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Tech NGOs Working In Haiti
d5w writes "There are a thousand and one NGOs responding in some way to the disaster in Haiti, but the necessary infrastructure is usually overlooked when people give charity donations. In fact, some popular donation sites actively downgrade charities for spending on infrastructure. Here are two organizations responding in Haiti, though, that have a purely tech infrastructure focus: Télécoms Sans Frontières brings mobile telecom rigs and satellite phones to disaster sites, making sure that responders on the ground can communicate with each other and that individuals can contact families abroad; here's an eWeek story about TSF. MapAction sends experienced GIS people and GPS equipment to provide up-to-date mapping, which is important when the landscape has just changed drastically. Any others?"
Non-Governmental Organization. Special tax status and all that apply.
My work here is dung.
Seriously, the Haitians _HATE_ the French. It could be the years of occupation and slavery, it could be the recent Embargo that France recommended the UN hold against Haiti, it could the $21 Billion that they demanded of Haiti in order to recognize them as a sovereign nation
Disaster mapping software with support for incoming SMS and email reports:
http://haiti.ushahidi.com/
Right now food, medical care, and water are needed today. So I would throw in, The Red Cross, Catholic Relief Services, AmeriCares, UNICEF, and Doctors Without Boarders.
Here is a list of the most highly rated charities http://www.charitywatch.org/hottopics/Haiti.html
I doubt that you can do wrong with any of them.
Oh and hats of the ARRL. A friend of mine is a HAM radio operator that works with the State of Florida Emergency management services. He was joking that he was offered an "all expenses paid two week vacation in Haiti" yesterday. He can not go because his wife is in a wheelchair and he is her care giver but other members of his group are heading off to provide radio communications for Haiti.
Last I heard the phone cable to Haiti was cut by the quake. Until that is repaired they will have to depend on satellite and radio to contact the outside world.
See my blog http://ilovecookes.blogspot.com/ for light hearted technical information.
Openstreetmap is already showing refugee camps
see
http://www.openstreetmap.org/?lat=18.53817&lon=-72.3414&zoom=16&layers=B000FTF
Yes, and they also hate the Americans. It could be the years of occupation and quasi-slavery (see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_occupation_of_Haiti), it could be the recent embargo that the USA recommended the UN hold against Haiti, or the US unwavering support to Duvalier's "Papa Doc" bloody reign of terror, not to mention the plundering of Haiti by large American banks and corporations.
What's your point? My experience of Haitian people is that, while they are proud of kicking Napoleon's butt while still -- legally -- slaves, they don't "hate" the French, or the Americans. They are just tired of being treated like children or second-class human beings.
Treat an Haitian with respect, and you may find out he does not really 'hate' other people.
The right to offend is far more important than the right not to be offended. (Rowan Atkinson)
While primarily a Buddhist organization, their charity "arm" is secular, and not subject to some of the proselytizing that can go along with other "religious" charities.
I have never heard or seen a Buddhist organization proselytize.
Newbie Buddhists will make asses of themselves many times and telling folks about "their" "insights" but other than that, I don't know of any Buddhist organization that has any type of missionary that actively tries to convert people - there wouldn't be any point anyway.
(Not affiliated with Doctors Without Borders): http://www.ewb-usa.org/
They had people in Haiti when the quake struck, and some were actually missing for a while. They have at least ten ongoing projects there.
"Here's what's happening. You're starting to drive like your Dad..." - Red Green
That's a deeply cynical opinion of the world's humanitarian aid charities. I couldn't disagree more. After the US army has been and gone it will be the likes of Red Cross/Red Crescent, and Medecins Sans Frontieres who will provide ongoing medical support to the recovering community. These charities all declare breakdowns of where the donated money is spent. The initial relief effort has been hampered by a number of factors, but your claim that the Red Cross aren't really there to help people but simply to promote their brand and accumulate wealth is way off the mark. The people of Haiti will be in a much worse position if these groups are not present, and without donations from the public these groups would not exist at all. Maybe you're trying to justify your decision not to donate, and to some extent I'm trying to justify my decision TO donate, but I don't think you're representing these groups fairly with your statements.
Communications is the most important part at this moment, to speed up the access to water and other basic sirvival needs. The more people connected the fastest they can move to the suply places.
More details can be found here. More people are needed to help map Haiti. Help on destroyed building would actually be extremely helpful
http://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/WikiProject_Haiti
And that was before the earthquake.
Yes. An important note is that everything I listed were conditions BEFORE the Earthquake.