The long road for Haiti
MIT can help rebuild Haiti by sharing its expertise in engineering and urban planning, providing technical training in areas like database management and wireless technology and building relationships with universities in Haiti, Frantz Verella, Haiti's former minister of Public Works, Transport and Communications, told the MIT community at a presentation on Friday. Joined by Patrick Delatour, Chairman of the Presidential Commission for Reconstruction and the Minister of Tourism, Verella spoke about actions taken by the Haitian government since January's devastating earthquake, as well as the government's vision for reconstruction over the next 20 years. Titled "Haiti: the Plan for Reconstruction," the presentation was the first of several forums to be sponsored by MIT's Committee on Race and Diversity over the next year. "With issues of race and diversity, there is no better topic to begin with," said J. Phillip Thompson, co-chair of the committee and professor in...