SOIL Interns

Go to Haiti with an open mind, an open heart, and open eyes.  Soak it all up and learn as much as you can.  Remember that you are only there for a short time, so take it in and don’t let a single opportunity pass by while you are there.  Ask a million questions.  Journal everything every day so you never forget what you are feeling and your immediate reactions to things.  Take pictures, but try to overcome the desire to fit the world inside a picture frame.  Try new things.  Allow your heart to break.  Don’t forget the names, faces, or stories of the people you meet.  And finally, laugh, love, and have fun.

Tricia Leiver (Participant in University of Miami Intersession in Haiti 2008)

      
An important focus of our mission is to attempt to nurture collective creativity through developing collaborative relationships between community organizations in Haiti and academics and activists internationally. SOIL hosts approximately 60 visitors per year at our house in Cap Haitien. We have hosted students from many universities looking for ways to put their academic training into action, activists from the US interested in establishing solidarity with grassroots organizations in Haiti, and members of other local and international non-profit organizations looking to initiate partnerships.

People come to visit in many capacities and we are grateful to all who have come for opening their hearts and donating their time. The decision to affect change, to share your abilities and resources, can and does change the world.  Whether it is to make a commitment to live in a developing country or sacrificing the price of a cup of coffee each day, solidarity comes in many forms.  For each person it can be different.  We here have found a way to open our doors to these possibility, to help facilitate the connection of one community to another and open a communication channel that can better illustrate people’s needs and desires to live in a more just and equitable world.  Each time a visitor comes, another door is opened and a chance for a long term commitment to change or personal transformation is possible. 

To read more about SOIL intern’s experiences see the following blog sites:

Ashley Dahlberg, University of California Santa Cruz
Andrew Carroll, Stanford University
Patricia Leiver, University of Miami
Rachel Koscianski, University of Miami
Woody Talley, University of Miami
Greg Sweinton, University of Miami
Emanna Louis, University of Miami
Brian Averill, University of Wisconsin Milwaukee
Gillian O’Bryan, University of Miami
Johanna Erlebach, University of Miami
Yuval Peleg, University of Miami
Sarah Deutsch, University of Miami

Andrew Carroll (Intern 2006) is a plant biologist in the PhD program at Stanford University. He received his Bachelor’s in Physics and Biology from the University of Virginia in 2005. He is an active member in the Stanford Chapter of Engineers for a Sustainable World, and represented them while working in Haiti with SOIL during the summer of 2006. As a scientist, he recognizes that the promise of technology is empty if we lack the compassion to use them to help those in greatest need.

Gabriele Puz (Intern 2007) is a graduate student in the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department at Stanford University and her focus in her Master’s degree is on water and sanitation in developing countries. Gabby completed her undergraduate studies in Environmental Engineering at RMIT University in Melbourne, Australia. She worked as an environmental consultant in France and the US before returning to school in 2006. After finishing her Master’s degree, Gabby plans to continue working in the water and sanitation field in developing countries and would love to return to Haiti to work with SOIL and SOL on community projects.

Ashley Dahlberg (Intern 2007, 2008 and current SOIL board member) is an undergraduate at the University of California Santa Cruz where she is studying Environmental Justice and Legal Studies.  Ashley’s passion for combining human rights work with the environment was amplified by her recent internship with SOIL.  While in Haiti she had a special interest working with the urban community, Shada. Ashley is currently developing a potential project to do there in the future that addresses waste management.  Now that she is back in California, she continues her work for SOIL as the Student Outreach Coordinator.  Recently, she has been raising awareness about Haiti and the work SOIL is doing by giving presentations and making cards.

Emanna Louis (Class participant 2008) is a graduate student at the University of Miami, completing her final year of a five year BA and MA program in Latin American Studies.  She is taking classes with a concentration in International Administration.  Emanna is twenty years old, born and raised in Boynton Beach, Florida by her Haitian immigrant mother.  She has 3 sisters, the oldest residing in Leogane Haiti.  When she graduates in May of 2008 she hopes to find a career in an international development NGO or nonprofit organization.  The Peace Corps is a possible option. 

Patricia Liever (Class participant 2008) is currently a second year student at the University of Miami, majoring in International Studies and Economics and minoring in Spanish.  She plans to graduate in December 2009.  Patricia’s academic interests include developmental economics and NGO management.  In her spare time, she enjoys traveling, SCUBA diving and spending time with her friends and family.  She is originally from Allentown, Pennsylvania.

