New Project: Lewis Punnett Emergency Shelter and Geriatric Facility

GER3 is excited to announce a new project that continues our work helping St. Vincent recover from the volcanic eruption last April: the Lewis Punnett Retrofit Project. Funded by the Government of Japan and USAID - via the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) - the IOM-administered initiative will retrofit an abandoned building to serve as an emergency shelter and geriatric facility for displaced persons in the Red Zone of the island. Working with the Government of St. Vincent, IOM, and other stakeholders, GER3 will manage the retrofitting of the facility along with capacity building and community engagement activities.

The video below (from St. Vincent’s Agency for Public Information) provides additional information on the project and our partners.

Up-cycling “Waste” into Organic Compost in St. Vincent

Over the last two months, GER3’s team in St. Vincent has led an innovative organic composting workshop alongside Luke Punnett of Chatoyer Gardens and St. Vincent’s Richmond Vale Academy. The workshop included practical lessons on the science and technique of organic composing paired with hands-on, guided demonstrations using locally-available inputs.

Discussing composting techniques with local farmers.

Elements of composting.

Checking the internal temperature of the compost pile.

The initiative grew out of GER3’s commitment to sustainable, green recovery practices, one of which seeks to repurpose and, when possible, up-cycle materials and resources that otherwise would be discarded. In addition to conventional composting inputs – detritus from the forests, leftover plant material from agriculture, and manure from local farms – GER3 incorporated volcanic ash and sargassum – a type of seaweed – into the compost in a novel approach tailored to the specificities of St. Vincent and the Caribbean. In doing so, the workshop aims to shift how volcanic ash and sargassum are viewed in St. Vincent – not as nuisances to be burned or buried but as resources with positive value.

Throughout the 18-day composting cycle, the team collected data and closely monitored the progress of each pile, which varied in terms of the ratios of inputs. Samples of the rich soil produced by the composting process are now being analyzed to assess the optimal compost blend for the local climate and available resources. In harnessing the power of technical research methodologies and local knowledge, we can innovate towards more sustainable, greener recoveries.

Generous Donation from M.I.A.’s OHMNI Foundation & St. Vincent-based Carib-Beans Superfoods Coffee House

“I wrote my first song in Bequia,” wrote M.I.A. on twitter, and “these places have been my island away from my island for the past 20 years. The devastation is unbearable.”

Global Emergency Relief, Recovery & Reconstruction has received a generous donation from M.I.A.’s OHMNI Foundation& St. Vincent based Carib-Beans Superfoods Coffee House to support GER3’s recovery efforts in St. Vincent and the Grenadines in response to the eruption of the La Soufrière volcano.

Having just completed Phase I: Ash Cleaning, Phase II: Homes Repairs is about to begin in Sandy Bay. Its main focus will be rehabilitating homes owned by vulnerable community members, but it will also include capacity building events such as a workshop on upcycling organic compost for farmers, a training on hurricane resistant construction techniques, and a cash-for-work program for practicing construction work.

The community needs much more than what we can currently support. We are actively looking for donations to scale up the homes repair program, to replicate the upcycling compost workshop for farmers and to ensure that the hurricane resistant structures training can reach as many members of the community as possible. We are also looking to upgrade the existing latrines to toilets and we are looking for funding to be able to build the needed septic tanks.

M.I.A. is a British-born, Sri Lankan rapper, singer, record producer and activist who wrote her first song on Bequia, the largest of the St. Vincent Grenadine islands. She launched an online fund-raising campaign to aid volcano-ravaged St. Vincent and the Grenadines.  All of M.I.A.’s fundraising is going directly to the recovery effort. 

CARIBBEANS: During the April 9th volcanic eruption, Carib-Beans Superfoods coffee house quickly sprung into action using the space as a base for packing supplies to shelters island-wide. The coffee house also raised funds to assist with daily shopping for the shelters. With the work done by JD and Eniye, Sri Lankan rapper M.I.A. and her team reached out to them to work together in affecting more positive change during the very difficult time.

