also by our direct person to person approach. By making direct contact with and staying directly in affected communities rather than bases and hotels, we are able not only to collect direct information on the needs and situations of the communities themselves but also to acquire direct local guidance so that future work is locally driven rather than imposed from the outside. We strongly believe that the activation of inherent local capacities and their complementation with outside solidarity and, whenever possible, resources will be key to the rebuilding in a sustainable, culturally appropriate manner.
Upon the completion of our initial week long information gathering, we will return to Canada for 6 weeks of organizing and fundraising work, following which we intend to return to Haiti for a longer, larger and more impacting term in which we will be able to bring to bear directly the resources of supportive Canadian communities which will assist Haitian civil organizations in reestablishing in a way conducive to the organizational and community flourishing necessary to achieve a future in which these communities, which are of such immense historical significance, can flourish.
Monday, February 15, 2010
CCRP TO UNDERTAKE WORK IN HAITI
An opportunity has come forward for the Canadian Communications and Relief Project to send two folks to Haiti for an initial feasibility study and to do what we can in order to hopefully help alleviate even a small portion of the suffering experienced in the month since the earthquake hit.
Geoffrey Young and Liam O Doherty are hoping to arrive in Haiti on Sunday, Feb 14, 2010. As well as arranging for accommodations and various other logistical concerns, we have compiled a considerable list of grassroots organizations working on the ground in Haiti in disaster relief, recovery, rebuilding and development into the future. Our plans for our meagre 7-10 day trip is to make contact with as many of these organizations as possible, whether they be schools, old folks homes, clinics, community organizations, orphanages etc…. in order to discern their level of determination to rebuild as well as their needs in doing so. These organizations will then be put in contact with similar individuals and organizations in order to receive direct support.
So much of the relief dollar related to any given disaster goes to administration and organizational costs leaving surprisingly little impact for the often staggering amount of donations pledged to a given disaster. By building direct grassroots support networks we feel that this can be remedied. We feel strongly that local capacity, knowledge and experience needs to be at the root of rebuilding of Haiti if the reconstruction is to achieve a stable, sustainable outcome.
With security concerns being of such immediate priority in disaster situations, it is not surprising that the largest institutions such as governments, militaries and bilateral relief agencies can become alienated from the local population. Our research indicates this to be the case currently in Haiti. We hope to be able to help to improve, and in some cases, open lines of communication and support between the affected community and large relief organizations in order to help bring relief resources to bear more directly on populations in need.
Finally, we aim to try to counteract the diminutions of the media cyclerelated the Haiti earthquake. As time passes from the actual event itself, media attention has waned. Despite this the humanitarian situation remains dire. By accessing independent media outlets, and providing direct reportage and information to as many outlets as possible, we hope to be able to provide part of the beginning of an ongoing reconstruction narrative which will continue long into the future.
Geoffrey Young and Liam O Doherty are hoping to arrive in Haiti on Sunday, Feb 14, 2010. As well as arranging for accommodations and various other logistical concerns, we have compiled a considerable list of grassroots organizations working on the ground in Haiti in disaster relief, recovery, rebuilding and development into the future. Our plans for our meagre 7-10 day trip is to make contact with as many of these organizations as possible, whether they be schools, old folks homes, clinics, community organizations, orphanages etc…. in order to discern their level of determination to rebuild as well as their needs in doing so. These organizations will then be put in contact with similar individuals and organizations in order to receive direct support.
So much of the relief dollar related to any given disaster goes to administration and organizational costs leaving surprisingly little impact for the often staggering amount of donations pledged to a given disaster. By building direct grassroots support networks we feel that this can be remedied. We feel strongly that local capacity, knowledge and experience needs to be at the root of rebuilding of Haiti if the reconstruction is to achieve a stable, sustainable outcome.
With security concerns being of such immediate priority in disaster situations, it is not surprising that the largest institutions such as governments, militaries and bilateral relief agencies can become alienated from the local population. Our research indicates this to be the case currently in Haiti. We hope to be able to help to improve, and in some cases, open lines of communication and support between the affected community and large relief organizations in order to help bring relief resources to bear more directly on populations in need.
Finally, we aim to try to counteract the diminutions of the media cyclerelated the Haiti earthquake. As time passes from the actual event itself, media attention has waned. Despite this the humanitarian situation remains dire. By accessing independent media outlets, and providing direct reportage and information to as many outlets as possible, we hope to be able to provide part of the beginning of an ongoing reconstruction narrative which will continue long into the future.
