A group shot outside of the Nap Vanse Family Clinic – in the photo are some of our extraordinary doctors and nurses

Goofing off with We Advance co-founder Barbara Giullaume

Outside of the first ever Vital Voices & Bank of America Haitian Women’s Conference, which I participated in

The ever-inspiring Suzanne Lerner (of Michael Stars) and We Advance co-founder and country director Aleda Frishman

1. MEDICAL CLINIC - The clinic now sees about 150 patients a day and is the only clinic in the neighborhood to focus on women & children (though there is free access for all).

2. EDUCATION AND OUTREACH - We have several programs for the community including English education classes, health & hygiene classes, human rights & gender based violence classes, and children’s programs (I particularly love bath day where once a week 200 kids finally are able to bathe in clean water).

3. ADVOCACY - We Advance collaborates with over 40 other NGOs throughout Haiti.  Recently, I was named a Vital Voices Global Ambassador (you can see some more pictures of me at the first ever Vital Voices & Bank of America International Women’s Conference here).  As a Global Ambassador I will be able to continue to advocate for Haitian women on a local, national, and international level — ensuring their voices are heard and their presents is felt socially, economically, and politically.

January 12, 2012 will be the two-year anniversary of the earthquake that devastated many of their lives and threw those of us invested in the country into triage mode. The network of women activists, business and political leaders that I had been working with in Haiti before the earthquake at Femmes en Democratie (FED), woke up one day to their children screaming, their grandmothers dying, their houses falling and their country destroyed. They had no time to grieve their losses because there was work to do.

Two weeks after the quake, Danielle, the founder of FED, made it onto a plane to D.C. in the only skirt she had left, a pair of flip-flops, and not even a dollar on her, to speak to members of Congress about the devastation. She was convinced that people had to know the extent of the loss and, in particular, what the women of Haiti needed. Over the last two years, she has become a voice for women throughout Haiti.

Each of the 23 women present on that balmy day in a garden restaurant in Port-au-Prince had a similar story. Lives were lost and businesses shattered. But there were neighborhoods to rebuild, people to help, and children to care for, so no one had time to stop and cry. As one guest sobbed: “We have never cried. We have been so strong. It is time to cry.” And we did. We mourned deeply.

Then we moved on.

So now on the two-year anniversary, my Haitian women colleagues want you to know, it is time to move on.

With only 6 women parliamentarians and 4 women appointed ministers, Haiti is in step with the rest of the globe, where women still hold only 15.6 percent of elected seats. How can we make sure the voice of half the population will be heard in decision and policy making processes affecting Haiti? We need to support female politicians through training and assistance and to increase women’s political participation at local, regional and national levels. And we need to push our government aid organizations like USAID who have money allocated for Haiti to spend more on women and make the funds accessible to smaller, micro-NGO’s in Haiti that work with women.

Haitian women also need money and jobs. Studies show that when women control finances, more is spent on health, education and well-being of their family and community. By investing in women, you are investing in the whole country.

Haiti is now “open for business.” It is ripe for investment opportunity under the visionary leadership of new President Michel Martelly. With its proximity, human capital and young, smart Haitian business people spearheading, Haiti is ready to become a name in manufacturing and agriculture. For companies who are investing in Haiti or are considering it, we ask that you look through the gender lens at each of your projects. Measure not only the impact it will have on women in the community, but how your business can be better served by hiring more women, putting them in managerial positions, and giving them technical training.

This is not about billion dollar investments; it is about small investments in existing or small businesses that want to expand, especially women run businesses destroyed in the earthquake. They need access to loans with better conditions, vocational training, business education and technology. At the women’s trade show in Port-au-Prince last month, I saw beautiful merchandise ready to export but they need partners.

Haiti is not just “rebuilding” with cement and muscle. Haiti is “reimagining” a nation, with a bold vision and collective dream. They have the opportunity to look towards the single vision of citizen participation in decision-making, where everyone’s rights are respected and women have an equal say in the process and equal opportunity for economic freedom. President Martelly, with his willpower, energy, intelligence and heart is a strong supporter of women. One constitutional amendment that he supports says that, if ratified, 30 percent of offices in national life must be occupied by women.

Pretty progressive. VERY smart business.

Actress Maria Bello is co-founder of the Haitian women’s organization, We Advance. (weadvance.org)

Who knew a woman who runs around on TV with a gun and another who runs around in heels would have so much in common? We were brought together through a bizzare turn of events, and we discovered our mutual goal of empowering women using our own unique voices. We decided to journey together with Kris, Farouk Shami, Patricia Arquette, Suzanne Lerner, and a few of their friends to experience the Haiti that Maria has come to know and love through her organization, We Advance.

We Advance was started after the earthquake in January 2010, as a direct response to the increase in gender-based violence and poor health care for women in the poorest areas of the country. We Advance works with and represents the voices of over 40 micro-organizations working in the most desperate situations and communities in Haiti.

Our itinerary was to visit some of the small, grassroots NGOs that We Advance works with, including Artists for Peace and Justice, Femmes en Democratie, and Give Love, and to join women at the trade fair and fashion show in celebrating their achievements.