Abaco Housing Rehabilitation

Over two years after hurricane Dorian, GER³ remains active in the recovery effort in the Bahamas. Rebuilding homes in Abaco remains a critical part of recovery going forward, with many vulnerable homeowners still left with badly damaged or destroyed homes. In October, GER³ began a new housing project, funded by Discovery Land Company Foundation's Abaco Relief Program, that will focus on the rehabilitation of 18 homes and will continue to build local capacity. Having recently completed another vulnerable housing project funded by Templeton World Charity and Templeton Religion Trust, GER³ is well connected with the communities and homeowners and is committed to supporting them to get back into their homes.

We are also continuing to expand our local team, engaging a number of local cash-for-workers, local contractors and project managers. We are grateful for the opportunity to continue supporting the Bahamas to build back better.

Update - St. Vincent Community Recovery Project

GER3 continues to support recovery efforts in St. Vincent and the Grenadines in response to the eruption of the La Soufrière volcano last spring. After two months of on-the-ground work, the impacts of GER3’s recovery programs are visible throughout the Sandy Bay area.

Over forty five homes have been cleared of ash and debris, allowing residents to return to their homes and rebuild their lives. In the process, over seventy people from the Sandy Bay community have received temporary income for their work on cash-for-work teams, providing livelihood support to a local economy that was decimated by the eruption. In addition, GER3’s home rehabilitation program is progressing though the final selection phase and will soon begin work on a number of homes.

Luke Punnet of Richmond Vale Academy discussing organic composting techniques with farmers.

GER3 has also launched programs targeting local farmers, whose livelihoods were severely disrupted. Though six months have passed since the eruptions subsided, farmers remain unable to sow their mountain-side plots due to unsafe access and inhospitable soil conditions, precluding even subsistence-level activities.  In response, GER3 – in partnership with Luke Punnet of Richmond Vale Academy in St. Vincent – launched an organic compositing program that will draw upon local knowledge as well as the latest scientific research to teach and to learn about organic composting methods using locally available resources like volcanic ash and sargassum. This program thus converts local resources of no or negative economic value (ash and sargassum) into fertile soil without the use of chemicals or fertilizers, while providing livelihood support to local farmers.

GER3 team members in Sandy Bay.

Notwithstanding the great progress of GER3 and its partners, much work remains and GER3 will continue to help Sandy Bay and St. Vincent build back better.

St. Vincent Community Recovery Project

“It disrupted our livelihoods. We were displaced. We were moved. Our homes were damaged. So, help is needed…help so that everyone can get back to a sense of normalcy, because right now it is not normal.”

– Hazel Ann Lavia, Sandy Bay resident and cash-for-work team supervisor. 

Recovery efforts are under way in Sandy Bay, St. Vincent and the Grenadines in response to the La Soufrière eruption thanks to funding from the Center for Disaster Philanthropy and the tireless work of our local team and partners. Cash-for-work teams comprised of Sandy Bay residents are rapidly clearing volcanic ash and debris, allowing people to return to their homes and rebuild their community while also providing income to affected people.

View fullsize

View fullsize

The La Soufrière volcano erupted explosively on April 9, 2021, blanketing northern St. Vincent in ash, displacing over 20,000 people, and damaging hundreds of homes. Heavy rains following the eruption caused lahars – violent volcanic mudslides – further damaging and destroying homes in vulnerable areas. Only in the last month has northern St. Vincent been deemed safe enough for residents to return home from emergency shelters and begin recovery efforts.

One month after launching the Sandy Bay Community Recovery Project, GER3’s cash-for-work teams have cleared ash and debris from 20 houses and provided income that will benefit not only the workers but also the broader community. As Phase I ash and debris removal work continues, we are also starting Phase II of home rehabilitation for Sandy Bay’s most vulnerable residents.  We look forward to continuing our work to help St. Vincent build back better!

