Haiti and Japan Connected

Since very early in the tsunami recovery process, the Relief 2.0 teams perceived striking similarities and common challenges faced by survivors both in Haiti and Japan. Similar processes of exclusion of local stakeholders in response teams, recovery strategy workshops and plan drafting, inefficiencies in allocation of resources and failure to learn from lessons of the past. Although Japan was arguable the most and best prepared country for disasters, its preparedness did not extend that far into what to do after a disaster strikes and certainly not one of the magnitude of the 9.0 earthquake and following tsunami.

Both Japan and Haiti have shared an unfortunate fate and both have shown remarkable resilience and solidarity and hopeful wishes and empathy for each other as several activities organized by Relief 2.0 and others have shown and can be appreciated in the pictures that follow.