This is who we celebrated:

Danielle St. Lot: Danielle has been a women’s rights activist in Haiti for 35 years. She galvanizes women to stand up for economic, political, and social justice and equality with her organization Femmes en Democratie. She launched the women’s trade fair in Haiti this past weekend with women artisans and designers from all over the country to promote their products and to show their beautiful fashions. As a former Minister of Commerce, Danielle knows that it is through not only charity but creating employment that Haiti will rise.

Claudia Apaid: Claudia is the daughter of a Haitian entrepreneur, who went to an orphanage to give toys to kids for Christmas, and, seeing the appalling conditions that the children lived in, founded Sow a Seed in 2004. Sow a Seed is an organization that collaborates with partners with orphanages all over the country to give better care to their children. She threw a Christmas party this weekend for 500 orphans, many of whom experienced their first Christmas ever.

Barbara Guillaume: Barbara is a women’s leader, poet, singer, and co-founder of We Advance. She is running for mayor of Cité Soleil, the poorest slum in the western hemisphere, because, as she says, “If we can change the worst of Haiti, we can change all of Haiti.”

Caroline Sada: Caroline is a beautiful, 37-year-old powerhouse who grew up in Haiti and was educated in the States. She worked as a high-level executive with an international makeup company and left it all after the earthquake to come back and rebuild her country.

Sophia Martelly: Before becoming the First Lady of Haiti, Sophia dedicated her life and energy to people in need in the slums of Haiti. Now she will launch her country’s “12 by 12″ initiative in January, which will enable thousands of households run by single mothers to buy food and send their children to school.

We came to celebrate the thousands of Haitian women who are working tirelessly every day to bring economic and social justice to all people in Haiti. So to them we say: we are humbled and moved to have been with you and to tell the world about your grace. We are proud to tell the world your stories.

The mission statement of We Advance is, “We are stronger together than we are alone.”

We are grateful to partner with such amazing women and to have been on this journey together.

Please join the journey: weadvance.org.

She will join Nobel Peace Prize winner Professor Mohamed Yunus, President Bill Clinton, Denis O’Brien (owner and executive chairman of Digicel), and 30 other high-level international politicians and business leaders, who are committed to the reconstruction of Haiti. The Counsel will focus on economic growth and investment. Ms. Bello’s focus is investing in women and girls, supporting their full participation in the reconstruction efforts, both politically and economically, and making women’s healthcare a priority. She has worked in Haiti for the last 3 years with Artists for Peace & Justice, the Haitian women’s group Femmes en Democratie, and is the founder of the Haitian-NGO We Advance.

“I have never been so hopeful for Haiti, since the election of President Martelly,” says Ms. Bello. “His presidency signals the start of a new political era for Haiti, founded in transparency and self-determination. His governance, guidance, and collaboration with the international community will lead Haiti through a thriving reconstruction.”

This is a cross post of an article I wrote for the Huffington Post. You can find the original here.

Today I begin my fast for Darfur. The Fast for Darfur began with Mia Farrow’s 12 day hunger strike protesting the president of Sudan’s decision to throw out of his country the NGO’s who were the main suppliers of food to the Darfurian refugees. Mia ended her fast on doctor’s orders and Sir Richard Branson decided to take the baton and fast for three days. Since then, hundreds of people have joined the fast to stand in solidarity with the people of Darfur. My friend Blake Mycoskie passed the baton to me, so here I am. Fasting.

I have done fasts in the past — (mainly to shrink my ass or enlarge my spirit!) but have never done one in solidarity and protest. Never drank only water for three days without some kind of selfish motivation to see me through. Now, here I am outside of Boston, Mass. doing one of the funniest movies I have ever been in and I am choosing to start this fast today.

I have been so happy lately, which is somewhat rare for me. Laughs a minute with Adam Sandler and Kevin James and the crew. I live at the beach and have the day off today to just kick around. I should be eating lobster at Lobsta Land. But NOOOOO, instead I am trying to mix things up by drinking very hot, warm, lukewarm or cold water throughout the day, hoping that my body functions that are usually awakened with caffeine will be woken up. And why?

Because people are dying.

Hundreds of thousands of men, women and children in Darfur have been systematically murdered in Omar al-Bashir’s campaign of genocide and millions have been left homeless. Now, after years of continuing suffering, these courageous people have to face starvation on top of murder, mutilation, displacement and rape.

So I am fasting in solidarity with my friend, Niemat Ahmadi whose family and friends are hungry and displaced in the camps in Darfur. I am fasting for the 40 young girls (as young as 4) who were brutally raped by the Janjaweed militia as reported in Halima Bashir’s incredible book, Tears of the Desert: A Memoir of Survival in Darfur. I am fasting because I am a mother and a human being, and because I know that if I am not apart of the solution I am apart of the problem.

After 18 hours of not eating, I am now staring at the bag of sourdough pretzels on my kitchen counter. I am salivating. I am “starving.” (Like I will ever really know what starving is really like.)

