Humanitarian OpenStreetMap Team

After the three weeks set up made by Nico and Brian, it is my turn to come on and support the project on the ground after having done it remotely through the writing of the JOSM presets and other technical and guidelines documents, after of course, months passed to set the project from scratch and made it accepted by the funder. It is my seventh time in Haiti since the 01/12/2010 earthquake, a country I started to learn after having worked with Haitian colleagues on the GIS field in 2008. I really entered into the OSM world by mapping Port-au-Prince during the next weeks after the quake and joined the Humanitarian relief in February to help the emergency action.

Hey there, Hi there, Ho there, Checking in from beautiful coastal Saint Marc. Everything has been proceeding along here at a terrific pace. Now that the team of young people to be trained is organized and ready to go the COSMHA team has been busy training and coordinating all these people. Most days start at 7:30 with a COSMHA team meeting. At 8 the youth come and there is a morning lecture. During this time the team finishes up the preparation of any materials for the days activities and maybe participates in a training them selves.

This week Vasanthi, Emir and I returned to Bima and Dompu. It is always interesting when you leave someone with technology alone and then come back and see what they have done. Questions often have often built up, but usually some solutions as well. People don’t wait for your to return to move forward, they usually either abandon what they have been taught or adapt to their own situations and uses. Bima and Dompu were no different.

17-Jan, Tuesday morning, hitting the road to Saint Marc after a couple of days preparing at the HC Resource Center (haiti.communitere.org). It feels good leaving Port au Prince and driving North to Saint Marc, stopping by at Guen’s place to greet his relatives and have a look at the motorcycles that we will have use of in a near future. This road in between sea and mountains is familiar from past HOT trips to Gonaives, and traveling it again brings back good memories. Leslie is driving, the radio plays loud, and the spirit is high. Five of us, Guens, Judith, Jacqueson, Samuel, and I, are starting the first phase of work in Saint Marc.