CCRP PERSONEL CHANGES
The CCRP is expanding and is undertaking earthquake relief work in Haiti. In doing so we have expanded personnel and taken on new partners.
David Eisbrenner – Acquisitions and Public Relations. David sits on the board of regents at the University of Winnipeg. He is the Vice President Advocate of the University of Winnipeg Students association as well as a long time community radio producer and journalist. David will be working on acquisitions and domestically based support for our initial work in Haiti as well as dealing with media inquiries.
Alexander Braun – Web design and communications support. Sasha is a master web designer and a pioneer in Internet development as well as an artist, designer, activist and much more. Having designed things ranging from the first commercial Internet radio station to one of the Dee Dee Ramones’ last album, Sasha is overseeing web presence related to CCRP.
Liam O’Doherty is accompanying Geoffrey Young in Haiti. Liam has a background in environmental and community organizing, theatrical improvisation and social technology. He is currently studying communication theory at the University of Toronto while working as online community animator with TakingITGlobal,an online youth network. He recently led an international youth delegation to the COP15 Climate Change negotiations in Copenhagen.
Sallie Ann Glassman is now serving as a logistics consultant to CCRP. From Wikipedia : author, artist and New Orleans, Louisiana personality who has appeared in numerous national newspapers and electronic media broadcasts. Glassman has lectured extensively and has received international television, radio and magazine coverage, including a front page article in the New York Times and a feature on World News Tonight. She has received mention in other publications including Los Angeles Times, San Francisco Chronicle, The New Yorker, Wall Street Journal, National Geographic and the Washington Post. Born in Maine and of Jewish-Ukrainian heritage, Glassman has been practicing Vodou in New Orleans since 1977 and is one of few White Americans to have been ordained via the traditional Haitian initiation.
Canada Haiti Action Network- The Winnipeg chapter of CHAN has been active for years in providing solidarity support to the people of Haiti. Members and associates have been instrumental in providing the connection for the logistical arrangements necessary to undertake our work in Haiti. University of Winnipeg Haiti Task Force- was a body formed at and by the University of Winnipeg to respond, in some way to the recent Haitian Earthquake. It is comprised of University alumni, faculty, administration and students who are attempting to form an effective University driven response to the recent disaster.
David Eisbrenner – Acquisitions and Public Relations. David sits on the board of regents at the University of Winnipeg. He is the Vice President Advocate of the University of Winnipeg Students association as well as a long time community radio producer and journalist. David will be working on acquisitions and domestically based support for our initial work in Haiti as well as dealing with media inquiries.
Alexander Braun – Web design and communications support. Sasha is a master web designer and a pioneer in Internet development as well as an artist, designer, activist and much more. Having designed things ranging from the first commercial Internet radio station to one of the Dee Dee Ramones’ last album, Sasha is overseeing web presence related to CCRP.
Liam O’Doherty is accompanying Geoffrey Young in Haiti. Liam has a background in environmental and community organizing, theatrical improvisation and social technology. He is currently studying communication theory at the University of Toronto while working as online community animator with TakingITGlobal,an online youth network. He recently led an international youth delegation to the COP15 Climate Change negotiations in Copenhagen.
Sallie Ann Glassman is now serving as a logistics consultant to CCRP. From Wikipedia : author, artist and New Orleans, Louisiana personality who has appeared in numerous national newspapers and electronic media broadcasts. Glassman has lectured extensively and has received international television, radio and magazine coverage, including a front page article in the New York Times and a feature on World News Tonight. She has received mention in other publications including Los Angeles Times, San Francisco Chronicle, The New Yorker, Wall Street Journal, National Geographic and the Washington Post. Born in Maine and of Jewish-Ukrainian heritage, Glassman has been practicing Vodou in New Orleans since 1977 and is one of few White Americans to have been ordained via the traditional Haitian initiation.
Canada Haiti Action Network- The Winnipeg chapter of CHAN has been active for years in providing solidarity support to the people of Haiti. Members and associates have been instrumental in providing the connection for the logistical arrangements necessary to undertake our work in Haiti. University of Winnipeg Haiti Task Force- was a body formed at and by the University of Winnipeg to respond, in some way to the recent Haitian Earthquake. It is comprised of University alumni, faculty, administration and students who are attempting to form an effective University driven response to the recent disaster.
