Design Fellow Karl Johnson recently returned from a three-week site visit in Haiti. While there, he worked with the rebuilding team to assess schools and check out potential sites. At today's Lunch and Learn Karl told us about his trip and showed us images from the ground.

The 'Maison du Architecture,' where the staff and volunteers stay, is situated outside of Port au Prince. It's cozy but missing certain creature comforts, i.e. all clothes washing is done by hand. There’s a goat and plans for an edible garden. Karl then showed us an image of people in Port au Prince selling charcoal. He says there's a deforestation problem in Haiti - one of many problems for which the country is looking for a solution. Hand-painted signs proliferate in Port au Prince. Karl says there's acute attention to detail in the signs, just as there is in the many hand-crafted items around town.

Typically you can describe a simple, two-room school house in maybe two dozen "sheets." These sheets would include drawings and specifications of: site, floor and ceiling plans; interior and exterior elevations; electrical, plumbing and material specs; window and door schedules; SECTIONS; and a suite of details cataloging every material connection in the–achem–joint, and every possible measurement is labeled. These sheets become the explicit instructions so someone can build the whole school.

Give it up for Haitian contractors then for saving trees by fitting all these instructions ON TWO PAGES. That's right, the image above shows the entire drawing set for a two-room school extension–and this is standard practice amongst Haitian contractors.

Friday night saw Architecture for Humanity staff and volunteers talking shop with Haitian architects, builders, college faculty and fellow NGO's. They were celebrating, in part, their new office space in Pétionville, Port-au-Prince. Curious third partiers joined around 50 invited members of the local design and construction community in enjoying some hors d'oeurves, a beverage and each other's company. Decorations were sparse–folding chairs had been drawn into circles while a projector reenacted the construction of the clinic platform. A small stereo played a hodgepodge of Haitian standards, but was mostly drowned out by conversation.

The inaugural "Meet-n-Greet" marked the first in an ongoing series of open houses at the Haiti team office. Monthly conversations and lectures are planned to promote education, participation and collaboration in Haiti's reconstruction.

Members of the Haiti team are still debating the name of the event and are open to suggestions.

Essay in A+U Magazine, July 2010

Rebuilding Haiti
By Karl Johnson

Small victories on the ground

There is no typical day in Haiti. Our team wakes up to the crow of roosters. Most days revolve around site visits and assessments as we try to guide our partners in planning. Driving anywhere in Port-au-Prince takes two hours. We get an early start but it will be 9 am before we arrive at the site of a potential project–a school for the camp in Pétionville. The camp, located on a former golf course, is currently home to 50,000. The school is little more than a tarp supported by two-by-fours, and shelters 350 learners. The school–and the camp, for that matter–is sited on a steep grade. We discuss alternatives and settle on a transitional school plan as it’s not clear if the camp will remain at this location. In the meantime, we promise to come back to build better temporary supports for the school.

Several members of the Haiti team revisited Good Shepherd, a small community school near Cité Soleil, on Monday to present schematic designs and charrette with several teachers, the school director and members of the Child Sponsorship Program.

The Team presented preliminary designs for review. The school is rather large, 1100 students, and requires the construction of 20 classrooms. The design proposes a permanent school to be phased in room by room while children are attending class throughout the next school year. Presently classes are being held in the church and under a series of tents.

Nan asosyasyon avèk StudentsRebuild.org (www.studentsrebuild.org) ak lòt patnè finansman lekol la, Achitekti pou imanite ap ofri 1) sèvis konsepsyon ak 2) sipò finansman konstriksyon pou lekòl Ayiti yo ki ap chèche rebati aprè tranbleman tè 12 Janvye, 2010.

En partenariat avec StudentsRebuild.org (www.studentsrebuild.org) et d'autres partenaires de financement des écoles, Architecture pour l’Humanité offre 1) Services de conception et 2) le soutien financier de la construction pour les écoles chercheant à reconstruire après le tremblement de terre du 12 janvier 2010.

In partnership with StudentsRebuild.org (www.studentsrebuild.org) and other school funding partners, Architecture for Humanity is offering design services and construction funding support for Haiti schools seeking to rebuild after the January 12, 2010 earthquake.

Jonsonite to donate 3,000 square feet of Harmonium xf Linoleum Flooring to
Architecture for Humanity for Relief Efforts in Haiti

CHAGRIN FALLS, Ohio (July 7, 2010) –Johnsonite®, a Tarkett company
and provider of the world’s most integrated high-performance flooring system,
hosted an interactive design event during NeoCon® World’s Trade Fair 2010,
June 14-16 in Chicago. Johnsonite invited show attendees to place a sample of
its flooring tile on a “Collage of Possibilities,” and pledged to increase their product donation to Architecture for Humanity for each tile that was placed.

