Roosevelt Institute Aims to Help Haiti

In the wake of the earthquake that rocked Port-Au-Prince last month, The Roosevelt Institute is working on short- and long-term solutions to raise Haiti up out of the rubble.

DC-International Regional Coordinator Rory Silver says the progressive student policy think-tank is working on developing a self-sustainable micro-community in Haiti.

“The community, inspired by the kibbutzim that were successful in developing Israel, would be an immediate and long-term solution not only to the earthquake, but to the tattered infrastructure and eroded land that has plagued Haiti for years,” said Silver. “The land would be reforested, the community would be made of pre-fabricated housing with a 0 carbon footprint, and a shade-grown coffee industry would develop out of the model.”

Silver says the Institute has already been in contact with the kibbutzim manufacturers, as well as officials from the Haitian and French embassies.

Established in 2006, the GW chapter of the Roosevelt Institute was one of the first of 90 chapters across the country. Some of its recent accomplishments include GW’s annual “Green Move-Out,” a health policy conference held in conjunction with the GW administration and White House officials who tackled youth interests in the health care debate, and last semester’s Mid-Atlantic Regional conference, where students from chapters across the Mid-Atlantic came to GW to discuss ideas, listen to experts in various fields, and attend policy trainings. Members of the GW chapter have also been featured in Roosevelt’s national journals, The Roosevelt Review and the 10 Ideas series.

For more information on the GW chapter of the Roosevelt Institute, click here.