I don’t know how much this fast will accomplish. Maybe a person or two will feel moved to go to the website and find out what they can do to help to stop the genocide and with enough of our voices we can finally put an end to it. Or maybe it will simply wake me up out of the haze of being a working mother, who is constantly worried about being able to support her son in this economy and if the new lines on my lips mean my career is over.

Either way, today the people of Dafur stand clearly and strongly in my mind and I just want them to know they are not alone.

To learn more about the fast and what you can do for the people of Darfur, go to fastdarfur.org.

The Hamptons for Haiti event on July 17, 2011 was a huge success! 250 people came to support We Advance and Global Dirt. It was such an incredible feeling seeing my awesome partners, Barbara Guillaume, Aleda Frishman and Alison Thompson along with the beautiful Nicole Ross from Global Dirt, standing on stage and telling their stories.  As my friend Melky Jean said at the end – these women are “spiritual Gangsters.”  I agree. Not only these two groups but all of the NGO’s in Haiti, small and large that are getting stuff done on the ground and not getting bogged down in bureaucracy.  We were also incredibly moved that many of the volunteers we started with after the earthquake showed up to support us, though most of us are doing our own things.  We all raised a toast to our dear friend who brought us all together.  Thank you all of our old and new friends who showed up for us yesterday and are now supporting our efforts. Nap Vanse! Maria

To RSVP and buy tickets: The Hamptons for Haiti

The data garnered by this week’s long process of mapping and survey is still being sorted through. All known operations were visited, as well as those ones stumbled upon as we walked the streets documenting all services available in the area, their contact information, and hours of operation.

While walking the streets we decided to take the time to develop a survey we could conduct in a few minutes with various women of all ages doing different activities (bathing, selling, walking with children, etc.). We have gotten some great information and I will be sharing our findings as the data is translated.

We started with 20 volunteers who worked 8 hours a day for 6 days a week. We held trainings with the ladies before they went out. We went over the mapping and survey in detail and then did role-playing of the FAQ. These were women from Cité Soleil who are all able to read and write. They are excited about WE ADVANCE and many would like to continue to volunteer for our organization as needed. Olga and Barbara were responsible for pulling this team together.

FOCUS GROUPS:

We held a focus group of 40 women from Wharf Jeremy. Our goal was to get an accurate idea of what the living conditions are truly like and about their hygiene/birth control habits. This was a very informative discussion.  We asked a lot of questions ranging from sex and GBV to where they get their water. They were very interactive and asked a lot of questions from us and told us about services they would like to see WE ADVANCE put on for them.

HYGIENE:

Today we held about a 5 hour session at the clinic. First Maeve did the health, sex and hygiene classes. All was very well received. She did, however pick up on the areas where we will need to be very diligent in the clinic about teaching. The GREAT news is all the women would like the prodev shot for birth control so that is something we need to stock up heavily on. If all WE ADVANCE does is get the majority of the women covered with these shots in Wharf Jeremy, we have done an amazing job. Everyone asks for toothbrushes (we are out now) so we need to stock up on that too. We really need to push condom use and Maeve even discussed how hard it is to get a man to use one and she did role playing with the women on what to say, etc. Everyone got condoms

For more news on and ways to get involved with WE ADVANCE check out our website weadvance.org

First, let me tell you about some of the women working tirelessly, on the ground in Haiti, for We Advance. There is our ever-present Tina. What would we do without her? The work we are doing has no set hours, and at times Tina is putting in upwards of 16-hour days with no overtime pay. My hats are off to her. Furthermore (I’ll tell you more about details of the program in a moment), Tina stepped up to a leadership role in terms of our Cité Soliel mapping and survey. Not only did she participate in the development of the question and focus area, but she also created our forms, made FAQ, translated everything and printed all necessary documents. She helped train the women and took it upon herself to be present early in the morning to send the women off and here every afternoon as they arrived back. She counted clipboards, pens, and badges and answered any questions our ladies had. Tina has also enlisted the assistance of her sister, who is currently volunteering by translating all the data to English for our use. I could go on, but I will leave my gushing for another post.

And there is Maeve… WOW what a woman. We are BLESSED to have her make a commitment of 6 months to We Advance! Maeve is a soldier and nurse in the British Army. Her specialties included training medical staff and teaching. She is a firecracker and a force to be reckoned with. She held our first hygiene classes. The women were very receptive to her and interacted with her easily. She has done inventory, made lists of what we need. Treated several patients at the clinic already and conducted outreach programs in the community de-worming children and talking about the services at the clinic. She is currently living at the DIRT house and has been on a mission to get the accommodations up to par for our future volunteers. She has also already began training our Haitian medical staff… Oh and by the way did I tell you she has been here less than a week?!

And also, Bill Evans… well what can I say… Would WE ADVANCE even be in existence without this man? We are still so new, only a few months of operations. We still receive free boarding, internet services, and office space (saving us countless dollars). What a safe, great area for us to hold our meetings and brainstorming sessions. In addition, when the equipment has technical difficulties, he makes his personal printers, computer, etc available to WE ADVANCE. He is truly one of our saving graces and heroes.