Haiti's Prefab Housing Expo "Building Back Better Communities" has extended its' deadline for submissions to 12:00 EDT on Monday July 19, 2010.

The competition website, http://malcolmreading.co.uk/bbbc, which holds all the necessary information on the project, has been updated.

This is your opportunity to put up a housing structure that could impact the lives of thousands of displaced families.

Architecture for Humanity accompanies Haitian architect Yves François on his daily commute along two miles of Route Frère--a trip that routinely takes 30-90 minutes! The team investigates the cause of congestion and wonders how circulation along this main artery can be improved.

A cadre of engineers from the San Francisco office of Arup–an international multi-disciplinary consulting firm–recently sat with Architecture for Humanity to discuss the technical aspects of a school campus design for Haiti. In the course of an afternoon the two groups isolated some recommendations for: air and energy use, water and waste management, construction material choices, fire safety and structural needs for the peculiar local conditions in Port-au-Prince. The Architecture for Humanity Haiti program manager skyped in to catch the team up on conditions and design constraints on the ground.

This is the first of a suite of charrettes (sweet!) between the two groups as they hone a set of best practices for construction in Haiti. The results of this collaboration will be featured online on the Open Architecture Network.

Haiti's Prefab Housing Expo "Building Back Better Communities" has extended its' deadline for submissions to 12:00 EDT on Monday July 5, 2010.

The competition website, http://malcolmreading.co.uk/bbbc, which holds all the necessary information on the project, has been updated.

This is your opportunity to put up a housing structure that could impact the lives of thousands of displaced families.

Independent journalists Ruxandra Guidi and Roberto ('Bear') Guerra have reported from around the world, bringing important local and international stories to light. They combine images, writing and multimedia to show how poverty, climate change, health care and other international issues affect people's lives. This week, they visited us for our Lunch and Learn session to share their work from a reporting trip to Haiti in Fall 2008. Bear returned to Haiti shortly after this year's quake, and they both plan to go back for a three-week trip in July.

Right before they traveled to Haiti in 2008, a string of hurricanes had just hit the country. They saw it as a great opportunity to examine foreign aid. Bear and Ruxandra said the lack of functional infrastructure was just one example of what wasn't working.

The Government of Haiti wants to provide alternative forms of permanent housing for its citizens displaced by the earthquake. Officials have enlisted our help and that of the British architecture firm Malcolm Reading to hold a design competition Expo for prefabricated housing solutions. The deadline for submissions is June 28.

The Haitian government encourages participation from as many different sectors around the world as possible. If you're a designer, architect, contractor, consultant or other professional who wants to help build back better, you're invited to submit a design to be evaluated and built.

A prototype housing Expo will take place in Port-au-Prince from early October 2010. The development of an exemplar housing settlement will follow shortly after.

Chuck Setchell with the USAID Office of US Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA) visited us during our weekly Lunch and Learn session. He is preparing to return to Haiti and wanted to share with us how the agency is helping Haitians find shelter. He talked about some of the challenges to resettlement efforts, which include the vast amount of rubble left over by the earthquake, land tenure issues and the lack of recovery plans by the Haitian government.

Chuck said that past experience suggests that the population in Port au Prince and other cities will increase, not decrease, so aid groups needs to 'think big' to help the affected population. For now, the agency is assessing emergency shelters in affected areas to prepare for the hurricane season.

Here are some interesting facts from his presentation as collected by Cameron on his twitter account:

Last week, the Architecture for Humanity team in Haiti put down their office tools to build a platform for a clinic for fellow NGO, Jenkins Penn H/RO, in Pétionville, Port-au-Prince.

The original clinic was under threat of flooding as the structures were set up on the bare ground. Completion was delayed several days due to rain but the clinic is now operating at a higher level.

Local help was recruited for the construction, which included concrete foundations and a raised wood floor. Architecture for Humanity volunteer and seasoned builder Tommy Stewart of Ft. Worth gave an impromptu lesson on stair framing and all participants finished the project with a better sense of how everything comes together.

Watch Eric Cesal and Schendy Kernizan on a typical day on site at a large refugee camp on the outskirts of Port-au-Prince.

