I could rehash the obvious; cholera being introduced to Haiti via negligent and entirely disrespectful practices by the UN...most of you know that story. If you don't yet, please go to the links and read or watch.
I could write a puff-piece about how great NGO XXX is combating poor water quality, drilling wells, and making some cool, new filtration process. If you want those resources, I can provide them for you.
The UN has declared today as World Water Day, and although I have issues with how their 'peacekeepers' introduced a devastating (water-borne) disease to Haiti (and it has of course spread beyond that border...), I felt I couldn't tackle that massive topic.
Instead, I want to introduce a small animation that was released today. Please join me over the orange curlicue and take a look:
The Story of Cholera is an animation produced by the Global Health Media Project, a small organization focused on producing short healthcare-related videos for use in low-resource settings. The videos reflect best practices, are free, and are available to be uploaded to nearly any small, hand-held device.
This is the English version:
and here is the Haitian Creole version in an Andeyo accent:
The narration was provided by Carel Pedre, one of the most popular radio personalities in Haiti (live-stream of his show available at Chokarella). He was able to offer two widely understood versions of Creole, so both are available. The animation is by Yoni Goodman, the award-winning animator of Waltz with Bashir.
The Story of Cholera, and all the other media produced by GHMP, will be narrated into what ever language is appropriate. Hopefully, the narration can be provided by someone like Carel, a local with studio skills and knowledge of common dialects. Currently they are working toward versions in Caribbean Spanish, African French, Swahili, Bengali, and Yoruba.
Please drop by Global Health Media, take a look at their works, spread the word about cholera prevention, and don't forget to support water resource protection where ever you are...it's the most essential resource with the fewest protections.