Disaster Archive

  • National Organization of Minority Architects (NOMA) attends Major Summit for Haiti in San Juan, Puerto Rico

    National Organization of Minority Architects (NOMA) attends Major Summit for Haiti in San Juan, Puerto Rico

    Posted on May 5, 2010 | No Comments

    by Renee Kemp-Rotan

    April 14-19, 2010, The American Institute of Architects/Puerto Rico (AIA/PR) organized a Haiti Invitational Summit to discuss Haiti’s post-earthquake reconstruction. The National Organization of Minority Architects (NOMA) sent planning expert, Renee Kemp-Rotan, to this high-level conference on Haitian Reconstruction and Master Planning in San Juan.

    Host Chapter, AIA Puerto Rico, sponsored workshops with four Haitian architects/government officials, who provided an assessment of their country’s current condition and shared their insight into the planning, design and reconstruction for Haiti’s future.

    

    Presentations were made by AIA/PR Fellows, two Dominican Republic architects, an AIA US Virgin Island representative along with the AIA Caribbean Regional Director. Florida’s Disaster Assistance Coordinator participated along with AIA National Board Member Erica Rioux Gees, disaster expert in developing countries, serving as tri-lingual conference interpreter. (French, Spanish, English) George Miller, AIA President represented US interest in assisting Haiti with future built-environment issues.

    Over the course of four days, the following Summit goals were realized:

    1) Obtained highly detailed overview of Haiti’s exiting built environment, infrastructure and Haiti’s vision for its future development through the eyes of Haitian design professionals.

    2) Exchanged ideas and gained cultural sensitivity.

    3) Identified strategic areas or issues where AIA, and other groups, such as NOMA, can support Haiti’s design community.

    4) Established possible guidelines for planning and design assistance efforts at local, regional and national level on both urban and architectonic scales.

    The Haiti Summit began with Haitian Architects presenting existing conditions and planning efforts within their specific areas expertise (Architect Leslie Voltaire, Envoy to UN Haiti’s Permanent Mission, Arch. Paul Emile Simon, President of Haiti’s Architecture Society and Ex-Director for Development for Tourism Ministry, Arch. Francois Guignard, Urban Planner, and Arch. Olsen Jean Julien, Ex-Minister of Culture.)

    AIA invitees followed with brief presentations on experiences related to disaster relief, working in developing countries and Omar Rancier, Dean of the School of Architecture for Santo Domingo’s National University closed sharing conclusions and lessons learned from a similar panel recently held at the Dominican Republic.

    The final day 30 invitees were divided into four groups of eight by area of interest and expertise: Housing, Urban Design, Infrastructure, and Historic Conservation. Each group was led by a Haitian architect, an AIA PR Fellow, and an AIA National representative along with the other participants. We envisioned an idea charrette rather than a design charrette where each group discussed general issues and strategies as well as those specific to their field.  After lunch, groups reconvened independently to draft conclusions specific to their topic, which was later presented to all participants followed by a Q& A session.

    As left with an increased understanding of the Earthquake consequences and a more profound sense of direction for future short, mid and long term design, planning and reconstruction initiatives for Haiti. Here, NOMA was given an opportunity to focus on its continued involvement in Haiti ‘s reconstruction at local, regional and national level. Printed proceedings are forthcoming.

    The first quarter of 2010 NOMA via partnerships with AIA, Community Housing Foundation and Architects for Humanity raised more than $10,000 for the purchase of tents for Haiti.

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  • Crossing Cultures in the Face of Disaster

    Crossing Cultures in the Face of Disaster

    Posted on May 4, 2010 | 1 Comment

    by Bettina Byrd-Giles

    Intercultural consultants[1] often get calls from organizations who have invested a number of dollars and human resources in failed projects that cross cultural lines.  The investor is a benevolent organization that has been planning for natural disasters and extenuating human circumstances.  An international disaster is a chance to share its expertise and generosity with the world.  Its intentions are good, but the organization usually doesn’t share the blame for the failure of the project.  The blame is often placed upon the target country or cultural group for not having the ability to manage the donated resources.  This happens in the for-profit and not-for-profit worlds.  This article is an attempt to advise organizations on preparing for successful ventures across cultural and national lines.

