2023 Haitian Studies Association Film Award - Call for Submissions (July 15, 2023)

The Haitian Studies Association (HSA) is now accepting short film entries for the first 2023 Haitian Studies Association Film Award. All films that are not in Kreyòl, English or French must be submitted with English, French or Creole subtitles. If the submitter fails to provide working subtitles by the final submission deadline, the project will be considered incomplete and will be disqualified. We welcome submissions via FilmFreeway.com.

Call For Submissions for the 2023 HSA Book Prize Award (June 12, 2023)

The HSA Book Award is given in alternate years to the best book in Haitian Studies in the Social Sciences, with relevance towards the betterment of Haiti and its people. Books must have been published within the last 2 years, June 2021 to June 2023. Anthologies and edited volumes do not qualify.

H.S.A.'s 35th Annual Conference - Call for Papers

Ayiti se tè glise illuminates the notion that Haiti is an eternally shifting landscape. Haitians continuously move within their nation and also migrate to diasporic spaces. This adage also alludes to conflicting paradigms for Haitians in and beyond Haiti as they negotiate various cultural identities and navigate their liminality (i.e. Haitian-American, Haitian-Canadian, Haitian-Bahamian, Haitian-Dominican, etc.).

Embodying In/Betweenness Afro-Caribbean Arts and Cultures (Oct. 8, 2023)

Haitian Studies Association’s Annual Conference Event
Sunday, October 8th, 2023 @ Zuckerman Museum of Art

Dancing the Sacred Crossroads: Embodied Arts of Haiti (Oct. 6, 2023)

Uniting the KOSANBA conference theme of Kalfou and the HSA theme of Ayiti se tè glise, this program presents the wisdom of the Haitian performing body as itself a crossroads and portal for transformation, navigation, and stability within in/stabilities. The evening centers embodied knowledge and the Haitian Kreyòl concept of kase (or “break”) in a reframing of our understandings of Haitian artistry and sacred ritual, Haiti and diaspora, crisis and resiliency. Internationally-known performers, scholars, and spiritual leaders consider the kase across multiple dimensions: dance, song, drumming, film, scholarly text, and discussion.

Emerging Scholars Committee Message to Conference Attendees

The Emerging Scholars committee is dedicated to the development and support of new generations of scholars of Haiti and the Haitian diaspora. We coordinate mentorship events and advocate for the particular concerns of students and emerging scholars with the association.
Emerging as a scholar is an ongoing process and we welcome participation from all self-identifying emerging scholars. Those programs which are restricted to current students (undergraduate and graduate) are labeled as such. 

Emerging Scholars Committee Message to Conference Attendees

The Emerging Scholars committee is dedicated to the development and support of new generations of scholars of Haiti and the Haitian diaspora. We coordinate mentorship events and advocate for the particular concerns of students and emerging scholars with the association.
Emerging as a scholar is an ongoing process and we welcome participation from all self-identifying emerging scholars. Those programs which are restricted to current students (undergraduate and graduate) are labeled as such. 

Emerging Scholars Café (Sept. 15, 2023)

The Emerging Scholars Committee would like to invite you to its next Emerging Scholars Café on september 15, 2023 at 3:00 pm East on Zoom.
We welcome Dr. France Neff, to present on the topic “Haitian Immigrant Families view of Acculturation: An interpretive phenomenological Analysis”; Dulanda Saintcyr, degree in Political Science & African American Studies on the topic “Political engagement, Black liberation”; and  Marcea T. Daiter PhD student interdisciplinary Studies:Concentration in Humanities and Culture, on the topic “Ritual, Spirituality, Modernity, and Creativity”.

Call for Michel-Rolph Trouillot Fund Applications (Sept. 15, 2023)

The Michel-Rolph Trouillot Fund was started in 2012 to broaden participation in the Haitian Studies Association among academics, researchers, artists, intellectuals, and professionals who are based in Haiti and who do not have the possibility of traveling to the conference without financial assistance.
Due to the current barriers to securing visas from the US Embassy, for 2023 the Michel-Rolph Trouillot award will temporarily prioritize Haitian scholars based in Haiti or studying abroad as international students who have a visa or are otherwise able to travel within or to the United States to participate in the conference.

