Harvard Humanitarian Initiative

Attention: open in a new window. PDFPrintE-mail

H@H

June 11-13, 2012
Professionals and leaders in public health, medicine, law, development, education, humanitarian intervention, and economics are increasingly expected to integrate human rights in policy and programs. This course will equip decision-makers with the skills necessary to apply methods and practices grounded in basic human rights.

 

HHI, UN OCHA Release New Report - Disaster Relief 2.0: The Future of Information Sharing in Humanitarian Emergencies

Issue in Focus

Introducing The Humanitarian Academy at Harvard

HHI is proud to announce the establishment of the Humanitarian Academy at Harvard, a new comprehensive training program for humanitarian workers. The mission of the Humanitarian Academy is to drive positive change in the humanitarian sector through rigorous undergraduate, graduate, and professional education and training in the theory and practice of humanitarian action, and it aims to help thousands around the world who work in war zones, help in the wake of natural disasters, or serve in other relief settings.

A University-wide center that uses research to improve aid response, the Humanitarian Academy will engage Harvard faculty from multiple disciplines, providing an integrated curriculum, and leveraging the latest technologies to make available innovative teaching and professional education opportunities that are grounded in field-based realities. The Academy will include the Lavine Family Humanitarian Studies Initiative, an existing training program for humanitarian professionals that was recently expanded through a gift from Harvard alumni Jonathan and Jeannie Lavine.

There also will be a new, interdisciplinary concentration in humanitarian studies, ethics, and human rights, to be offered at the Harvard School of Public Health beginning in 2013, and hands-on training through internships with relief agencies. It will create a professional pathway for students and existing workers in the humanitarian space, serve as a prototype for other academic centers of excellence in humanitarian education, and encourage an international movement to increase the impact of humanitarian relief efforts through a focus on both professional skill building and rigorous measurement and analysis of what really works in humanitarian aid.

For more information, please see HHI's Humanitarian Academy page or a recent article in the Harvard Gazette on its launch.

Homepage Events

May 14-18 and May 21-25, 2012 |  Advanced Professional Trainings on Humanitarian Assistance and Protection

Professionals in Humanitarian Assistance and Prevention is pleased to announce two upcoming trainings in Bangkok, Thailand. The Core Professional Training on Leadership and Management of Humanitarian Action takes place over five full days and serves as a unique opportunity to further refine the knowledge, competencies, and skills necessary to address contemporary humanitarian challenges faced by managers and team leaders in the context of humanitarian response.

More Events

Home > Programs & Research

Fond Parisien Disaster Recovery Center

Attention: open in a new window. Print

020710_haiti_0914 ji smallFrom January-May 2010, the Harvard Humanitarian Initiative coordinated a large displacement center and medical compound in Fond Parisien on the Haiti side of the border with Dominican Republic. The project was managed in cooperation with several academic centers and the American Refugee Committee. The camp, started by Hilarie Cranmer and Stephanie Rosborough, was created to accommodate thousands of injured Haitian earthquake victims who underwent surgery in nearby hospitals and was located on land donated by the Love A Child Inc. The displacement camp provided a temporary home for over 2,000 injured Haitian survivors and their families, and provided a high level of medical and rehabilitative support.

HHI provided technical and health care services in partnership with the Dominican government and the Pan American Health Organization. The program provided a unique opportunity for many Harvard affiliated physicians, public health workers, and students in health, policy and business who, under the proper supervision, played a role in the humanitarian effort. In addition, HHI faculty and affiliates used this site as a real life example of applying evidence based public health principles, technology and outcomes management to improve the lives of Haitians who have been injured and displaced by the earthquake.

 

HHI's Impact

HHI's immediate response to the Haiti earthquake improved the lives of thousands of Haitians touched by the disaster.

  • 2,000 Haitians were served by the Disaster Recover Center, the largest "bed" field hospital in Haiti.
  • 20 unaccompanied minors presented to the center were all registered with child protection organizations.
  • Over 350 limb-saving operations were conducted at the center. Only 2 amputations were necessary.
  • Over 120 Haitian National staff were paid as a result of the Fond Parisien's operations.
  • More than 725 volunteers from over 16 countries volunteered their time and talents at the center.
  • The first measles campaign post-disaster was conducted at Fond Parisien.
  • The center fed more than 1,000 people three hot meals per day.

 

HaitiVOICES

haitivoicesUshahidi and HHI launched HaitiVOICES to facilitate the collection and dissemination of information pertinent to humanitarian response and logistics in Haiti. All response agencies in Haiti, whether local or international, were encouraged to post their activities and anticipated project needs on the site.

 

Situation Reports

For a month following the earthquake in Haiti, HHI provided episodic updates of the Harvard-wide response. The updates included activities of Harvard-affiliated hospitals, including Partners Healthcare institutions, BWH and MGH, and efforts from the HSPH and other Harvard Institutions. Also included were summaries on the status of relief operations in Port au Prince and surrounding affected areas. Click on the links below for Situation Reports from each date.020710_haiti_0494 ji small

11 March, 2010

21 January, 2010

10 February, 2010

18 January, 2010

3 February, 2010

17 January, 2010

31 January, 2010

16 January, 2010

28 January, 2010

15 January, 2010

26 January, 2010

 

Reports

pieces jpg

Picking Up the Pieces: Women's Health Needs Assessment, Fond Parisien, Haiti

By: Lynne Hudson, R.N.-C, MPH, WHCNP, et al. 

Circle of Health International (COHI) conducted this Women's Health Needs Assessment to identify the specific and immediate needs of women, and to provide evidence-based recommendations for short and long-term women's health programming in the Fond Parisien area. These recommendations are based on the results of surveys conducted with 64 women living in the American Refugee Committee (ARC) camp in Fond Parisien. This document highlights the present and future needs of the women living in this IDP camp, and provides specific recommendations to address the unique health needs of women within this population.

 

Multimedia

bbc haiti"Help Plea for Hospital in Haiti Short of Money" Video by BBC World News

Watch the BBC exclusive coverage on the Fond Parisien Disaster Recovery Center and its urgent need for financial support.

 
020710_haiti_0923 ji small View a slideshow of our Disaster Recovery Center.

hcfondvideo"Harvard Humanitarian Initiative-Haiti CNN iReport," Video by Chris Morrow, CNN iReport

 

 Take a tour of the Fond Parisien Disaster Recovery Center with the Center's Director, HHI's Hilarie Cranmer.
drshaitifond"Haiti-CNN iReport from Fond Parisien Disaster Recovery Center," Video by Chris Morrow, CNN iReport Hear from volunteer doctors at HHI's Fond Parisien Disaster Recovery Center. Take a tour as volunteers show you where surgeries are conducted, how surgeons power their tools, who changes bandages, and how lives are being saved.
tents "Sherry's Journal" from Love A Child, Inc. Read stories from the journal of Love A Child's Director, Sherry Burnette.  Sherry and Bobby Burnette have kindly allowed the Fond Parisien Recovery Center to use some of the land of their Foundation.