    In the for-profit world, organizations or individuals are looking to do business with another culture for a fee.  A disaster gives them the opportunity to provide a product, service or idea that would transform the lives of the target culture.  From their view, the venture is mutually beneficial.  Somehow when negotiations to sell this product have gone awry, they can’t figure out what went wrong or blame the target culture.  The target culture is labeled as uneducated, unsophisticated or too greedy to understand the benefits of the product or service in question.

    This is sometimes true in a nonprofit situation as well.  Although there isn’t a profit motive, non-profits encounter similar scenarios.  They gather items and basic necessities en masse that are ready and waiting to be delivered to the target culture.  Frequently, they are a collective of organizations founded and funded by benevolent individuals.  The leaders of these organizations build PR campaigns around sharing their resources.  Though these non profits are not profit driven, they are often run on a corporate model.  Success is determined by achieving certain goals derived by metrics.  They have reports to file and audits that determine how their funds were used.  There is a pressure to be successful and deliver promises.  If for some reason the donated goods or funds are not utilized properly from the perspective of the donors, the blame is often shifted to recipients.  The target culture is often portrayed as corrupt, inhumane or unintelligent.

    Though this RARELY happens, if intercultural consultants were included in the planning process, perhaps money and time would not be wasted.  Both the donors and target culture could reduce the chances of a public relations nightmare.  Part of the strategic planning process would not only include inventory and logistics but a plan to navigate cultural differences.  Logistics usually includes an orientation to the target country such as State Department briefings, hiring translators, learning about foods and brief information about the people.  Sometimes limited information about culture is included.  However, navigating culture and creating the right climate to insure the desired results is often missing.

    For the purpose of this article, culture is defined as a group of interacting people who have “agreed” upon a certain set of rules, concepts or beliefs to live by.  Culture is very subjective.  It is nearly impossible for outsiders seeking to offer assistance to learn everything they need to know about a culture.  Even individuals who have lived among a culture for years learn new things.  However, by understanding some basic value structures– one’s own culture and the culture one is trying to address– can be helpful.  Also relying on members of the target culture to help one navigate the culture is absolutely imperative. The following template includes general suggestions for crossing cultures.

    1. Hire an intercultural consultant. Interculturalists can help develop strategies for crossing cultural boundaries.  They are experts in facilitating interaction across cultures and providing general information that can anticipate potential clashes.
    2. Engage team in cultural training.  If there is time, send the team through intercultural training and cultural adaptation training.  This type of training helps participants understand norms, values and communication styles across cultures.  It also helps simulate a totally new cultural context.  This is especially if there is going to be a lengthy stay.  Though not all cultural blunders can be anticipated, some cross-cultural experiences are universal.
    3. Orient team to the target culture through research.  Learn as much about the target culture as possible through reading, documentaries and talking to cultural informants–members of the culture.  Read materials by experts the target culture.  Narratives and first-hand accounts by members of the culture are also helpful.  
    4. Seek out members of the target culture.  Members of the culture can give you first hand experiences and information about being a member of the culture.  In the book, Three Cups of Tea, a mountaineer who vows to build a school in a volatile area on the borders of Afghanistan and Pakistan, allows a local Pakistani to negotiate the building materials, hire the staff, etc.   Make sure you listen to them once you seek their advice and guidance. Try to get as comprehensive a view as possible by finding individuals from different regions and subgroups within the target culture.
    5. Appreciate cultural differences without stereotyping.  Though cultural information is important and usually accurate, it may not apply to everyone that is a member of the culture.  Listen to what people say about their culture and consider diverse opinions.
    6. Build Relationships.  Though your organization has a service to offer, members of the target culture need to know that you have a genuine interest in them.  In addition to impressive credentials, many cultures are concerned with the type of people with whom they are working.  Who you are and your intentions have to be evaluated.  This may take more time than Western sensibilities allow. Perhaps there is an association with a similar mission with whom you can collaborate and begin to build a relationship.  Offer to help and listen to what they believe their needs are.