Thursday, June 22, 2006
Call for Volunteers - August 29 is Deadline to Have Homes Gutted
August 29 is Deadline to Have Homes Gutted
By: Steve Cannizaro
May 29, 2006
Aug. 29 is deadline for residents to have damaged homes gutted and secured but it’s not likely everyone who signed up for free gutting will be reached; council working on plan to list contractors who agree to do work at going rate, which is 99 cents per square foot.
For a number of reasons, many St. Bernard Parish residents who signed up for a free gutting of their home by volunteers under a unique parish government program that began in January, simply won’t be reached, Parish Council members are acknowledging.
Instead, only the handicapped and elderly - those 60 and over – will likely be reached on the list at this point, council members said this week.
The council has set Aug. 29, the first anniversary of Hurricane Katrina flooding the parish, as the deadline for residents to have their damaged homes gutted and secured, even if they have to do it themselves.
That deadline would hold even if their name hasn’t been reached on a list homeowners who signed up to have volunteers remove storm debris from their homes. Some 1,500 homes have been gutted by volunteers who have come to St. Bernard from many other states but there are still 5,000 homes on the free list to be gutted while officials estimated volunteers may be able to reach only 1,500 to 2,000 more by Aug. 29.
The Aug. 29 date, the one-year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina flooding nearly all of the parish’s 27,000 homes, was set as a means to deal with blighted housing created by people who have abandoned their damaged homes in the parish and haven’t done anything with them.
People who don’t have their homes gutted by the deadline face the possibility of the parish taking bids by private contractors to do the work and putting a lien on the person’s home for the amount involved.
The going rate by private contractors is about 99 cents per square foot to gut a residence – for example, roughly $2,000 for a 2,000 square-foot-home.
While council members are insisting the public must get the gutting done one way or another by Aug. 29, they are also working toward a system of encouraging contractors not to raise prices.
The plan would involve letting contractors who agree to keep prices at the going rate be listed free on the parish website, www.sbpg.net, and listed on a sheet of referrals to be handed out to residents.
Council member Kenny Henderson said he is concerned contractors, knowing of the Aug. 29 deadline, will raise prices for gutting work if the parish volunteers can’t reach everyone who signed up to have their homes cleaned of storm debris.
Council member Craig Taffaro Jr. acknowledged that in setting up the free gutting program by volunteers and asking residents to sign up, it created “a false sense of assistance we can’t fulfill.’’ He also said, “I don’t want to create a market where the price will rise.’’ But the best way to deal with that is to create a system in which contractors are encouraged not to raise prices by letting them be on a referral list, several council members said. Council member Mark Madary said he hopes residents will understand parish government set out to do something to help as many people as possible. But in the end, Madary said, it comes down to, “Santa didn’t come this year. If you want the train set you have to go buy it yourself.’’
-----------------
In response to this deadline, the CCRP has undertaken a media and volunteer drive. It is estimated that half a million man hours are needed before the 1st anniversary of the storm.
We have managed to source food and housing for up to one thousand volunteers simultaneously.
If you want to come down to New Orleans and help these people keep their homes by giving of your time gutting houses, please call (204) 779-3113 and leave a message. Or, you can contact Geoffrey by email at geoffrey@groovy.net or by phone at (303)572-4396 or (504)210-6998. Kent Davies can usually be reached during business hours at CKUW in Winnipeg, (204) 986-9782. We have networked with several relief organizations who are working on gutting and can likely match accommodations to volunteer needs bearing in mind the city is still a disaster situation.
Although we only have weeks left down south, we will continue this volunteer drive through to the and of August.
- Geoffrey Young
By: Steve Cannizaro
May 29, 2006
Aug. 29 is deadline for residents to have damaged homes gutted and secured but it’s not likely everyone who signed up for free gutting will be reached; council working on plan to list contractors who agree to do work at going rate, which is 99 cents per square foot.
For a number of reasons, many St. Bernard Parish residents who signed up for a free gutting of their home by volunteers under a unique parish government program that began in January, simply won’t be reached, Parish Council members are acknowledging.
Instead, only the handicapped and elderly - those 60 and over – will likely be reached on the list at this point, council members said this week.
The council has set Aug. 29, the first anniversary of Hurricane Katrina flooding the parish, as the deadline for residents to have their damaged homes gutted and secured, even if they have to do it themselves.
That deadline would hold even if their name hasn’t been reached on a list homeowners who signed up to have volunteers remove storm debris from their homes. Some 1,500 homes have been gutted by volunteers who have come to St. Bernard from many other states but there are still 5,000 homes on the free list to be gutted while officials estimated volunteers may be able to reach only 1,500 to 2,000 more by Aug. 29.