Microplastics and Environmental Health: Identification of the Environmental Hazards in Haiti

Over the past several decades, various studies have highlighted the impact of microplastics (MP) on living organisms. By definition, MP refers to all plastic particles with a size less than 5 mm in diameter according to the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Agency of the United States (NOAA). They are themselves pollutants and act as vectors for the transport of various types of chemicals in natural ecosystems. Depending on their characteristics, they are easily introduced into the environment by wind and heavy rains and persist there due to their low solubility. They can be found in: seawater, freshwater, agroecosystems, atmospheric, food and aquatic environments, drinking water, natural biota as well as other remote locations (Lambert et al., 2014).

Dappiyanp sou Tè: Seizure of Land, Rights, and Sustainability in Haiti

The month of May in Haiti has customarily celebrated the worker, and until very recent times people understood “worker” as one who tilled the soil. The month kicks off with Labor Day conflated with May Day, the former rooted in labor organizing and the latter in rural festivals marking the start of summer. Practitioners of Haitian Vodou salute Azaka Mede, spirit of the earth and farmers, throughout the month.

The Energy Potential of Marine Macroalgae in Haiti

Haiti, like most Caribbean countries, faces a growing energy crisis due to the increasing costs of fossil fuels and the lack of indigenous domestic energy supplies. Biofuels are increasingly considered as alternatives to fossil fuels to power modern societies, but they carry their own negative environmental impacts and limitations. In order for biofuels to make a more positive impact on the energy economy of Haiti, three conditions must be met: (i) a new source of millions of tons of sustainably sourced biomass must be discovered with fewer negative environmental impacts than fuel wood; (ii) the biomass must be safely and efficiently transformed into a useful fuel to serve the needs of homes and industries; and (iii) an entire transportation and distribution network has to be created to place this new energy supply in the hands of the end users. Today, we will discuss our research into turning sargassum seaweed into useful biogas energy.

Journal of Haitian Studies Special Issue - Call for Papers (Apr. 15, 2023)

This special issue emerges from the Sexualities Working Group of the Haitian Studies Association, a group of Haitian and U.S. American scholars and practitioners who have, since 2015 in different configurations, mobilized in coalition toward the rights to live creatively for Haitian LGBTQ/M-community, Vodouyizan, and all those who do not conform to sexual/gendered norms. Responding to a call made by our Haitian activist interlocutors to support their on-the-ground endeavors through increased dissemination of research on the construction and performance of genders and sexualities in Haiti, the editorial collective hopes this special issue will document, share, and collectivize mutual commitments to bolstering the work of queer crusaders and all those who dare to live creatively in Haiti and its diasporas.

Journal of Haitian Studies Fall 2022 – Volume 28, Number 2

HISTORIES OF EXCHANGE AND CONTESTATION
REIMAGINING LIBERATION: RESISTANCE STRATEGIES PAST AND PRESENT
INDIVIDUAL AGENCY, STRUCTURAL INEQUALITY
BOOK REVIEWS

Journal of Haitian Studies Spring 2022 – Volume 28, Number 1

LAND AND THE STRUGGLE FOR AUTONOMY: DEVELOPMENT, DECOLONIZATION, AND THE COUNTER-PLANTATION
FINDING A NEW PATH FORWARD: HISTORICAL AND LITERARY MODELS FOR CONSTRUCTING BETTER FUTURES
BOOK REVIEWS

Professors Petrouchka Moïse and Fredo Rivera Secure $350K Grant for "Haitian Art Digital Crossroads" Project

Petrouchka Moïse, assistant professor and Cultural & Community-based Digital Curator in the Grinnell College Libraries, and Fredo Rivera '06, assistant professor of Art History, have been awarded a $350,000 grant from the Humanities Collections and Reference Resources program of the National Endowment for the Humanities. The grant will support their project, "Haitian Art Digital Crossroads," which aims to digitize over a thousand Haitian artworks held at several sites in Haiti and the United States and incorporate them into a multilingual database. "We are thrilled to have this opportunity to share the richness and diversity of Haitian art with a wider audience and to make it accessible to scholars and researchers around the world," said Moïse.

Video games, food and ‘aha’ moments make this Cal State San Marcos professor one of the best

Alyssa Sepinwall was named the best teacher in the CSU system for getting students to grasp how their lives have been shaped by events that occurred long ago and far away.