    Bettina Byrd-Giles is an intercultural consultant with the Byrd’s Nest, LLC http://thebyrdsnestllc.com.

    [1] Intercultural consultants are individuals who facilitate interactions across cultures.

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  • The Big Give for Haiti – Designers prove It’s Not Enough to Say ‘Haiti I’m Sorry”

    The Big Give for Haiti – Designers prove It’s Not Enough to Say ‘Haiti I’m Sorry”

    Posted on April 11, 2010 | 1 Comment

    by Lesley-Ann Noel

    Above: Dale Ramirez of Drink Wine Bar and Lesley-Ann Noel of Chic Shak Lifestyle open one of the prizes donated to the raffle.

    In Trinidad in the early 90s there was a popular calypso by David Rudder, called ‘Haiti I’m Sorry’. This tune became an anthem during that decade and was played every time Trinidadians wanted tosympathise with their fellow Caribbean people in Haiti. On January13th 2010, the day after the tragic earthquake in Haiti, a few Trinidadian designers decided that it was no longer enough to sing “Haiti I’m Sorry”. They had to do something.

    Model Leah Marie Guevara selling donated handicrafts at The Big Give for Haiti.

    On the 13th, Claudia Pegus, a well known fashion designer in Trinidad, Lesley-Ann Noel, lecturer in design at the University of the WestIndies and boutique owner, and Rubadiri Victor – multi-media artistand activist and Interim President of the Artist Coalition of Trinidad and Tobago, joined heads to see how as designers they could use their influence to help the fundraising efforts in Haiti and encourage their clients, other designers and the general public to give to the cause.They worked quickly within their network and were able to hold a meeting with ten designers 2 days after the earthquake. Each designer had to show commitment to the effort by paying TT$100 (US $16)  to attend the meeting. They raised TT$1,400 (US $220) on the first night and the monies were donated to a Trinidadian NGO ‘Is There Not a Cause’ that had an ongoing project in Haiti. The organizing committee grew to include Leah Marie Guevara, a fashion model and Dale Ramirez, owner of a popular wine bar.


    A closeup of one of ITNAC’s Haiti themed T-shirts designed by Anton Harris
    Claudia had the idea of holding a street fair, and the team of 5 aggressively worked the local design fraternity to get donations of high end clothing and accessories, costumes in Carnival bands, photo shoots, manicure and pedicure vouchers, hotel accommodation and so many other items to be sold, auctioned or raffled at this fair, which they decided to call “The Big Give for Haiti Street Fair”. The designers were able to influence the Mayor of Port of Spain and the Police Commissioner to grant a license close off a popular junction for the fair with the support of architect Sean Leonard who donated his time and mapped out the area and even made traffic flow recommendations to help the police make a decision.

    A shopper stops to look at one of ITNAC’s (Is There not a Cause) Haiti themed T-shirts

    The big day of The Big Give started early for the designers with them putting up tents, putting out tables and working really hard to make the event a success. Despite the blazing hot sun and competition from Carnival events, the public came out in their numbers to support the first street fair of this kind in Port of Spain. The event was considered a success and lots of fun for the people who came out. At the end of the day “The Big Give for Haiti” was able to raise tubs of non-perishable food, clothing and over $44,000 (US $6927)  cash, $38,000 of which was donated to the Trinidad & Tobago Red Cross and the rest went to “Is There Not a Cause” to support the efforts of both NGOs in Haiti. The designers have resolved that they are not done yet. They plan to host another fundraiser for Haiti in another location in Trinidad & Tobago, and plan to collaborate on charitable events for other causes as well in the future.

