The Brazil Effect

Social technologies for reconstructing Haiti

Although it faces complex challenges, Brazil is today fertile in innovation and progressive experiments in various sectors. Social entrepreneurs, health specialists, experts in urbanism, agriculture, communication and education from all over the world have been resorting to Brazilian examples of cutting edge social technology.

This short report summarizes Brazilian innovations that have been tested and which could be useful for Haiti, as the nation starts to recover its foundations after the devastating January earthquake. Edited by Robert Muggah and Ilona Szabó de Carvalho, it includes the ponderings of specialists from the Brazilian civil society in the area of health, urbanism, education, youth and culture. The report is supported by Igarapé – A Social Cooperation Agency.

There are a number of traits that distinguish Brazilian social technology from others. At their best, they are based on data and guided by a search for viable solutions that change local realities. On the whole, they emerge from social, economic and cultural settings that Brazil shares with nations in Latin America, the Caribbean and Africa. And, due to its particular historical experience, these technologies are also motivated by values such as solidarity, and the interchange of ideas and solutions.

Click on the links below to read the articles:

Haiti's New Deal

Re-imagining community health in Haiti

Reinventing Haiti: Recycling for the Future

An educational revival in Haiti: from the ground up

Haiti:Reconstructing and renewing from below