Video produced by Architectural Record as part of their Rebuilding Haiti series

Architecture for Humanity
Diana Bianchini
310.288.0077
press@architectureforhumanity.org

Joint Design Fellowship will support sustainable reconstruction efforts in Haiti

For immediate release
June 2, 2010 (Washington, DC) - The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) and the American Institute of Architects (AIA) have announced their support for an Architecture for Humanity Sustainable Design Fellow, who will help play a critical role in rebuilding the infrastructure in Haiti that was demolished in the devastating earthquake. The qualified design professional selected will make a two-year commitment to work directly with community members on the ground in Architecture for Humanity’s Rebuilding Center based in Port-au-Prince, Haiti.

“As the dust begins to settle, Haiti is faced with critical need for new and structurally sound homes, schools, hospitals and infrastructure,” said Rick Fedrizzi, President, CEO & Founding Chair, USGBC. “The Sustainable Design Fellowship will equip a seasoned green building design professional with the tools he or she will need to help Architecture for Humanity in its rebuilding of sustainable communities in Haiti.”

In late January 40 young musicians came together and played to a sold out crowd in downtown Mill Valley and raised over $11,000 for Doctors without Borders.

The second concert will be May 30 in the plaza in downtown Mill Valley. Ten groups comprised of youth street musicians will play around town, and approximately 15 bands will play in the plaza.

Youth Rock is partnering with Architecture for Humanity with a goal to raise enough funds to build a school/community center/shelter. The Bezos Family Foundation has offered matching grants up to $2500 for each youth group or band that raises money through Students Rebuild.

If you are in Northern California this weekend, take a trip to Marin and cheer on the rock stars of tomorrow.

In partnership with KPFF Consulting Engineers and us, AIDG began coordinating trainings in confined masonry construction techniques in Port-au-Prince, Jacmel and Léogâne. The techniques developed in South America partially explain how the Feb 27th 8.8 earthquake in Chile (700 times stronger than the Haiti quake) caused considerably less damage.

As per the government mandate, Haiti schools officially reopened April 6, but the capacity in which students are now attending class varies dramatically. In most cases the original school building has not yet been assessed by engineers or has already been deemed unfit for occupancy.

Temporary shelters can be found assembled on the old school grounds–wood frames nailed together and a tarpaulin thrown overtop. However similar school shelters prove stifling in the displacement camps. On one camp visit, our program manager couldn't help but notice how the children–while given a place to learn–were far from comfortable there:

Reconstruction from Haiti Onward on Vimeo.

As we continue our initial phases of our reconstruction efforts in Haiti, it's encouraging to see some press covering life among Haitians on the ground resuming a sense of familiarity. Meanwhile, activity continues as well in the political sphere. Listed below are selections of the latest reports from Haiti, or regarding Haiti's refoundation.* (Compiled with help from our friend in Seattle Mr. Constantini.)

Adam Davidson. “The Economy of a Tent City” (online video). Port-au-Prince: Frontline/NPR Planet Money, March 2010. (an amazing window into day-to-day life in PAP displacement camps) http://to.pbs.org/d7rwfw

Frances Robles. “Bill Clinton, George W. Bush visit Haiti, vow to help”. Miami Herald, March 22, 2010. (reports that President Préval took a critical step toward boosting resettlement efforts in Haiti by signing an executive order declaring the right to seize land through eminent domain) http://bit.ly/ac81Jy

Our Regional program manager in Haiti, Eric Cesal, is doing his third 'tour of duty' with Architecture for Humanity. Having worked across the Gulf Coast after Hurricane Katrina he understands the role we have to respond to immediate needs while focusing the long term rebuilding. Eric is our 'Phd McGuyver' - smart as a tack with a strong moral sense of urgency about him. He is a few weeks in and a few years from leaving. I thought I'd share his first letter with you to get a sense of life on the ground.

"Day to day in Port Au Prince is the knowledge that everything wants to be done today. Every piece of rubble could be picked up, and every tarp could be righted. It is also the knowledge that nothing (or at least very little) is going to happen today. You will look for small victories and some days you don’t even find that.

ISPAN has been working to save historic structures in and around Port-au-Prince. They are urgently working to save their culture, one brick at a time but concerned that they are losing for lack of support:

From one of their directors: "One more historical architectural treasure ISPAN could not save because of lack of means to intervene. It was bulldozed yesterday. We could have saved it. built in 1876. This is the fifth historical structure in Port-au-Prince which we lost simply for lack of funds. (and what funds...)

When we plead for the structures NOT to be destroyed and can do nothing to preserve them, this is what happens. This is how we lose our memory, this is, one church, one fort, one house at a time , how we loose our very identity..."