    _________

    Lesley-Ann Noel is a product designer and Design lecturer at the University of the West Indies, St. Augustine Campus in Trinidad and Tobago. She is also the owner of Chic Shak Lifestyle, an ethnic gift shop in Port of Spain, with a global mission that buys and sells products from small producers all around the world. As part of  a regional design team sponsored by the Caribbean Export Development Agency,  Ms. Noel will be exhibit furniture and accessories at ICFF
    2010. She can be contacted at     lesleyannnoel@gmail.com

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  • Call to Action: Students respond Graphically to the Haiti Earthquake

    Call to Action: Students respond Graphically to the Haiti Earthquake

    Posted on April 11, 2010 | 3 Comments

    by Steve Jones

    We were all shocked and saddened to bear witness to the devastating earthquake that rocked Haiti January 12, 2010. After seeing the aftermath, I knew, as a designer and instructor, I had to respond.

    I always regretted not doing a project with my students in response to the U.S. invasion in Iraq. I knew after the Haiti quake, I couldn’t stand by on the sidelines—the event demanded a graphic response. Upon returning from my Winter Break, I assigned the students in my Typography class (San Francisco State University), the task of designing a response to illustrate the aftermath of the earthquake.

    The students were directed to create a typographic response to the devastation. I gave the students as their only source material, the word “Haiti.” They were instructed that they could reinterpret the word and generate it any way in which they saw fit. The one parameter, was that their response had to be a typographic metaphor (abstraction) to the event(s), or an event that had taken place. The typographic response could focus on the earthquake itself, a story of survival, a person/people, news story, etc. The project had a quick turnaround—students began by researching stories via the web (YouTube, CNN, blogs, etc.), newspapers, magazines – any relevant source material. They were encouraged to consider Haiti’s history, politics, religion, economics, geography, nature, etc., as part of their outcome. I advised them to explore concepts of time and place (hours, tent cities, etc)—to open their mind, to think metaphorically and not be afraid to think outside the box.

    The final outcome was a 30”x40” poster. B/W plus one color. No imagery. I was truly amazed by the outcomes. Here are four I thought were representative of the work.

    Poster 1: Lisa Durante. Lisa tapped into a very visceral theme – the sheer numbers of the dead. Lisa created a response that accounted for the 250,000 dead bodies, each one represented by the word “Haiti.” Throughout the despair and death, the word Haiti is still defiant, unyielding, able to be still be seen and acknowledged.

    Poster 2: Frank Ali. Frank’s message is intentionally muddled. The word “HAITI” takes a while to be seen; it’s meant to confuse the eye, make the viewer actually lost in the rubble. Frank drew inspiration from stories of survivors being rescued from the rubble of buildings after days on end of no hope in sight. He wanted to show a glimpse of that hope through the hectic mess. Trapped under all the black dust and rubble, one can still see the sky however. One can still see that pleasant blue color, that gives one hope when you have none.

    Poster 3: Carlos Rubio. Carlos’ poster was simple in its powerful simplicity. Using the letters that spell Haiti, Carlos in one, clear execution shows two “figures” in embrace that illustrates the fear, support, and hope experienced being caught under the rubble of a collapsed building.

    ______

    Steve Jones is a graphic designer. Mr. Jones received his BFA in Graphic Design from The California College of the Arts (CCA, formerly CCAC) and his MFA in Graphic Design, with honors, from the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD). Steve is an award winning graphic designer and exhibiting artist. His approach to graphic design combines the personal with the formal and functional. His interests focus on Black icons and their representation in mass media and popular culture, identity politics and public art. He is the Principal and Creative Director of plantain: a design studio, in Oakland, CA. He is the founder of the NEA (Negro Emancipation Association), a Bay Area design collaborative. He has taught at RISD, CCA, and SF State University (where he is an Assistant Professor and Graduate Program Coordinator in the Design and Industry Department). He is a member of the Alameda County Public Arts Advisory Committee. Jones can be reached at plantain studio: steve@plantainstudio.com, and his website: http://www.plantainstudio.com

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  • Black Architects Burden: Haiti sandwiched between an American hurricane and a Chilean earthquake

    Black Architects Burden: Haiti sandwiched between an American hurricane and a Chilean earthquake

