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

Starting today we will be collecting funds on behalf of the Colegio de Arquitectos to support Chilean professionals endeavors after the 8.8 earthquake.

Formal structural assessment training for volunteers starts in a few hours and almost 700 architects have volunteered at Plataforma Arquitectura plus an additional 300 directly at the Colegio.

Donate directly to the Chile Earthquake Reconstruction Fund

Image of Iglesia Corazón de María de Linares, photo by Daniela Gajardo

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.

Around 3.30am this morning a 8.8 quake struck off the coast of Chile. We give our heartfelt condolences to those whose lives have been lost and support for the families confronted by the aftermath of this disaster.

It appears the damage is subsequently less than the recent events in Haiti, this maybe due to the countries record of earthquake preparedness, stronger building codes and location/depth of the epicenter. Regardless our thoughts are with those affected and responding to this tragedy.

For all information on building and infrastructure damage please visit Plataformaarquitectura.cl

The 2009 Open Architecture Challenge 'Classroom of the Future' exhibition opened in Prague, February 10th. A host of volunteers, including exhibition coordinator, Sona Huberova organized the exhibit, which will be on display until March 3, 2010 at the Gallery of National Technical Library. Partners include Namaste Nepal and CCEA (Centre for Central European Architecture). The exhibit is sponsored by Prague City Hall and Architecture for Humanity.

The Porch Dog House, Biloxi sponsored by Architecture for Humanity and designed by our pals at Marlon Blackwell Architects, was celebrated as a design award nominee at the 2010 Brit Insurance Design Awards Exhibition Opening . On display at the Design Museum until June 2010, the exhibition features all 91 nominees in 7 categories. Stay posted for the award winner announcement on March 16.

Our new book on the Biloxi Model Homes, 'Rebuilding After Disaster: The Biloxi Model Home Program' documents the rebuilding effort of a coalition of partners in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. The book is dedicated to all the residents of East Biloxi, Mississippi, whose love for the community made this work possible.

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.