The Aug. 29 date, the one-year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina flooding nearly all of the parish’s 27,000 homes, was set as a means to deal with blighted housing created by people who have abandoned their damaged homes in the parish and haven’t done anything with them.
People who don’t have their homes gutted by the deadline face the possibility of the parish taking bids by private contractors to do the work and putting a lien on the person’s home for the amount involved.
The going rate by private contractors is about 99 cents per square foot to gut a residence – for example, roughly $2,000 for a 2,000 square-foot-home.
While council members are insisting the public must get the gutting done one way or another by Aug. 29, they are also working toward a system of encouraging contractors not to raise prices.
The plan would involve letting contractors who agree to keep prices at the going rate be listed free on the parish website, www.sbpg.net, and listed on a sheet of referrals to be handed out to residents.
Council member Kenny Henderson said he is concerned contractors, knowing of the Aug. 29 deadline, will raise prices for gutting work if the parish volunteers can’t reach everyone who signed up to have their homes cleaned of storm debris.
Council member Craig Taffaro Jr. acknowledged that in setting up the free gutting program by volunteers and asking residents to sign up, it created “a false sense of assistance we can’t fulfill.’’ He also said, “I don’t want to create a market where the price will rise.’’ But the best way to deal with that is to create a system in which contractors are encouraged not to raise prices by letting them be on a referral list, several council members said. Council member Mark Madary said he hopes residents will understand parish government set out to do something to help as many people as possible. But in the end, Madary said, it comes down to, “Santa didn’t come this year. If you want the train set you have to go buy it yourself.’’
-----------------
In response to this deadline, the CCRP has undertaken a media and volunteer drive. It is estimated that half a million man hours are needed before the 1st anniversary of the storm.
We have managed to source food and housing for up to one thousand volunteers simultaneously.
If you want to come down to New Orleans and help these people keep their homes by giving of your time gutting houses, please call (204) 779-3113 and leave a message. Or, you can contact Geoffrey by email at geoffrey@groovy.net or by phone at (303)572-4396 or (504)210-6998. Kent Davies can usually be reached during business hours at CKUW in Winnipeg, (204) 986-9782. We have networked with several relief organizations who are working on gutting and can likely match accommodations to volunteer needs bearing in mind the city is still a disaster situation.
Although we only have weeks left down south, we will continue this volunteer drive through to the and of August.
- Geoffrey Young
Wednesday, June 21, 2006
Report from Buras, Louisiana - June 2006
This is Buras, Louisiana. It is located in Plaquemines Parish and is the first place Hurricane Katrina made landfall. The last time myself and Will were in the South, most of this area was still underwater.
This is sketchy land to begin with. In much of it, you can see levees on two sides with only space for a small subdivision or a few houses in between. The levees look very high here compared to the city but this did not help when the eye of the storm passed over.
The area was hit with more than 30 feet of water from at least two different directions as well as sustained winds in excess of over 200 miles per hour. Most of the people who lived here evacuated, but any who did not stood no chance of survival.
Much of Louisiana's shrimping industry was down in Plaquemines and was completely obliterated. We had hoped to be able to help with the reestablishment of said industry, but in Plaquemines, there is no shrimping industry to reestablish. The shrimp boats are in piles at the sides of the roads, or up against bridges. In other places they are in houses and sometimes even in trees.
There is a group of volunteers, the same group which ran the Waveland Cafe in Bay St Louis last year, but they are the only ones save for a few locals. They are managing to provide free meals to people who have returned and are living in tents and trailers.
We went down to Buras in order to fix a mobile satellite unit which has been providing the center, which used to be a YMCA with Internet. We have been asked to procure computers and networking equipment in order to create a community access communication centre as phone lines are still down and internet is far from available. We have sourced a limited quantity of computers in Baton Rouge and hope to be able to get our hands on them within a week or so.
- Geoffrey Young
Report from the 9th Ward - June 1, 2006
Back into the Lower 9th Ward upon arrival in New Orleans. Nothing much here has been touched since the storm hit. Things have been mostly left where they fell, save for a few houses having been bulldozed.
Neighbourhood residents are still scattered throughout the region and many have not had a chance to even start the process of recovery.
Much of the city looks as though it has not been touched. There are still piles of cars under the Interstate 10 overpass and much of the city remains in rubble.