Religion Prof Receives Fellowship to Help Preserve Vodou Temple

Professor of Religion Elizabeth McAlister is working alongside colleagues in Haiti to help preserve the precious art and sacred objects at one particular temple. To support her efforts, McAlister has recently been named a 2023 Crossroads Research Fellow by Princeton University. The Crossroads Project “responds to challenges that call for deeper public understanding of and scholarly engagement with Black religious histories and cultures,” according to its website.

Conference Program - Sessions Program

Haitian Studies Association's 35th Annual Conference Program - Sessions Program

Call For 2023 HSA Award Nominations

The Haitian Studies Association is seeking nominations for several 2023 awards. The Awards Committee is specifically interested in recognizing current and former members of the Haitian Studies Association. 

Call for Michel-Rolph Trouillot Fund Applications (Sept. 15, 2023)

The Michel-Rolph Trouillot Fund was started in 2012 to broaden participation in the Haitian Studies Association among academics, researchers, artists, intellectuals, and professionals who are based in Haiti and who do not have the possibility of traveling to the conference without financial assistance.
Due to the current barriers to securing visas from the US Embassy, for 2023 the Michel-Rolph Trouillot award will temporarily prioritize Haitian scholars based in Haiti or studying abroad as international students who have a visa or are otherwise able to travel within or to the United States to participate in the conference.

Université d’État d’Haïti - Appel à communication (15 sept 2023)

Sous le patronage du Rectorat de l’Université d’État d'Haïti et du Ministère des Affaires Étrangères et des Cultes, l’Institut d’Études et de Recherches Africaines d’Haïti (IERAH) et la Chaire UNESCO en Histoire et Patrimoine de l'Université d’État d'Haïti (CUHP-UEH), en partenariat avec l'Académie Diplomatique Jean Price Mars et la Société Haïtienne d’Histoire, de Géographie et de Géologie (SHHGG), organisent un Colloque international sur la Contribution d'Haïti à l’émancipation des peuples (Lutte globale contre l’esclavage et la colonisation). Ce colloque aura lieu en format hybride, en ligne et sur place au local du Campus Henri Christophe de Limonade (CHCL), et se veut multidisciplinaire (faisant appel particulièrement aux Sciences-Sociales et Humaines, entre autres : l’histoire, l’anthropologie, l’ethnologie, la sociologie, les études littéraires, l’histoire de l’Art, la philosophie, la politique, l’économie, etc).

Stanford University - Assistant Professor of Caribbean Studies (Oct. 1, 2023)

The newly-formed Department of African and African American Studies (DAAAS) at Stanford University is searching for scholars who research and teach in the field of Caribbean Studies, to be appointed at the rank of tenure-track Assistant Professor. The term of appointment is expected to begin on September 1, 2024. Applications will be accepted through October 1, 2023.
We welcome applications from candidates who concentrate on the broadly defined oceanic and land-based Caribbean region – encompassing the diverse array of cultural and linguistic legacies that mark the region – in the humanities and the arts. Applicable fields may include, but aren’t limited to: history; literary, cultural, media or film studies; anthropology; linguistics; music; religious studies; philosophy; environmental humanities; art history or visual studies; or interdisciplinary studies.  We are focused on identifying exceptional scholarship rather than looking for a specific thematic or disciplinary specialization.

Re-situer et restituer Haïti : Nouvelles connexions (9 oct 2023)

Appel à Communication
« Dire Haïti et sa littérature autrement, c’est se demander, à travers les mots de ses écrivains et de ses écrivaines, quel éclairage peut apporter aujourd’hui au monde francophone, sinon au monde tout court, l’expérience haïtienne », déclare l’écrivaine haïtienne Yanick Lahens dans sa leçon inaugurale de la chaire annuelle des Mondes Francophones (2018-2019) au Collège de France. Ce colloque s’inscrit, à l’instar du propos de Lahens, dans une urgence de dire Haïti autrement. Urgence de « dire » et « autrement » pour tenter de sortir le pays de l’économie à la fois du silence et de la diffamation qui entoure le discours sur lui depuis le succès de la révolution haïtienne qui abolit l’esclavage et mit fin au colonialisme français sur l’île caribéenne.

