My name is Ann Marie Warmenhoven. I volunteer in Haiti to help a community-based organization, SAKALA Ayiti, to fund, launch, and manage the Jaden Tap Tap (Tap Tap Garden), an urban agroecology, poverty alleviation, and food security initiative in Cite Soleil. Set on over of land in Cite Soleil that was once a garbage dump, the garden now has more than 600 brightly-painted tire gardens , 4000 tree nursery, and flower garden- making it Haiti's largest urban garden.
Launched in October 2011 and inaugurated January 2012, the Jaden Tap Tap is a source of hope, as well as improvements in food security, health, environment, and community development for the marginalized community of Cite Soleil. Furthermore, the Jaden Tap Tap aims to be a model for urban agriculture for the neighborhood, country, and the world- demonstrating that bountiful, nutritious gardens can be grown in even the harshest conditions.
As part of Pax Christi Ayiti’s SAKALA youth empowerment program, the Jaden Tap Tap is also a living classroom, providing youth with a safe, positive environment in which to learn the basics of agroecology, agroforestry, nutrition, and to develop their leadership and entrepreneurial skills. There are currently 250 youth and young adults in the Jaden Tap Tap program, each of whom is training to be a “specialist” on specific crops and thus serve as a resource to neighbors seeking to replicate the tire gardens in their own households. Each day, every member and many neighbors-in-need are fed a healthy meal with fresh vegetables from the garden. My experience is that these urban youth now have a better understanding of where food comes from, what to eat, and are healthier because of their daily access to a good meal.
Day-to-day management of the Jaden Tap Tap is led by 10 "at-risk" young adults from the 3BB neighborhood of Cite Soleil and the nearby displacement camp. These young adults, most of whom didn't finish 5th grade (if they went to school at all) were trained in the basics of urban agriculture, leadership, and entrepreneurship. They are tasked with making sure the garden runs efficiently, providing food for the soup kitchen and to be sold to generate income, which is then split between themselves and a "community insurance fund" for members of the community. My experience working with these young adults has proven that investing just a little bit of time and attention in people (who are usually dismissed) to realize their potential is the most important thing a volunteer can do. In just three months, these young adults have visibly changed, showing pride, self-confidence, leadership, and skill.
To view a video on the garden (I'm in it), please click here: http://bit.ly/taptapvideo
My story:
I first visited Haiti in December 2009 as a master's student at Florida International University and a University of Miami course entitled "Challenges to Sustainable Development in Haiti". We had no idea how drastically those challenges would be be magnified until 10 days later when the largest natural disaster in 100 years struck Port-au-Prince while we sat in class. My dedication to promoting sustainable development in the world was magnified that day too. As a MA and MBA student, I found I had a set of management and communications skills to offer communities in Haiti. When I was approached by SAKALA to help them start an urban garden, I jumped at the opportunity. I have been to Haiti every month since October 2011 when we launched the Jaden Tap Tap, each time as an unpaid volunteer, supported by private contributions to Bochika, a small 501c3 I founded after the earthquake to enable me to continue to volunteer in Haiti. I look continuing a life of service, to help promote economic opportunity, opportunity and hope throughout the world.