Monique Rocourt, ISPAN

What can you say in 140 characters?

Paul Scheer and Rob Huebel welcomed 140 Twitter-ers from the world of comedy, music, sports, and entertainment to the Upright Citizens Brigade stage to each perform a signature tweets in front of a live audience.

140 performers, one night only, one cause - build schools in Haiti

Now you can pre-order the DVD or watch the video instantly on Amazon.com or download the video on iTunes.

Yves, one of our architects on our Haiti team recently paid a visit to Cité Soleil–an extremely impoverished neighborhood of Port-au-Prince–to evaluate the conditions of schools affected by the quake. Of the three schools inspected, two have suffered some damage but can be restored, while a third was found to be extremely hazardous and must be demolished.

Let us remember that more than 4000 classrooms have been destroyed by this tragic earthquake. To allow the future leaders of Haiti the best opportunity to perform it is vital to build educational facilities safe, sustainable and efficient structures.

As our Haiti team wraps their initial tasks in Port-au-Prince, other reports from the ground continue to detail a picture of current conditions. We've collected here a few recent articles on Haiti–links to the Seattle Times, Inter Press Service (a non-profit global newswire out of Rome), and Haiti en March (brief articles in French discussing resettlement and structural inspections).

2 months after Haiti quake, housing still elusive. Ben Fox & Jonathan M. Katz, AP. Seattle Times, 12 March 2010.

HAITI: Earthquake Epicentre Copes with Aftermath. Garry Pierre-Pierre. Port-au-Prince: Inter Press Service, 1 March 2010.

HAITI: Universities Feel Strain After Earthquake. Garry Pierre-Pierre. Port-au-Prince: Inter Press Service, 1 February 2010.

(Two more after break)

Our Haiti team has sent us some benchmarking pricing. Haiti has been suffering from inflation for the past several years but the Jan 12 earthquake has exacerbated the situation.

These figures not only reflect the economic seclusion from–despite its proximity to–the United States, but also show how food aid is influencing the cost of some products and not others. Bread costs $1.25, half what it would cost in the United States, while milk, popular cereals and construction materials fetch 2-3 times their price in the United States. Following are observed Haitian vs Californian prices for select goods:

Food and material prices, Haiti and United States (in $US)

Supplies–Haiti/United States

Gallon of water–$1.25/$0.88
Gallon of milk–$12.00/$3.75
Loaf of bread (20oz)–$1.25/$2.50
One dozen eggs–$4.00/$3.19

Haitian children are languishing in camps or working in menial jobs because thousands of schools in and around Port-au-Prince, the devastated capital, could remain closed for months or never reopen. Markeny Saint Valin, 10, with his grandmother, Luciene St. Louis, washing clothes in Port-au-Prince.

News Article: Among the Ruins, Education Is Also Lost

Photo: Lynsey Addaro for The New York Times

Our program management team is currently on the ground in Haiti. It includes two regional program managers. One with considerable post-disaster experience and the other a locally licensed architect. Rounding out the team is a Haitian-American architect and over time they will be joined by two to three design fellows.

The team is meeting up with our on the ground partners and setting up our long term offices. If you are interested in meeting with the team, please contact us at our headquarters in San Francisco and ask for Frederika Zipp.

Additionally we are working with Appropriate Infrastructure Development Group on increasing structural engineering assessments (and training) and mason training programs for reconstruction. In early March we should have french and creole versions of our Rebuilding 101 manual and earthquake resistant housing guides in the field.

It only took 20 seconds to destroy so many bright hopes and dreams in Haiti. The PechaKucha network is joining with Architecture for Humanity to help rebuild Haiti 20 seconds at a time.

On 20th February for Global Pecha Kucha Day for Haiti took place. 20 seconds x 20 images in 130 cities with more than 1500 presentation. All to raise funds for rebuilding Haiti. This represented the worlds' largest distributed conference - no flights, no hotels, no massive carbon footprint - locals standing up together for a global cause.

Total amount raised will be known by the end of the week.

What is Pecha Kucha?

[Updated: Feb. 18] For those not used to working in disasters the first week is chaotic, filled with stories of heroism and despair. The first responders are not the NGO's or medical personal but the families of those who are injured or lost their lives. It is an overwhelming situation to be in. It is also not the time for architects to show up thinking they can rebuild. People are trying to find their loved ones not think about what their lives will look like in 5, 10 or 15 years.