The middle and upper class communities of New Orleans, those who had proper insurance and who could afford to rebuild, are slowly getting back to normal but huge swaths of New Orleans that were once home to communities which were vibrant yet underfunded are still in ruins.
Any rebuilding or recovery that has taken place in these areas has happened largely thanks to volunteer groups from across the United States, with seemingly minimal, if any, government support. So what little has been done is a testament to the strength of the communities that once lived here and complete strangers who want to see them rebuilt.
As the diaspora returns to the city, many to find their neighbourhoods in ruins and crime has been steadily on the rise. There have been 52 murders so far this year, with a city population of around 200,000 people. All New Orleans public school teachers have been fired, leaving only private “charter” schools running. Thus many of the city's under-served communities only have access to private education.
The National Guard have been called in to patrol the streets once again but it is the New Orleans police who are being deployed in the “hot spots” despite their obvious inability to control city neighbourhoods such as the Midtown.
For the next several months, we will be doing what we can to provide support for local organizations, and canvass the region in hopes of discerning needs. Then we will be using what resources and connections are available us to communicate these needs to the wider population which is getting no news of the recovery effort (or lack thereof).
- Geoffrey Young
Friday, May 05, 2006
"telekommunisten" launches in support of the CCRP
The Haagenti Group has launched telekommunisten, a new virtual phone company that hosts your organization's voicemail, call-forwarding, automated attendant, conference bridges, and provides cheap long-distance rates.
At only $145.00 per month for up to 89 extensions and 3 conference bridges, their hosted PBX is only a fraction of the cost of other hosted services and far less expensive than a traditional PBX. Plus, their calling rates are incredibly low, less than 2 cents a minute for most calls to international land lines. Inbound phone numbers (DIDs) for most countries cost under $12.
telekommunisten is run as a worker co-op and its founders have contributed to numerous projects in North America, Europe and Africa, from setting up Independant media convergence spaces in Canada and working with refugees and migrants in Europe, to most recently working with the CCRP co-ordinating relief efforts following Hurricane Katrina. When you employ telekommunisten, you help support our work.
telekommunisten has been generating alot of buzz online and was recently featured in the German press.
At only $145.00 per month for up to 89 extensions and 3 conference bridges, their hosted PBX is only a fraction of the cost of other hosted services and far less expensive than a traditional PBX. Plus, their calling rates are incredibly low, less than 2 cents a minute for most calls to international land lines. Inbound phone numbers (DIDs) for most countries cost under $12.
telekommunisten is run as a worker co-op and its founders have contributed to numerous projects in North America, Europe and Africa, from setting up Independant media convergence spaces in Canada and working with refugees and migrants in Europe, to most recently working with the CCRP co-ordinating relief efforts following Hurricane Katrina. When you employ telekommunisten, you help support our work.
telekommunisten has been generating alot of buzz online and was recently featured in the German press.
Tuesday, March 14, 2006
Return to Louisiana - Spring '06
At least two of our members will be returning to Louisiana this Spring to continue work in Hurricane Katrina affected areas. Progress on recovery is slow to non-existent with much of New Orleans in the same state as it was when we last had people there.
Our initial plans are to canvas the entire region collecting as many stories as possible in audio and video format and then making them available to the public at large through existing, or perhaps our own, outlets. The recovery is so far behind and the need is so great for volunteer manpower in and around New Orleans that we feel this will be the best way for us to have a much impact as possible in the minimum amount of time.
We have had a request to help compile a list of individuals and groups installing communication infrastructure and to assist with expanding existing networks and maintaining whatever is up already.
We are also going to visit faith based communities who are active in the recovery effort in order to hook them up with similar networks here in Canada who are willing to help. The University of Winnipeg/Menno Simmons College International Development Studies Department is supporting these efforts and we hope that we can foster a relationship between the communities to help speed up the painfully slow rebuilding process.
In order to do this, we are going to have to raise enough money to keep ourselves fed as well as travel costs, cellphones and related bills and rent on an apartment. CU Wireless has once again helped with arranging FCC clearance to go south but they are unable to provide us with any further funding. We have been offered a reasonably priced room in East Orleans and we are very fortunate for this as the homeless rate will likely be over 15% by the time we arrive. We will need $5-10 thousand dollars in U.S. funds to maintain a presence of a further 6 months in the region.