LOCAL TEAM ACTIVATED IN HAITI

Assessments are underway in Camp Perrin and Les Cayes. GER³ activated a local team to assess earthquake-affected communities, determining how GER³ can best support. Debris management will be a critical part of relief and recovery efforts.

Recovery Work in Abaco Continues

Housing units attached to Marsh Harbour’s healthcare centre have been restored. The units, which previously housed essential medical personnel and staff, were badly damaged by Dorian in the fall of 2019. Essential workers have been living in RVs and trailers since. GER³, with the support of Direct Relief and Discovery Land Company Foundation, restored the six housing units, ensuring they are ready for personnel to return and are better prepared to withstand future storms.

At the same time, GER³ is leading another housing rehabilitation and capacity building project in Abaco. Despite great work by various housing support initiatives after Dorian, many homeowners are still very much in need of assistance, especially as they face another hurricane season. GER³'s project is rehabilitating eight vulnerable homes and incorporating several capacity building events for local community members to learn new techniques for building back better. Generous donors are supporting GER³ to undertake this community recovery work through September 2021.

Central Abaco Primary SChool Opening

"Today I would like to express my gratitude to the GER³ team. Thanks to GER³ and their donors, Central Abaco Primary School (CAPS) opened its doors to students and faculty on April 12, 2021, since closing, after being severely damaged by Hurricane Dorian. Students and faculty were able to return to a fully-rehabilitated, safer and sustainable school. To Mr. Reilly Dooris, Program Director and Mr. Damian Browne, Project Manager, we say thank you. To all the donors, local contractors, and community helpers who contributed to the rebuilding of CAPS through GER³, I say thank you."

-Troy Ritchie, Central Abaco Primary School Principal

GER³ is delighted to see students, faculty and staff back in school this month and appreciates the kind words of the school's principal. Our team extends its greatest thanks to all the donors, partners and local team members who contributed to the project.

Eta & Iota Response Update No. 4

GER³ continues its support to hurricane recovery work in Honduras. The team is now completing a community debris removal and cleaning project, funded by the Center for Disaster Philanthropy, providing access to the community of La Canaan in La Lima.

The streets are fully accessible and mud and debris have been cleaned out of more than 40 homes. To understand more about the needs of each family and the ongoing needs of the community at large, GER³ developed a local team to perform in-depth assessments of the community. With strong assessment data, GER³ is also coordinating and communicating with other local NGOs and entities who can complement GER³’s work and provide further support to La Canaan.

Over the past month, Vicenta, Allison, Rosa, Medeleine, Cindy and Cindy (Pink) carried out a series of community assessments for GER³ in La Canaan. The team of women went home-by-home asking questions that focused on understanding the specific situation of each family. This included information about the general formation of the family, their economic income, the infrastructural damage their home suffered due to the hurricanes, the most critical needs of the family and those of the community. The assessments also considered the status of Covid-19 and its impact on the community, especially in the field of education. In La Canaan, there are 151 children between the ages of 6 and 17 that are currently enrolled in school but have extremely limited access to means of communication or connectivity for virtual classes.

The assessment team was stunned by the vulnerability of this community. These women also live in La Lima, which was one of the areas hardest hit by the storms. They too had to clean out their homes and they too were unemployed, but seeing and experiencing the community of La Canaan put their own situations in perspective.

One of our assessment team members described her humbling experience seeing the destruction and understanding the community's basic needs for a functioning septic system, potable water, electricity and accessibility. At the same time, every member of La Canaan welcomed her and offered whatever they could, whether it was a small cup of coffee or a galleta. Knowing the assessment would lead to support to the community was both gratifying and inspiring. She ended by saying that she was very “proud to be part of this wonderful work and if I had to do it again I would do it again with all my heart.”

GER³ has nearly finished creating access to the entire community of La Canaan and has helped clean out the homes of those most severely affected. The in depth community assessments support the ongoing work in the community and also inform the future support from partner and peer NGOs and local entities.

As work in Honduras continues, there is still a lot to be done and GER³ will continue to do its best to ensure communities like La Canaan are supported.