2022 Digital Book Launch

As we come together this year, we are showcasing titles published after our last in-person conference. So in keeping with the times, the Haitian Studies Association introduces our Digital Book Launch to display these new books in a more user-friendly format for your convenience. The following list includes books published during the pandemic and early 2022, including the forthcoming books closing out this year. This list of 60+ books includes texts written both in English and French. The books below address various issues and articulate different perspectives on Haiti and Haitian national history. Click here to view the digital gallery for book covers and abstracts. Listed below are the individual titles that will direct you to the purchasing site. Select the author from the index listed below for a brief book description.

2022 Award Recipients

At H.S.A.'s 34th annual conference Dr. Régine Michelle Jean-Charles received our Award for Excellence; Dr. Charlene Désir received our Award for Service; and Edouard Duval-Carrié received our Florence Bellande Robertson Award. You can read information of all three award recipients here.

2022 Scholarship Recipients

At H.S.A.’s 34th annual conference Walner Osna and Michaëlle Vilmont received the Emerging Scholars Fund; Louis Gédéon, Léo D. Pizo Bien-Aimé, and Elkins Voltaire received the Michel Rolph Trouillot Scholarship. You can read information of all five award recipients here.

Emerging Scholars Café (Sept. 15, 2023)

The Emerging Scholars Committee would like to invite you to its next Emerging Scholars Café on september 15, 2023 at 3:00 pm East on Zoom.
We welcome Dr. France Neff, to present on the topic “Haitian Immigrant Families view of Acculturation: An interpretive phenomenological Analysis”; Dulanda Saintcyr, degree in Political Science & African American Studies on the topic “Political engagement, Black liberation”; and  Marcea T. Daiter PhD student interdisciplinary Studies:Concentration in Humanities and Culture, on the topic “Ritual, Spirituality, Modernity, and Creativity”.

The Forgotten Occupation- Online Screening and Q&A (July 29, 2023)

The Forgotten Occupation is an award-winning 2023 documentary from filmmaker Alain Martin, exploring the history of the first US Occupation of Haiti (1915-1934). The film includes appearances by scholars including Yveline Alexis, Georges Eddy Lucien and Edwidge Danticat. The event will be moderated by Alyssa Sepinwall and include a post-screening Q&A with Alain Martin and Yveline Alexis, author of the 2021 HSA Book Prize winner Haiti Fights Back.

Rasanblaj/Reassembling Haitian Radio Archives of Exile (June 28, 2023)

This presentation explores the resonances and permeabilities between the archives of two Haitian broadcast institutions. The first is Radio Haïti-Inter, the country’s most prominent independent radio station, based in Port-au-Prince, whose archives are now held at Duke University’s Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library.

The Rights to Live Creatively: Artistic Expression, Visibility, Solidarity (Dec. 14, 2020)

In light of right-wing authoritarianism in Haiti today that exposes the clientelist nature of the justice system and increases violence against all who seek to live creatively, this Working Session convenes to hear from Haitian freedom fighters and artists on the ground in a series of webinar discussions and focused virtual gatherings. This second panel features cultural workers Maksaens Denis, independent artist, and Hetera Estamphil, director of KOURAJ, who will share with us the ways in which their works challenge gendered and sexual norms and offer us another vision of and for Haiti. The conversation will be moderated by Josué Azor, and feature performances by Yonel Charles and Jenny Cadet. The goals are to think together with attendees to design an action plan that supports and amplifies their efforts toward creative living in Haiti.

The Rights to Live Creatively: Artistic Expression, Visibility, Solidarity (Oct. 8, 2020)

In light of right-wing authoritarianism in Haiti today that exposes the clientelist nature of the justice system and increases violence against all who seek to live creatively, this Working Group convenes to hear from Haitian freedom fighters and artists on the ground in a series of webinar discussions and focused virtual gatherings. The first panel features cultural workers Josué Azor, Jenny Cadet, and Maksaens Denis who will share with us the ways in which their works challenge gendered and sexual norms and offer us another vision of and for Haiti. During the gathering that follows the webinar, they will think together with attendees to design an action plan that supports and amplifies their efforts toward creative living in Haiti.