    Posted on April 11, 2010 | 1 Comment

    By Jack Travis

    New Orleans 08/29 2005 Monday

    Haiti 01/12 2010 Tuesday

    Chile 02/27 2010 Saturday

    “…Now that you’ve realized the prides arrived We got to pump the stuff to make us tough from the heart It’s a start, a work of art To revolutionize make a change nothin’s strange People, people we are the same No we’re not the same Cause we don’t know the game What we need is awareness, we can’t get careless You say what is this? My beloved lets get down to business Mental self defensive fitness (Yo) bum rush the show You gotta go for what you know Make everybody see, in order to fight the powers that be Lemme hear you say… Fight the Power”  -Public Enemy Lyrics from “Fight To Power”

    “…As I thought about tonight, and the honor and responsibility associated with being your speaker I struggled with the need to be relevant because of the profound regard I have for your profession. I decided there were three critical issues, that have very synergistic relationship to each other;

    - Your role in the development and evolution of public policy

    - And the need for a Black Aesthetic

    - How do you get paid?

    Over 2000 years ago Aristotle told us the “CITY IS THE SOUL OF A PEOPLE WRITTEN LARGE”

    Now you may be sitting here wondering, “What this has to do with You” My answer is everything. Cities are not accidents they are conscious creations of humankind.

    Because if the above mentioned is the case, who then is the priest that would minister to this soul? The answer is the architect. The history of architecture is the record of humankind’s march to civilization…”

    It was with great passion and a strive towards assistance to those truly in need that I felt most of the black architects I know and corresponded with in the wake of the earthquake that shook Haiti in the morning hours and afterwards on January 20th this year, 2010. Many of the e-mail messages across the web spoke to the need for the black architects to respond in some unified and dignified effort.

    I immediately began to think of New Orleans and how hurricane Katrina hit that city on the morning of August 29, 2005. There was a similar call to action via the web for “us” to unite in dignity and aid with little or no discussion of benefit, profit or personal gain. But what happened in New Orleans It is probably a very sobering study that we should revisit so that we will have a better understanding of what it will take to achieve a strong effort in the wake of the Haiti challenge.

    Sadly, I must admit, these are questions that I have pondered over and over and the answers of past achievement and potential on the horizon for our “ableness” of cause as a black coalition are bleak ones at best.

    Efforts during catastrophic situations involving loss of lives and property on a scale such as a hurricane or earthquake require those who truly wish to make a difference possess the resources, the power of utility, equipment, empowerment and experience with dealing in similar situations. Part of that experience requires that several contractors or agents have pooled resources or exist on “no bid” contract lists due to proven track records of performance and are thus easily and quickly mobilized.

    In all of the above categories, the existing and proven track records for work of this nature and under these circumstances seem slight if not altogether non-existent for the “black architect” when we present ourselves as such or as part of a group, as an association or consortium of such.

    Of the black architects and firms in the US, precious few got work in New Orleans and even fewer got work in the rest of the Gulf region. None of those getting work (as far as I can ascertain) got work as a part of a black professional group or consortium reaching out in tandem to the powers that be.

    .

    The National Organization of Minority Architects (NOMA) – overwhelmingly a black organization comprising largely both U.S. and Caribbean members- is arguably the largest and most prestigious group of black environmental design professionals worldwide. In 2007, its president, James R. Washington, Jr. along with his partner Lonnie Hewitt, temporarily lost their office which is located in downtown New Orleans. Despite direct involvement and affect due to the aftermath of hurricane Katrina, Even with a “native son” at the helm, NOMA found itself ultimately left out of any significant role in the rebuilding plans for that city. During the first six to twelve months , Mr. Washington,  Mr. Hewitt and I made substantial attempts to connect our organization with several groups already mobilized and connected to bureaucratic decision makers such as Andres Duany and the American Institute of Architects (AIA -both National and Local Chapters).

    The situation seemed to call for and priority was given to those organizations well founded, with the resources, personnel, experience and, already well connected to the bureaucrats, many with “No Bid” contract status. Truth be told – we were not able to “sit at the table” so to speak because we seemed not to understand the kind of preparation and initial resources necessary in order “to play the game”.

