Presentations- Day 3

St.Kitts and Nevis- One of the most beautiful getaways. Once relied on sugar cane exports.Tourism is increasing every year and it is revitalizing the economy.

Antigua and Barbados- Good title! About the water crisis. Compact waste is a major concern. Videos are good to include to keep interest of watchers. Increasing population and deforestation are contributing to the problem. They limit water usage in households.



Virgin Islands- About the how the coral reefs are being affected by human interaction, hurricanes, and climate change. Wouldn't think that coral debris can damage corals. I didn't know that higher water temperature creates stronger storms. There are parks to protect reefs.

Presentations Day 2

Puerto Rico- About how the Spanish, African slave trade, and America have influenced the island.

Jamaica- Issues include poverty, violence, and discrimination.

Martinique- About water-borne diseases, their effects, and how they can be prevented.

St. Martin- About how the division between the Dutch and French affect the island. Apparently, generals from both countries divided the island while drinking. Lot of competition between restaurants. The Dutch tend to have better hotels. The island is a hub for economic, cultural, and political diversity.



Aruba, Bonier, and Curacao-  Why do so many people visit? The climate/ environment/ geography is great. Powers has switched hands many times. Businesses can flourish on the islands.

Bahamas- Islands discovered by Christopher Columbus. Famous pirates there were BlackBeard, Anne Bonny, Mary Reed, and Calico Jack. Also influenced by tourism.

Presentations Day 1

Cuba- Tourism is not as big as many people think.

Saba- Very small island. Difficult to get to.

Trinidad- Always relied on oil. About how the economy has changed.



Haiti- Organizations are ineffective because they do not coordinate priorities and do not base priorities based on actual needs.

St. Vincent and the Grenadines- About how tourism helps the economy. Tourism is not as sensitive to bad weather as agriculture is. The country should try to attract movie and video producers.

Guadeloupe- What has influenced religion and folklore? The first group was the Arawaks in 300 BC.
Arawak women burned off body hair... They were polytheistic. Folklore teaches that the sun and moon came from a cave. Today 95% of population is Roman Catholic.

Presentation - Organizing my Research

(Title slide) I lightened and dulled the image so that it would have
 greater contrast with the title.

For class on Wednesday, I created a PowerPoint presentation following the format our professor posted. The format served as a type of outline which helped me and the other students to determine if we have enough information for our topics and to get an idea of where we are at in general. Our professor then gave us feedback and suggestions on what kind of changes we need in order to improve our research and write great essays.

We went over some basic techniques for making a presentation in class previously. Although the content is the most important past of any presentation, the appearance of slides can affect the ease with which the audience receives the information. Therefore, I tried to follow some important "principles of design," which include alignment, repetition, and contrast. I've included my slides in this post to point out some of the elements I included, but also because I am always open to constructive criticism. In addition, the slides show the basis of my argument and include some of my important research findings.

I included the picture in this slide because it shows an example of

the research I was finding that pushed me to focus on the negative,

instead of positive, impacts.

We had the choice to begin with either our research question or our thesis. I chose to use my research question, mostly because I have two main questions that are guiding my research. Not only am I looking for evidence to support my claim that organizations are ineffective in their efforts, but I am looking for solutions to help these organizations become more effective. 

I thought numbering would be more useful than bulleting for this slide.

Although my slides have more than 6 words per line as suggested by 

some sources, the size of the font, color contrast, and easy-to-read font

make the slides look simple. I was also careful to not overwhelm the 

viewers by including large masses of text.

I actually had four focal points in my original outline, but the instructions were to talk about three, so I cut the last one. However, now after thinking about it, I might instead separate my argument into two separate parts based on the research question they answer. I will have to make a permanent decision on how I will set up my paper relatively soon...

For some reason in this format, I realize evidence for this focal
 point is not as focused as I would like. Out of the context of the
paper I pulled this idea from, I feel like there may be a better
for me to phrase the point or maybe I just need to establish better
connections between the point and its evidence.

I used this picture because it is an example of an organization
advertising using words and images that would satisfy donors.

I will most likely use the map in this slide in my paper. It shows
the regions where PIH is established in Haiti. PIH is a great example
of a local organization that widely contributes to relief effort success.