Trying to keep perspective is extremely hard. We've personally lost colleagues, friends and extremely valuable people in the last few days. On Thursday, one phone call ended with 'they are all gone.' For those of us who are part of the reconstruction effort, we need to think about immediate needs for shelter while planning for the next three to five years of rebuilding.

To fully enact our reconstruction plan in Haiti we encourage you to fund raise with us; while many donors gave to us online, you can also organize your own 'lemonade stand' on our behalf. Here are a few of the inspiring ones we know about. We are immensely grateful for everyone who steps up to make good design available to the Haitian community.

Text to Help - via Causecast
Just text AFHBUILD to 85944 and a $10 donation to Architecture for Humanity's Haiti Earthquake Reconstruction will be added to your cellphone bill.

Pecha Kucha 20x20
It only took 20 seconds to destroy so many bright hopes and dreams in Haiti. The 280 city PechaKucha network is joining with Architecture for Humanity to help rebuild Haiti 20 seconds at a time.

For us, nothing is more vital than to build temporary, transitional and permanent schools. Not only bringing a sense of normalcy to the lives of those affect by the recent earthquake but to build anchors of recovery in communities have been torn apart. Thanks to the support of Ben Stiller, Shakira, Howard Buffett, Trevor Neilson and others we can begin to build hope for the future leaders of Haiti.

Destruction of schools in Haiti quake crushes hopes of a better future for many
By William Booth and Scott Wilson

Washington Post Staff Writers | Saturday, January 23, 2010; A01

PORT-AU-PRINCE, HAITI -- Of the many things taken from this city by the earthquake, few are as threatening to Haiti's future as the near destruction of a school system viewed across society here as the only path to a better life.

After the devastating earthquake that hit Haiti, Ben Stiller and the Stillerstrong project is now changing its efforts to the Haitian School Initiative, in collaboration with Architecture for Humanity. We will develop and build a series of temporary and transitional schools where they are needed most. We need get children back in school by building strong, safe and sustainable facilities that protect them in the months and years it will take to rebuild their country.

The future of Haiti has never seemed so bleak. Large-scale reconstruction is not yet a priority, but the country will be rebuilt. BNN investigates how other nations have recovered from this catastrophe and what's involved. BNN speaks to Kate Stohr, managing director and co-founder, Architecture for Humanity.

http://watch.bnn.ca/#clip258406

Barefoot Foundation will build new school for displaced children

Prior to her performance on the Hope for Haiti Telethon, Shakira announced today an initiative to build a new school in Haiti through her Barefoot Foundation. The Foundation will work in partnership with Architecture for Humanity to build the school and NGO partners to provide education, school feeding, clean water and sanitation services. Foundation board member Howard Buffett, World Food Program Ambassador Against Hunger and chairman of the Howard G. Buffett Foundation, will fund the school feeding component of the initiative and other related services.

To fully enact our seven point reconstruction plan in Haiti we need to raise approx. $100K - Over the past week we've raised close to $50K, mainly from $25, $50 and $100 online donations. A number of individuals and groups have independently set up fund raisers and auctions to help us reach our goal. Below are the ones we know about. We are immensely grateful for taking the initiative.

Designers Unite for Haiti - Bureau of Friends Ebay Sale
The Bureau of Friends (we are a member) are donating one off products for sale on eBay. Check it out

Zoe Saldana
Zoe Saldana, the actress of Avatar, Star Trek and Pirates of the Caribbean kindly offered to do a fashion week eBay auction to help raise funds towards our Haiti reconstruction work. Check it out

Azure Magazine

A number of you have been asking about the nature of our response. While it is still early, taking lessons from the work in Bam, after the Tsunami and on the Gulf Coast, here is our current plan.

1) Fundraise We're going to start by fundraising. We do need donations to get rolling.

2) Create a central base Send a team down to identify a site/partner(s) to house a recovery center likely in Port-au-Prince.

3) Provide technical assistance Use a small full-time team to direct volunteer efforts in damage assessments, safety training and basic building training. (first 6 months- 1 year)

4) Design Services Provide sustained, long-term design services from the recovery center to local groups, NGO's and local officials to assist and support the rebuilding process (6 months- 3 years)

On Jan. 12th a powerful 7.0 quake hit the impoverished nation of Haiti. This was followed more than 30+ strong aftershocks. There has been widespread major damage and a loss of life estimated to be between 45,000 to 50,000 (source: Red Cross). There are projections of 2-3M without shelter. Since then we have launched an appeal to focus on the long term reconstruction effort. In the first four days we've raised over $45,000 in individual giving and have pledges from a number of companies.

If you care about building Haiti back better, donate today.