    On the horizon of this situation in Haiti, I am asking real questions about preparation and expectation for the involvement of black architects in any significant way – a catastrophe several times that of New Orleans. Therefore, I am presenting the following three (3) notions of “Foundation, Polemics and Praxis”, with ten (10) points of engagement for substantial involvement in the rebuilding of Haiti. I have also added the words of Michael Jones, The noted Black Entrepreneur from his “Keynote” speech at the 2009 NOMA Conference in St. Louis, Mo. As well as my own comments from a commentary sent out earlier this year on this subject. This essay will be in three parts. The second part is in the next installment.

    FOUNDATION

    Our Role

    “…Think about this.

    You see, if a space traveler landed on earth from another universe and there were current signs of human life, what would be the basis for their judgments of the species that lived here?

    Certainly one criteria would be the buildings we left behind. What they looked like, how the space was organized, what materials were used, how they related to their physical environment and each other.

    They would tell our space traveler everything important about how we lived, how we worked and worshiped, how we played and what were our highest values. They would speak to what is or was the Soul of these People.

    John Ruskin, the 19th century art critic, noted, “Taste is the only morality….tell me what you like and I’ll tell you who you are.”

    How do societies define taste in the built environment? It’s defined by the work of architects.

    So when the architect abandons the public square, when you don’t fight for zoning, land use and design standards that are inspirational and speak to the angels of our better nature, then you have abandoned your calling and left our march to a higher better place and to the vagaries of chance…”

    Step One:

    1. Organize those firms realistically capable of seeking work
    2. Set up a committee to present NOMA to those Government Organizations (GOs) and Non-Government Organizations (NGOs) slated to coordinate effort
    3. Research and align with as many of the individuals and or agencies currently being considered for work
    4. Contact the reported “Local 48 Architects who reportedly met immediately after the earthquake to coordinate agendas and plans of action.

    Step Two:

    1.   ORGANIZE INTERNAL RESOURCES/FIRMS

    - Format a uniform portfolio for firms to submit work images and credentials

    - Aggressively get the firms to register on site

    - Send out list of architects to the media

    2.   MAKE STATEMENTS OF POSITION + STANCE

    - Media coverage to be periodic and consistent

    - Seek, record +document ALL coverage + interviews

    - Set-up a formidable website link to NOMA/HAITI

    3.   APPOINT SPOKESPERSONS IN A NUMBER OF CATEGORIES

    - To meet with Haitian Architects here in U.S.

    - Liaison to work with the “Local 48” in the country

    - Representative to plan trips to the country

    - Fundraisers

    - Competition coordinator

    4.   MEDIA CONTACTS + LIASONS W/ VIPS

    - U. S. Government Officials

    - Haitian Government Officials

    - AIA National President

    - AIA past National Presidents – Purnell and ALL Others

    - President Clinton + President Carter, Wycliffe Jean + ALL Other celebrities and

    High Profile citizens

    - Architects: Ban, Holl, Adjaye, Mayne, Norten, Addo, Snohetta, Rural Studio + ALL

    Others – Get them all to join NOMA for at least one year

    5.   ACTIVITIES

    - Fundraiser w/ AIA or VIP Black Persons and/or organizations of Note

    - Seek donations from NOMA Members and document commitment to the cause in terms of dollars

    - Competitions + Exhibitions

    - Align with more formidable institutions

    6.  CHARRETTE

    - The NOMA Student Competition slated for Boston in October to become a competition with students working with professional firm members with the STAR Architects in participation at all levels and not just as jurors.

    - VIP Attendance: The past AIA Presidents and one big dignitary from U.S. + Haiti should be in attendance (Two day event (Wednesday + Thursday)

    7. FUNDS + DONATIONS

    -   Donations Drive + Fundraisers – for members to travel + access situations firsthand as well as to meet with dignitaries at crucial events and times

    -   Monthly spot in Architectural Record Magazine, at the AIA Convention in one of the “General Sessions” (morning)

    This commentary by Jack Travis will continue in the next edition.