I tried to make the citations for the pictures the least distracting as possible. Also, I used a repetition of colors and font, both of which I really like.

This slide is straightforward...

So that's my presentation! I think I did a good job of making it look neat and organized, and keeping it simple by including only my most basic ideas. Overall, I think it did help me to recognize potential problems before I begin drafting my paper. Hopefully I'll be able to organize my ideas better and find more research to make more connections.

While continuing my research, I’ve come across some good articles that support my thesis and provide similar information to my previous findings. Although I am glad that there is some unity among sources over my topic, it has been hard to find the right information to fill in the gaps. This makes it challenging to create a full, coherent argument because I’m not exactly sure what these gaps are or what kind of information I need to fill them. I just feel as if I’m missing important informational links that could better my own understanding and enable me to make my own significant connections. And despite some unity of information, the different vocabulary and objectives of researchers make it difficult for me to know if I'm understanding correctly and drawing logical conclusions.

This map shows the regions supported by Partners in Health, locally known as
Zanmi Lasante. If funds went directly to this organization to maintain established
locations as well as expand to other regions of Haiti, significant positive changes
would most likely occur.
(http://www.pih.org/country/haiti)

Also, the articles I’m finding are somewhat broad in the solutions they suggest. Many have similar research conclusions about the inefficiency of natural disaster relief organizations, but the application of the suggested solutions would be hard to enact due to little specificity and the system that is currently in place. 

It’s a nice suggestion that more transparency among organizations about their objectives would be more beneficial for the recipients of relief efforts, but is this possible to enforce? 

At best, this solution is highly improbable. Also, although it seems there are better outcomes when local Haitian organizations are involved in any given disaster-response situation, it seems that outsider organizations do not often actively seek advice from, or partnerships with, these groups. (I hope to find more information about interactions between local and non-local groups and if the system promotes establishing relationships to share information and resources).

I am unsure if there are any policies that could improve this system (coordination between local and non-local groups), or the system in which organizations and donors interact and set priorities. Maybe if there was some type of incentive for non-Haitian groups to work with local ones or an incentive for organizations to align their agendas with the needs expressed by local officials then the billions of dollars raised towards the rebuilding of Haiti could be used effectively. But because most of the issues I am coming across in my research come down to the self-interest of many powerful organizations, and there is no way to change this common motive, solutions are not as easy as they appear. 

It is clear to me that intervention by government, or an entity of high authority, is necessary to spark positive changes. Unfortunately, the people fighting hardest for these changes are at the bottom of power pyramid.

 Many of us have seen and are saddened by the images of Haiti that flood our TV screens. We see devastation, destruction, and death. We hear about the disasters that destroy the homes and hope of Haitian citizens, and the debilitating poverty that affects thousands. Some of us may have even donated money towards relief efforts. But how many of us are aware of where these funds are going and how they are being used? 

I'm embarrassed to say how uninformed I was before I began my research, but I know I am not alone. We are misinformed by the media with images meant to bring in more profits to organizations. We are led to believe that we are providing billions of dollars worth of relief. Sadly, the reality is that the number of dollars being raised does not even remotely reflect the number of dollars being received by Haitian citizens.

Although I didn't choose to research Haiti out of pure curiosity (in fact, I drew the country out of a bag), I am glad to be researching this country. We had the opportunity in class to learn a little bit about the rich culture of Haiti. With some background knowledge and appreciation for the country already in my mind, the new information I came across was disheartening and alarming. When I began researching, it immediately became obvious that a great injustice is being done there. 

Haiti is the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere and, to make matters worse, it seems to be a constant target for natural disasters. As debt and destruction pile up, more and more people become homeless and hopeless. But on top of these misfortunes, after the interventions of many nations there is somehow an even larger debt, a higher cost of living, and other new problems that come with the influx of foreigners. I do believe that intervention from other countries is necessary if we hope to pull Haiti out of debt and rescue its people from the effects of disaster, and I'm not saying that we currently aren't helping at all, but we are clearly doing some things wrong. Part of my research will be to find out what exactly it is we are doing wrong, and, hopefully, along the way I'll also come across some solutions.

Haiti has great potential, we just need to be a friend helping her get back on her feet, not kicking her down with our own self-interests.