Creative Exchanges Initiative (CEI) disrupts entrenched systems that perpetuate the cycle of poverty and social injustice in rural Haiti. CEI's Initiatives are 100% locally led and managed. CEI brings a unique, multi-pronged approach to supporting local communities through three integrated community-wide programs (livestock& agriculture, & women's groups/co-ops, and education & trianing). The curriculum & training proponent assures quality is standardized and replicable. CEI also offers ongoing capacity-building support in capacity building for our operational partner APSHA, the local Haitian CBO that leads and manages all our initiatives in Haiti. Activities oc... read more Creative Exchanges Initiative (CEI) disrupts entrenched systems that perpetuate the cycle of poverty and social injustice in rural Haiti. CEI's Initiatives are 100% locally led and managed. CEI brings a unique, multi-pronged approach to supporting local communities through three integrated community-wide programs (livestock& agriculture, & women's groups/co-ops, and education & trianing). The curriculum & training proponent assures quality is standardized and replicable. CEI also offers ongoing capacity-building support in capacity building for our operational partner APSHA, the local Haitian CBO that leads and manages all our initiatives in Haiti. Activities occur in eight localities in the municipality of Paillant. Our long-term strategy of systemic change replenishes depleted natural resources and provides sustainable livelihoods and nutrition, while equipping the population with skills to support a more equitable and effective civic infrastructure. CEI's model of systemic change uses inquiry-based, problem-posing, experiential training with strong application components, resulting in deeper learning of content at the same time it empowers. Objectives of this project include partnering with experts in this area to develop highly effective curriculum and training that can be replicated elsewhere in Haiti. Our initiatives: * Diversify the sources of rural household incomes * Develops goat and other animal husbandry * Improve food security by increasing agricultural production and providing more varied vegetables and sources of protein * Strengthen women's leadership through education and entrepreneurial endeavors * Improve soil restoration and reforestation Our initiatives are different from many in that they: * Addresses the need to build stronger, more equitable, effective and accountable participatory civil infrastructure in Haiti within the context of each program or project * Are locality-based, rather than program or project centered * Create economic and nutritional viability community-wide while replenishing depleted soil and building leadership, farming, and business skills so residents can sustain improvements long term * Employ relationship-focused processes that build trust essential for transparency and accountability * Realigns unhealthy imbalances of power by building equitable, well-functioning local groups where all members have equal voice * Result in a highly-engaged population that is invested in success long term * Are 100% Haitian led, managed, and implemented * Provide dry-season livestock food, which is a problem not being addressed in Haiti either by decision-making bodies of the State, development agencies, or Haitian livestock farmers in the region. Production and storage of hay for dry seasons will allow farmers to maintain the market value of their livestock and ensure the health of pregnant females and the development of their offspring. CEI's Community-Wide Capacity Building Initiatives: * Animal Husbandry * Restorative Agriculture * Women's & Youth Groups * Financial Education * Social Entrepreneurship & Business Skills CEI's Paradigm-Shifting Educational Techniques: * Inquiry-Based, Problem-Posing * Experiential Curriculum * Application for Deeper Learning * Empowerment Through Achievement Community-Wide Benefits: * Food Security & Income; * Creation of Effective & Equitable Local Leadership * Restoration of Depleted Land * Gender Equality * Equitable & Effective Civil Infrastructure SDGs addressed by CEI are: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 8, 10, 11, 15, 16 & 17. Localities we serve are substandard in all the above SDGs. Our integrated, community-wide approach addresses these issues across each initiative, thereby multiplying impact. The majority of farmers we serve are women, but currently women hold almost no elected roles in the wider community (i.e. Mayor, CASEC, ASEC) and few salaried jobs (such as teacher, principal, agronomist, inspector of education, etc.). Addressing the need for local leadership training and through opportunities to serve as local leaders in goat and agriculture programs that provide income and nutrition, CEI serves the whole community and addresses many needs at once. Meeting SDG-16 starts at the grassroots in our work as we provide opportunities to gain and use skills needed to build the stronger, effective civic infrastructure Haiti desperately needs. Our model: * Transforms dependencies into self-reliance * Builds capacity both personally and systemically * Restores human dignity, self-respect, and trust * Is uniquely transformative, replicable and scalable
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