UNICEF-Haiti and BuildaBridge Collaboration

Contact Information:

BuildaBridge International Dr. J. Nathan Corbitt, President ncorbitt@buildabridge.org Mobile: 610‐656‐3499

BuildaBridge International Partners with UNICEF­Haiti to train community workers in arts­based service to children

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA – BuildaBridge, an arts intervention and education organization based in the Germantown section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania has partnered with UNICEF Haiti to train 90 community workers in Port‐au‐Prince to better serve children of Haiti still in recovery from the devastating earthquake of 2010. Through this alliance with BuildaBridge International, UNICEF will provide local leaders in Haiti with creative and transformative community development skills to meet UNICEF’s vision to “offer children daily opportunities to reclaim their childhood” within the context of building resilient communities.

Community workers will be trained through a train‐the‐trainer model. Fifteen (15) community professionals selected by UNICEF will be taught practical knowledge and skills in community arts, creating safe places for children, and program planning and development. These 15 will in turn, train 90 more youth workers in their communities. .

BuildaBridge is currently developing training materials for this Community Arts for Children training series and will conduct the initial training and supervise initial community trainings. The training services which will be held in 2012.

The Community Arts for Children Training Series is a creative and complimentary addition to the holistic recovery efforts in Haiti. Part of the Arts Relief and Development strategy of BuildaBridge International, the goal of the project is to build human, social and organizational capacity for organizations working with children and youth in local communities. The training will be offered in three (3) training workshops of five (5) days each. Lectures, community asset research, creative art‐making and place‐making, and group projects are integral to the training. Trainer manuals, student texts and workbooks will be provided in Haitian Kreyol, as will the online supplemental audio/video files. Pre and post testing of participants’ knowledge and post program evaluation will be conducted in Haiti.

Since Haiti’s 2010 earthquake, the need to protect children from abuse, violence, and exploitation has increased. Many children have been orphaned or separated from their

BuildaBridge Transforming Lives Through the Creative Arts 205 West Tulpehocken Street, Philadelphia, PA 19144 W: www.buildabridge.org E: info@buildabridge.org T: 215 842 0428

families. According to UNICEF, one of the long‐term development partners in Haiti, more than 750,000 children were directly affected. One of the concerns is the extreme fragility of children living in crisis, poverty, and trauma. Many of them are vulnerable due to the lack of education, health care, and most of all, genuine nurture. Consequently, the US government established the Operation Protect Children (OPC) initiative which focuses on the development of child‐friendly spaces.

This new initiative is in line with BuildaBridge's mission to meet the needs of the most vulnerable through the creation of safe places through trauma‐informed, hope‐infused, child‐centered spaces and relationships. BuildaBridge has strengthened its commitment to children in Haiti. With over 10 years of serving children and families in transitional homes in Philadelphia and informal settlements abroad, BuildaBridge International understands the importance of fostering hope and healing for those who have been traumatized.

Based on community assessment surveys conducted by BuildaBridge in Haiti in 2010 and 2011, many local Haitian organization leaders and workers lack the tools and knowledge necessary to form creative and safe, healing spaces for children or to build capacity for their organizations. According to a UNICEF report, more child‐friendly spaces are needed to reach 150,000 children, and 250 community workers need to be trained nationwide over the next years.

The Community Arts for Children Training Series is offered as part of the BuildaBridge Institute, a training and applied‐research academy of BuildaBridge International designed to prepare creative artists and community workers to integrate the arts effectively in education, community and human development.

Now in its eleventh year, the Institute has trained more than 525 professionals worldwide, and has attracted a faculty of 85 professionals in the field. Trainings have been held in Egypt, Thailand, Malaysia, Haiti, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Kenya, and the Netherlands. The annual BuildaBridge Institute is conducted in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania the first week of June in the United States of America. Since 2008, the BuildaBridge Institute has formed an educational alliance with Eastern University to offer a Master's Degree in Urban Studies, Arts in Transformation Concentration. For more information about BuildaBridge the Institute, or our work in Haiti visit www.buildabridge.org or call 215‐842‐0428.

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BuildaBridge Transforming Lives Through the Creative Arts 205 West Tulpehocken Street, Philadelphia, PA 19144 W: www.buildabridge.org E: info@buildabridge.org T: 215 842 0428