Haitian Art: Koneksyon, Rezistans, Istwa (Oct. 5, 2020)

With the extremely generous and catalyzing platform offered to us by the Haitian Studies Association, the present project offers first and foremost a call to us as scholars, pedagogues, and publishers to be ever rigorous and conscientious  about the ways in which we engage theory, in this case, theory and historical scholarship on and about Haitian visual arts. How might we more rigorously create new mechanisms by which to better facilitate more constant dialogue in regard to the ways in which we speak, think, and write alongside Haitian artists and scholars, especially those writing in Haitian Kreyòl and French?

Town Hall Update (online event): 'Decolonizing Haitian Studies' (June 26, 2021)

As a follow-up to members' priorities expressed at the 2020 Town Hall meeting, our June event will focus on the problem of coloniality in the field of Haitian Studies and our strategy to decolonize the HSA. All are invited to hear from scholars examining the question of decolonization from the standpoint of their respective disciplines and research interests. We will consider the dynamics of knowledge production, alongside issues of global inequality and anti-blackness, language, ethical collaboration, citational politics and other research practices within the interdisciplinary field of Haitian Studies. Finally, we will describe the status of our Open Access database, a digital archive which aims to provide free access to scholarship by HSA members.

Town Hall Response Strategy (2021)

International media often portrays Haiti as an ongoing crisis since its successful revolution for independence in 1804. This representation of history simultaneously fails to consider Haiti’s transnational roots and global connections and how Haitians persist in their brave fight for their freedom and sovereignty. Despite the Haitian Revolution’s triumph — an “unthinkable” act in the words of anthropologist/historian Michel-Rolph Trouillot — the event threatened the core of white supremacy. It resulted in dire repercussions against the new nation. In the face of “Western” critics, we aim to highlight real concerns in the country and stand in solidarity with Haiti. Men nou la! (We are here!)

H.S.A. New Bylaws

Last Fall 2018, in the 30th Annual Conference in Port-au-Prince, the membership voted overwhelmingly (73 to 1) to adopt new bylaws. The new bylaws make provision for HSA members at-large to participate more directly in the running of the organization.

Emerging Scholars Café (Sept. 15, 2023)

The Emerging Scholars Committee would like to invite you to its next Emerging Scholars Café on september 15, 2023 at 3:00 pm East on Zoom.
We welcome Dr. France Neff, to present on the topic “Haitian Immigrant Families view of Acculturation: An interpretive phenomenological Analysis”; Dulanda Saintcyr, degree in Political Science & African American Studies on the topic “Political engagement, Black liberation”; and  Marcea T. Daiter PhD student interdisciplinary Studies:Concentration in Humanities and Culture, on the topic “Ritual, Spirituality, Modernity, and Creativity”.

The Forgotten Occupation- Online Screening and Q&A (July 29, 2023)

The Forgotten Occupation is an award-winning 2023 documentary from filmmaker Alain Martin, exploring the history of the first US Occupation of Haiti (1915-1934). The film includes appearances by scholars including Yveline Alexis, Georges Eddy Lucien and Edwidge Danticat. The event will be moderated by Alyssa Sepinwall and include a post-screening Q&A with Alain Martin and Yveline Alexis, author of the 2021 HSA Book Prize winner Haiti Fights Back.

Emerging Scholars Café (Apr. 28, 2023)

The Emerging Scholars Committee would like to invite you to our first Emerging Scholars Café of this year on April 28, 2023 at 2:00 pm EDT on Zoom. We welcome Dr. Kapriskie Seide, Assistant Professor, Department of Sociology at Davidson College, on the topic "Disability related to the 2010 earthquake in Haiti" and Pascal Dafinis Ph.D Student, Global Studies, University of Irvine, on the topic "Haitian Migration through Latin America". We also welcome Dr. Darlene Dubuisson, Assistant Professor, Department of Anthropology, University of Pittsburgh, as a commentator for this panel. Presentations will be in English and French and will be followed by a discussion in all three languages (English, Creole, French). We look forward to your attendance.

