This gift in action
After the devastating Haiti earthquake in 2010, Oxfam swung into action providing over 400,000 people with water, sanitation, livelihoods and shelter. In addition, we also began public health promotion.
Public health activities specifically for children were initially undertaken across the emergency camps, with demonstrations, songs, games, and theatre groups.
One innovative idea from our Public Health team was to bring together children and local artists to spread the health message and to tackle the rubbish that accumulates in camps like Petion-Ville Golf Club.
One activity was to convert boxes into toy houses. Collected from designated bins, the children would wash and cut them up, and use them to make houses and which they’d paint in bright colours. The final touch is to add a public health message like ‘Wash your hands after visiting the toilet’, or ‘Wash your hands before eating.’
The activity helps children learn about good health practices and about recycling and waste management. But it also helps heal the psychological scars. Says artist, Sanchez Martinez Evains: “The stress from the earthquake is long lasting. The trauma is in their heads and hearts. This activity offers a distraction. This kind of programme keeps us all going. It stops us from thinking about what happened…it’s an escape and it’s helping them, and us, to recover, to restart our lives and have some fun.”