    __________

    Jack Travis, FAIA NOMAC, is a New York based black Architect and Cultural Design Consultant. He is an Adjunct Professor at Pratt Institute, Department of Interior Design, Brooklyn NY Adjunct CCE Professor

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  • Prepared for Haiti:

    Prepared for Haiti:

    Posted on April 10, 2010 | No Comments

    What help should designers offer in a catastrophe, both today and in the future?

    by Tony Whitfield

    This article first published in DesignObserver.com, and BDNN would like to thank them for use on our website.

    I had been told about poverty in Haiti, but it was only in a caravan of vehicles crawling along a dusty two-lane road to the Toussaint Louverture International Airport, on my way back to the States, that I realized I was in a ring of hell. Mountains of garbage lined the road for what seemed like miles. Climbing, crawling children, animals, adults young and old dug through the mounds for food, clothing, anything that might be of use. It was an ordinary fall day with clear skies and temperatures in the 90s. The stench was unbelievable.

    This was the culmination of a trip for which I had not been prepared. It had been scheduled in the late summer of 2001, but between the planning stages and departure time, 9/11 had changed the world, and simply being in Haiti took on new meaning. For one thing, Haiti felt safer than New York; it was an unlikely target for terrorists looking to cripple the West. On the other hand, I had gone there to discuss a potential project with Aid to Artisans that involved collaborations with my Parsons students and traditional craftspeople in the development of designs for U.S. markets, work that now seemed alternately critical and irrelevant. None of the delays or corruption I saw in crossing the border from the Dominican Republic into Haiti suggested the possibility that it might take more than two days just to fly out. A new wave of demonstrations against Aristide would begin the next morning, filling the streets with burning tires, while every U.S. airport would be shut down after a Dominican Republic–bound aircraft mysteriously crashed after takeoff in Queens, New York.

    The other thing I hadn’t anticipated was how quickly I would fall in love with Haiti. Everywhere I looked there was something to learn, something about art, something about a culture that felt like an answer to a question I couldn’t yet articulate. I have since learned that adherents to Vodou believe that you are singled out for care-taking by an orisha, or god. By all indications, my orisha was Bawon Samedi, the guardian of the dead. I frequently ran across him on buses, fences, buildings and trucks. I was even invited to be a guest of honor at a ceremony dedicated to him. Bawon Samedi wears dark glasses, smokes and does lewd dances. Like the rest of his pantheon, he is vibrant, rough, immediate and exciting. I knew I wanted to come back.

    Now, in a small town in Andalusia, Spain, where I’m on sabbatical, little has prepared me for the recognition that a place that held so much inspiration, cultural wealth, human potential, resilience and faith could be leveled before our eyes in a single day. These are horrifying times. We know not only our personal disasters but also those of the world over. We live with them in a way no one has before. We believe there is something we can and should do. They make demands of us that become part of the fabric of our dreams and shape our understanding of our value and effectiveness as professionals and human beings.

    As a designer, I know there are tools we use daily that could be deployed in response to situations like this. I am also wise enough to recognize the conceit in thinking that I would have the right skills and resources to address these issues effectively. Responding to disaster was not what I imagined or embraced as my life’s work, and this is not the time to entertain dabblers.

    Now, at least daily, we witness situations that would have been unimaginable in the recent past. The image of Presidents Obama, Bush and Clinton joining forces to benefit Haiti is filled with symbolism and potential that leave us incredulous but hopeful. Can the concentration of power, knowledge, faults and strengths represented by these men really get this job done? Is the underlying impetus for their response a fear of what may happen if this hemisphere’s poorest, least-educated and most neglected people are set adrift?

    The inclination in the face of disaster is to focus one’s attention on immediate needs. For those who have limited ability to deliver help where it is needed, meaning most of us, the wisest thing to do is send money. Find the organizations dealing with issues that are close to your heart and send as much money to them as often as you can. In a world of text-messaged contributions, Twittering watchdogs and Facebook friends, there are many ways to respond, though we must be aware that our sense of power in embracing these media will diminish when our goods and services sit on runways in real time, real space and sweltering heat. We have seen how system failure impedes the delivery of aid. It seems that part of the business of disaster relief has become identifying whom to blame. Inevitably, new and improved procedures will be put in place, but will that solve the problems of the next unforeseen circumstance?