Embodying In/Betweenness Afro-Caribbean Arts and Cultures (Oct. 8, 2023)

Haitian Studies Association’s Annual Conference Event
Sunday, October 8th, 2023 @ Zuckerman Museum of Art

Dancing the Sacred Crossroads: Embodied Arts of Haiti (Oct. 6, 2023)

Uniting the KOSANBA conference theme of Kalfou and the HSA theme of Ayiti se tè glise, this program presents the wisdom of the Haitian performing body as itself a crossroads and portal for transformation, navigation, and stability within in/stabilities. The evening centers embodied knowledge and the Haitian Kreyòl concept of kase (or “break”) in a reframing of our understandings of Haitian artistry and sacred ritual, Haiti and diaspora, crisis and resiliency. Internationally-known performers, scholars, and spiritual leaders consider the kase across multiple dimensions: dance, song, drumming, film, scholarly text, and discussion.

Kosanba 2023 Colloquium XIV (Oct. 5th-8th, 2023)

The Kalfou & The Lakou: Vodou & Africana Religious Crossroads
Held in Conjunction with the 35th Haitian Studies Association Conference at Morehouse College, Atlanta, GA

Emerging Scholars Café (Sept. 15, 2023)

The Emerging Scholars Committee would like to invite you to its next Emerging Scholars Café on september 15, 2023 at 3:00 pm East on Zoom.
We welcome Dr. France Neff, to present on the topic “Haitian Immigrant Families view of Acculturation: An interpretive phenomenological Analysis”; Dulanda Saintcyr, degree in Political Science & African American Studies on the topic “Political engagement, Black liberation”; and  Marcea T. Daiter PhD student interdisciplinary Studies:Concentration in Humanities and Culture, on the topic “Ritual, Spirituality, Modernity, and Creativity”.

The Forgotten Occupation- Online Screening and Q&A (July 29, 2023)

The Forgotten Occupation is an award-winning 2023 documentary from filmmaker Alain Martin, exploring the history of the first US Occupation of Haiti (1915-1934). The film includes appearances by scholars including Yveline Alexis, Georges Eddy Lucien and Edwidge Danticat. The event will be moderated by Alyssa Sepinwall and include a post-screening Q&A with Alain Martin and Yveline Alexis, author of the 2021 HSA Book Prize winner Haiti Fights Back.

Emerging Scholars Café (Apr. 28, 2023)

The Emerging Scholars Committee would like to invite you to our first Emerging Scholars Café of this year on April 28, 2023 at 2:00 pm EDT on Zoom. We welcome Dr. Kapriskie Seide, Assistant Professor, Department of Sociology at Davidson College, on the topic "Disability related to the 2010 earthquake in Haiti" and Pascal Dafinis Ph.D Student, Global Studies, University of Irvine, on the topic "Haitian Migration through Latin America". We also welcome Dr. Darlene Dubuisson, Assistant Professor, Department of Anthropology, University of Pittsburgh, as a commentator for this panel. Presentations will be in English and French and will be followed by a discussion in all three languages (English, Creole, French). We look forward to your attendance.

Information Forum: Helping Newcomers Find Community Support (Apr. 16, 2023)

April 16, 2023 at 5-6:30 ET CUNY Haitian Studies Institute of Brooklyn College and the Haitian Studies Association invite you to this information forum to discuss ways to help newcomers to find various support in communities around the U.S.

Jean-Jacques Dessalines: The Man Who Defeated Napoleon Bonaparte (July 16/17, 2022)

The Haitian Studies Association is honored to announce a 2-part event featuring Arnold Antonin’ new film, Jean-Jacques Dessalines: The Man Who Defeated Napoleon Bonaparte. Part 1 will be a film screening on Saturday, July 16 at 1 pm PT/ 4pm ET. The film is 94 mins long in French and Kreyol (with English subtitles). Then join us on Sunday, July 17 at 11 am PT/ 2 pm ET for an interactive conversation between Arnold Antonin and Dr. Evelyne Laurent-Perrault, from the University of California - Santa Barbara about the film. The 2-part event would be hosted on Zoom.

Emerging Scholars Roundtable: Research in the Contemporary Moment (June 23, 2022)

The Emerging Scholars committee of the Haitian Studies Association invite you to participate in our series of mentorship activities where we will reflect on key topics and issues for emerging scholars. In June, we will discuss research in the contemporary moment including questions of ethics, methods, and logistics. The moderated discussion will be bilingual (English/Haitian Creole) without translation and followed by language-specific and disciplinary affinity break out groups.

