I was recently selected as a new member of the Executive Leadership Committee for Evacuteer.org, and organization that helps New Orleans to implement the City Assisted Evacuation Plan in the event of a disaster that requires residents of the city to leave town. Evacuteer has been inspiring and engaging volunteers in New Orleans, mostly young professionals and students, since after Hurricane Gustav, and we have a strong partnership and a great deal of support from the City itself. I’ll be active with the Operations Team, responsible for helping recruit and train our Evacuteers, engage and sign MOUs with our community partners, and refine our Operations Plan so that we can better respond when needed and be sure our whole team is prepared to assist in the event of a disaster. This is a natural extension of my background in disaster response with the American Red Cross (no, I’m not leaving the Red Cross, this will be in addition to my volunteer work with them), and my coursework in humanitarian aid and disaster resilience, particularly with the Disaster Resilience Leadership Academy. I’m looking forward to an exciting and productive year with Evacuteer.org!
Category: Disaster Operations
Today marks the second anniversary of the devastating earthquake that hit the impoverished nation of Haiti on January 12, 2010. Thousands of responders and long-term recovery workers have been toiling to save lives and help rebuild and recover over the past 24 months, but there’s no denying the frustrating notion that two years later there still seems to be so little “real” progress. Here, a brief roundup of triumphs and ongoing trials of the earthquake relief and recovery operations, and the state of the nation 2 years since the disaster:
Bertha Henry, 17, lives in La Piste camp with her family. Photo Credit: Julien GOLDSTEIN/IFRC
News Articles
The Guardian: Two years on, and just half of promised aid has been delivered.
Reuters AlertNet: Haiti to mark two years after catastrophic quake.
PBS Photo Spread: Haiti, two years on.
Huffington Post: Haiti Earthquake Recovery: Where did all the money go? (Infographic)
Agency & Organization Reports
Tulane University Disaster Resilience Leadership Academy Haiti Humanitarian Aid Evaluation Database
American Red Cross: Haiti Earthquake Response, Two-Year Update.
UNICEF Report on victories & challenges for children. Press release and full report.
Plan International Haiti: Two Years After: Successes, Challenges, and Priorities.
UNOCHA Press Release: Two years after the devastating earthquake.
Oxfam Haiti Progress Report: January – December 2011.
Blogs, Videos, Media
IFRC Media Blog: Two Years On, ongoing work of Red Cross Red Crescent.
Dochasnetwork’s Blog: Haiti two-year summary.
American Red Cross video: Haiti, two years on.
Ports in the Storm 