    Each time we confront a situation like the crisis in Haiti, I, an educator, become more certain that we must train designers to step up to these challenges. We need to be a field of compassionate researchers, committed to processes that enrich our understanding of the interrelatedness of our disciplines and other professions, trades and industries. While the notion of the doctor/designer, the sociologist/architect, the urbanist/fashion designer are all exciting to me, I recognize that viable, ongoing partnerships across disciplines and communities are essential to enriching long-term responses to future disasters.

    After reading four days of exchanges between architects of African descent from throughout the diaspora, who are engaged in crafting a substantive response from NOMA (the National Organization of Minority Architects), I understand that I am watching a new generation of activist professionals working to reach consensus in ways that have stymied their predecessors. It seems very possible that these overlapping groups of practitioners, who have grown familiar with one another’s work in a virtual world, will find such agreement.

    Looking at Haitians remove rubble, bury bodies, tend to the injured, I am also struck by the importance of understanding the physical nature of this ordeal and the reality of physical labor for most of the world. The hands, the work, the care, the craft, the culture they represent and keep alive are all connected. There will be new strategies, new technologies, new equipment, new corporate titans, new cultural influences brought to Haiti’s rebuilding efforts. Through that process, the primacy of the traditions, the skills and the spirit of Haitians must be maintained. I worry that the economics of the efforts ahead will result in a new tourist playground that obscures the persistence of old problems for the Haitian people. Booming tourist industries, as the Dominican Republic demonstrates, do not necessarily mean significant improvements in living standards for an area’s residents.

    Over the last decade, one thing has become clear: human beings have played a role in augmenting the catastrophes triggered by nature. Katrina is now deemed a man-made disaster. The debris that acted as battering rams in the South Asian tsunami came from the developed world’s playgrounds. Racism and class stratification contribute to the mounting death tolls from landslides in Brazil’s favelas. And now a lack of consistent building standards combined with environmental malpractice and the systemic role that poverty plays have helped reduce Haiti to dust.

    Is this a time when the prosperous nations of the world should be focusing on the contributions design and designers can make not only to our survival and recovery in a disaster but also to our ability to predict and prepare for such eventualities? To what extent should interdisciplinary research and development activities in which design plays a central role receive more profound, long-range support from foundations and government agencies? To what extent are a design business’s nonprofit activities important for its sustained relevance and viability? To what extent should advanced education for designers who are interested in addressing these issues be encouraged through scholarships and fellowships? To what extent is this activity supportable by incubators that focus on systems and strategies as well as products? To what extent should culturally specific practices become integral to the education process of all designers to prepare them to take part in development efforts around the globe? At what point does this discussion become unavoidable for any designer? Are these questions critical if we are to become prepared for the next calamity? I think so.

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    Tony Whitfield is an award-winning furniture designer who has frequently written about design, art and new media, held editorial positions, curated exhibitions and been employed in key roles at some of New York’s most influential artists organizations including Printed Matter, Just Above Midtown/the Corporation for Art and Television and Lower Manhattan Cultural Council. Other art and design work of his has been exhibited at Leslie Lohman Gallery, Mary Delahoyd Gallery, Dieu Donne Papermill, The Verona Furniture Fair, SaloneSatellite of Milan’s Salone del Mobile and New York’s International Contemporary Furniture Fair. In addition, for six years, Whitfield was the senior policy analyst for cultural affairs in the office of the Manhattan Borough President. Currently, an associate professor at Parsons the New School for Design on sabbatical, he will return to Parsons in July 2010 as the associate dean for civic engagement. For ten years he held the position of chair of the product design department at that institution. His photographs have been included in group exhibitions in the New York area and are the subject of a one-person exhibition at the Instituto Cultural Peruano Norteamericano in Lima, Peru, and the Emily Tarrant Gallery at the Flynn Center in Burlington, Vermont.

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