You can donate through our paypal link or by sending a cheque payable to Canadian Communications Relief Project Inc., c/o 1-1549 St. Mary's Road, Winnipeg, MB, Canada, R2M 5G9
Our initial plans are to canvas the entire region collecting as many stories as possible in audio and video format and then making them available to the public at large through existing, or perhaps our own, outlets. The recovery is so far behind and the need is so great for volunteer manpower in and around New Orleans that we feel this will be the best way for us to have a much impact as possible in the minimum amount of time.
We have had a request to help compile a list of individuals and groups installing communication infrastructure and to assist with expanding existing networks and maintaining whatever is up already.
We are also going to visit faith based communities who are active in the recovery effort in order to hook them up with similar networks here in Canada who are willing to help. The University of Winnipeg/Menno Simmons College International Development Studies Department is supporting these efforts and we hope that we can foster a relationship between the communities to help speed up the painfully slow rebuilding process.
In order to do this, we are going to have to raise enough money to keep ourselves fed as well as travel costs, cellphones and related bills and rent on an apartment. CU Wireless has once again helped with arranging FCC clearance to go south but they are unable to provide us with any further funding. We have been offered a reasonably priced room in East Orleans and we are very fortunate for this as the homeless rate will likely be over 15% by the time we arrive. We will need $5-10 thousand dollars in U.S. funds to maintain a presence of a further 6 months in the region.
You can donate through our paypal link or by sending a cheque payable to Canadian Communications Relief Project Inc., c/o 1-1549 St. Mary's Road, Winnipeg, MB, Canada, R2M 5G9
Scouting projects in Africa
William Waites is in Johannesburg, South Africa. He is there to visit family and investigate the possibilities of CCRP undertaking projects in wireless internet and community radio.
Saturday, January 14, 2006
Legend?
This email was sent to the closed access Hancock county EOC (Emergency Operations Center) mailing list. The EOC is the base for the Red Cross, FEMA, International AID, and various branches of the military, thus addresses are withheld for privacy reasons. I think it paints us in a pretty good light...................................Geoffrey
Legend?
Subject: Re: [Emergency-Relief] The Canucks
Sorry to hear that the Canuk's and Curious George got booted from the EOC for being “disaster tourists.” It had to be a classic case of Country Club Hat Envy. William heard his own drum, no doubt. Those boys got a plane load of Hep A flown in, Moved a 40ft tractor trailer of ice from where it was sitting idle to people who needed it, and thanks to our campfire friends and Mr. Mee and the Cowboy crew’s Tupperware on a stick trick with the Alex Bell gang, got another truck load of Pharmaceuticals moved from the Pfizer warehouse to people who desperately needed it. That, my friends, is the stuff of legend. Not bad for tourists, not bad at all. They did it because they were there, because they care and because it needed to be done.
"I am sorry, you will need form 14-B and authorization for that.” my ass. Feudal prates can say what they want; Get-er-dun comes in many forms. LTC said "Ask first, they will tell you no, then just do it anyway." I told William that if he put those golf clubs on the back of that thing he would look like a Mounty on vacation and anyone would have to be crazier than he is to mess with him. Ehil tell you what, Wild Bill deserved to wear the big Stetson on campus, crazy sum-bitch. Crazy or Cool is just two different points on very fine line. Therefore they and their legend shall be henceforth known as Wild Bill, Curious George and the Mounties.
Legend?
Subject: Re: [Emergency-Relief] The Canucks
Sorry to hear that the Canuk's and Curious George got booted from the EOC for being “disaster tourists.” It had to be a classic case of Country Club Hat Envy. William heard his own drum, no doubt. Those boys got a plane load of Hep A flown in, Moved a 40ft tractor trailer of ice from where it was sitting idle to people who needed it, and thanks to our campfire friends and Mr. Mee and the Cowboy crew’s Tupperware on a stick trick with the Alex Bell gang, got another truck load of Pharmaceuticals moved from the Pfizer warehouse to people who desperately needed it. That, my friends, is the stuff of legend. Not bad for tourists, not bad at all. They did it because they were there, because they care and because it needed to be done.
"I am sorry, you will need form 14-B and authorization for that.” my ass. Feudal prates can say what they want; Get-er-dun comes in many forms. LTC said "Ask first, they will tell you no, then just do it anyway." I told William that if he put those golf clubs on the back of that thing he would look like a Mounty on vacation and anyone would have to be crazier than he is to mess with him. Ehil tell you what, Wild Bill deserved to wear the big Stetson on campus, crazy sum-bitch. Crazy or Cool is just two different points on very fine line. Therefore they and their legend shall be henceforth known as Wild Bill, Curious George and the Mounties.
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