5377: Re: Scrapwood to Charbon (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: NLaleau@aol.com


Dear Gilles,

That was a great idea and one that diaspora groups could probably implement 
easily... contact the scrapwood sources here, find out shipping costs, 
identify community groups in Haiti that would wholesale the wood to 
individual charbonniers, raise seed money investment funds through US and 
foreign foundations, churches, etc., etc., etc.

I refuse to think it's impossible... but I empathize with your cynicism 
because usually I feel that way too. The challenge, of course, is how to find 
a way to cut the Gordion knot of Haitian Customs and officialdom's petty and 
not so petty thievery. 

But it sounds like the kind of project that could really be made to work, as 
it can be done on small to large scale, decentralized, etc., and would not 
require huge infrastructural investment. If even a little bit of "government" 
planning could be done (ah, there's the rub!) it could be a major component 
in a shift away from the destruction of Haiti's mountains... 

If there's ever a decent government in power that's willing to actually run 
the country (for the majority class Haitians' benefit), I'd be happy to put 
some effort in developing such a project! Time will tell!

Sincerely,
Nancy Laleau