Gregory H. Swienton (Class participant 2008) is 21 years old, born April 16, 1986. He grew up on a small Island  12 miles off the coast of Rhode Island called Block Island. Greg graduated Block Island High School in June 2004 and enrolled as a Freshman at the University of Miami that fall. He is a senior at UM with a major in Business Management and Organization and minor in International Business. Greg spent the Spring Semester 2007 abroad at the Chinese University of Hong Kong as a full time exchange student. While overseas he was able to travel throughout China as well as much of South East Asia. In China he visited Beijing, Xi'an and Tibet. In South East Asia he traveled to Thailand, Malaysia, Cambodia and Vietnam.  Every single place lent its own unique experience and made a forever lasting impression on Greg. He is extremely interested in programs that reach out and try to make a difference in the world and is always looking to help people, towns, cities or countries in any way he can.

Rachel Koscianski (Class participant 2008) is originally from Cincinnati, Ohio but has been living in Miami for the past three years and attending the University of Miami.  She is twenty years old, and graduating from the University with a double major in French and International Studies this May 2008.  Rachel has applied to Law School and have already been accepted to the University of Miami’s Law School, but is still waiting to hear back from the rest of the schools that she has applied to.  Rachel’s future goals consist of becoming a lawyer and finding some way to incorporate French into her law degree and daily life.  She has spent some time in Western Europe, mainly France, and this trip to Haiti will be her first.  She is very excited to use her experience in Haiti as a learning opportunity and as an opportunity to broaden her world view.  

Woody Talley (Class participant 2008) is currently a graduate student at the University of Miami.  He is pursuing a Master of Arts in International Administration, where he hopes someday to be working in an NGO or international organization.  He is originally from North Carolina.  He received a Bachelor's degree in Anthropology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.  While there he studied abroad in Buenos Aires, Argentina.  Upon graduating in 2003, he went to Peru on an archaeological field school project.  After that, he remained in Peru for 2 years teaching English.  He then returned to NC and taught English as a foreign language for 2 years.  He now teaches English in Miami while completing his graduate program.

Collin Cousins (Class participant 2008) is an Economics major at Macalaster College whose interest is in the sustainable development of underdeveloped economies. His effort in this project is to investigate ways in which economic development can be sustained alongside environmental protection. He believes that countries like Haiti will be able to generate better income from increased soil fertility link to better living conditions; practicularly economically impoverished communities dependent on agricultural commerce.

Westenley Alcenat (Class participant 2008) was born in Haiti where he witnessed first-hand the detrimental conditions of the rampant poverty on Haitian inhabittants. and moved to the U.S at the age of ten. He is a Political Science major at Macalaster College whose interest is in the field of International Relations. He is particularly interested in improving fair trade relations between countries like the United States in Haiti, in order to promote a stable and fair international political economy (IPE) in the age of Globalization.

Yuval Peleg (Class participant 2009) was born and raised in Israel until the age of 13 when his family moved to Miami, Florida.  He graduated from Dr. Michael M. Krop Senior High in 2008 where he first became interested in international affairs through participating in Model United Nations conferences and various humanity courses.  Now at the age of 18, he is an undergrad student at the University of Miami pursuing a bachelor’s degree in International Relations.  He enjoys traveling and is always interested in experiencing new things. After the time he spent with SOIL, he hopes to pursue a career in international development and return to Haiti in the future.   

Johanna Erlebach (Class participant 2009), born and raised in Washington State, is a student at the University of Miami where she is currently pursuing a master’s degree in International Relations. A life-long humanitarian, she worked with Meals on Wheels in California before relocating to Florida in 2007 to finish her studies. While earning her degree, Johanna has been involved with the International Rescue Committee (IRC) as a Volunteer Coordinator and Resource Developer, and coordinated special events for the Florida Association for Volunteer Action in the Caribbean and the Americas (FAVACA). In addition to Johanna’s domestic work, she recently traveled to Haiti with the University of Miami to intern with the non-profit organization Sustainable Organic Integrated Livelihoods (SOIL). When Johanna graduates in the fall of 2009, she will follow her passion of working both internationally and domestically in development and humanitarian issues.

Gillian O'Bryan (Class participant 2009) is a student going into her senior year at the University of Miami. She is pursuing a double major in International Studies and Geography and Regional Studies. Gillian has always had an interest in health and medicine. This interest developed into a passion for international health during her first volunteer trip to Yelapa, Mexico in 2005 where she first experienced immense inequalities in health care. Gillian hopes to continue her education in International Health and Public Health after graduating from university in 2010.    

Sarah Deutsch (Class participant 2009) is a senior at the University of Miami. I am majoring in psychology and minoring in Latin American studies. I enjoy traveling the world and experiencing different cultures and people to help me better understand people in my profession.