Microplastics and Environmental Health: Identification of the Environmental Hazards in Haiti

Over the past several decades, various studies have highlighted the impact of microplastics (MP) on living organisms. By definition, MP refers to all plastic particles with a size less than 5 mm in diameter according to the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Agency of the United States (NOAA). They are themselves pollutants and act as vectors for the transport of various types of chemicals in natural ecosystems. Depending on their characteristics, they are easily introduced into the environment by wind and heavy rains and persist there due to their low solubility. They can be found in: seawater, freshwater, agroecosystems, atmospheric, food and aquatic environments, drinking water, natural biota as well as other remote locations (Lambert et al., 2014).

Dappiyanp sou Tè: Seizure of Land, Rights, and Sustainability in Haiti

The month of May in Haiti has customarily celebrated the worker, and until very recent times people understood “worker” as one who tilled the soil. The month kicks off with Labor Day conflated with May Day, the former rooted in labor organizing and the latter in rural festivals marking the start of summer. Practitioners of Haitian Vodou salute Azaka Mede, spirit of the earth and farmers, throughout the month.

The Energy Potential of Marine Macroalgae in Haiti

Haiti, like most Caribbean countries, faces a growing energy crisis due to the increasing costs of fossil fuels and the lack of indigenous domestic energy supplies. Biofuels are increasingly considered as alternatives to fossil fuels to power modern societies, but they carry their own negative environmental impacts and limitations. In order for biofuels to make a more positive impact on the energy economy of Haiti, three conditions must be met: (i) a new source of millions of tons of sustainably sourced biomass must be discovered with fewer negative environmental impacts than fuel wood; (ii) the biomass must be safely and efficiently transformed into a useful fuel to serve the needs of homes and industries; and (iii) an entire transportation and distribution network has to be created to place this new energy supply in the hands of the end users. Today, we will discuss our research into turning sargassum seaweed into useful biogas energy.

The Rights to Live Creatively (October 20, 2021)

As the first official convening of the HSA Sexualities Working Group, this event builds on “The Rights to Live Creatively,” a series of conversations and roundtables we facilitated in Fall 2020. We gather to share knowledge and galvanize our commitments, interests, and labor. The first hour of this meeting will feature presentations by Haiti-based community organizers Merlin Jean and Vadson Nicholas, Directors of Cap Haitien-based human rights organization Heritage; Sandy Pierre, Community Activist of Organisation Arc-en-Ciel d’Haiti (ORAH); and Soeurette Policar, Executive Director of Organisation de Développement et de Lutte contre la Pauvreté (ODELPA). In the second hour, we will move into conversation and action planning with all attendees. What are the stakes of “living creatively” in Haiti at this moment? How might we build transnational solidarity projects together?

The Roots Are Many and Deep: Social, Cultural, and Spiritual Dimensions of Haiti’s Ecological Crisis (Oct. 19, 2021)

On boarding the ship to his captivity in 1802, Toussaint L’Ouverture delivered a characterization of liberty that would become famous: its roots are many and deep. In the 217 years since Haiti’s independence, the nation’s liberty has been challenged, its roots entangled with invasive species, likewise many and deep. This meeting of HSA’s Working Group on the Environment (Konbit) will present the multidisciplinary perspectives of five scholars and activists. After introductory remarks—presenters’ names and affiliations and discussion ground rules—each of the five presenters will make a statement of no more than five minutes in order to allow maximum time for comments, questions, and discussion with attendees. The meeting will end with an announcement from our blog/vlog team about the progress of that effort, and with suggested ways for all to become involved.

Documentary Screening: 'Men Sa Lanmè Di' with Q&A with Filmmaker & Marine Scientist (July 17, 2021)

From its trailer text: “The Haitian Sea as you’ve never seen or heard it before. In this documentary, the Sea tells its story with the Haitian people. Wave after wave, the Sea showcases its riches, reveals its mysteries, and raises the alarm. From the excessive use of its resources to the consequences of climate change and pollution, the Sea displays its different shades of blue and suggests opportunities to seize. This film is an invitation to travel, discover, and also to raise awareness. Haiti’s future lies in its coasts or will not be.”