Public-Private Partnerships for Sustainable Development

We have learned that the Interim Haiti Recovery Commission has posted a number of open positions, based in Haiti. They include:

•  Chief Master Planning Officer – Description | [PDF, 49.9kB]
• Stagiaire à la CIRH   (6 positions are open) -Description | [PDF, 55.2kB]
• Data Analyst – Description | [PDF, 67.2kB]
• Health Sector Lead Specialist Description | [PDF, 249kB]
• Media Spokesperson Description | [PDF, 55kB]

To apply, send a cover letter with resume to resumes@cirh.ht indicating in the subject to which position you are applying. Only applications corresponding to openings listed above will be reviewed.

The general URL for the IHRC website is: http://en.cirh.ht/

by Bob Worth and David Stillman

Biofuels Digest recently conducted a survey on the “food versus fuel” debate, specifically on the question of the “morality” of different sources of biofuel, ranging from corn to marine-based feedstocks. Respondents were self-selected, mostly US-based and largely made up of Digest readers, but gave wide-ranging comments.  As stated by the Digest “The public says “depends on the feedstock,” but generally more moral than converting land for oil & gas or housing.”  Highlights of survey results are given below, and more fully at   http://biofuelsdigest.com/bdigest/2011/04/06/food-vs-fuel-are-biofuels-moral-or-immoral/

Recent efforts by the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) are also noteworthy for emphasizing the benefits to small-scale farmers in developing countries in growing both food and biofuel feedstock. Called ‘integrated food-energy systems,’ FAO finds that small-scale, local biofuel production brings economic and environmental advantages. As stated, “Integrating and intensifying food and energy production has the potential to improve food and energy security in rural villages and the national level as well.”  www.fao.org/bioenergy/67564/en/

The Biofuels Digest survey found broad support for well-managed biofuels. The first question was key – “Is it moral, or immoral, to use a (human) food crop at any time to make energy or fuel? Examples could include anything from an ethanol cook stove, a home-based corn pellet stove, up to industrial-scale production.”  The results were — Moral 62%, Immoral 16%, Other 21%, No response 1%.  Comments were welcomed, and PPAF gave a detailed one.

Respondents were most comfortable with producing biofuels from waste oils and municipal and agricultural waste, and from idle land not suitable for growing crops.  The survey found much less support for using land previously allocated for conservation, for using trees rather than crops, or for using farmland for shopping centers. 

Obviously this is a topic of great interest to the Public-Private Alliance Foundation, as we work to encourage adoption of cookstoves fueled by sugar- and sorghum-based ethanol as an alternative to Haiti’s heavy reliance on wood and charcoal, and the consequent health, economic, and environmental problems. At the same time, popular questions do arise, and need to be answered.

Creating a locally-based, sustainable ethanol industry and spreading the adoption of ethanol-burning cookstoves should be especially valuable to people in Haiti. Food versus fuel criticisms can be addressed, and as shown in the FAO program, a local ethanol industry could bring significant benefits, help reduce Haiti’s massive deforestation and help overcome poverty.

PPAF is a member of the Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves http://cleancookstoves.org/ and is a partner with SIMACT (Societe Immobiliere d’Agriculture, de Commerce, et de Tourisme) http://www.simact.net/ , Project Gaia http://www.projectgaia.com/ , and other organizations to promote ethanol cookstoves in Haiti.

Following the Global Summit for Public-Private Partnerships on Energy, on June 2 at the UN, the Public-Private Alliance Foundation will hold a Partners Against Poverty meeting also at the UN on Friday, June 3.  This will cover specific business prospects for community-scale electricity in the Dominican Republic, Haiti and Madagascar.  The meeting will discuss issues arising from the Summit and introduce two technology companies with relevant business interests.   Seating for the June 3 meeting is limited.  If you would like to learn more, contact David Stillman, ppafoundation@gmail.com

“Global Perspectives on Gold Mining: Evaluating Potential and Constraints” headlined a May 3 panel discussion at the United Nations, in a side event to the UN Commission on Sustainable Development.  The Pueblo Viejo Dominicana mine in the Dominican Republic was a special focus; it is expected soon to become the world’s 4th largest gold mine.  Jean-Marie Wolff, president of the (Haitian-American) SImACT Mining Holding Inc. joined David Stillman and PPAF board member George Garland at this.  SImACT controls a property in Haiti with both gold and copper potential. 

Gold Mining Consultations

  Read more…

NOTE:  On September 29, PPAF received the following notice:  “Sir, GI/DS has ceased trading and is no longer operating.  Regards.”    The proposed September summit did not take place. 

The Public-Private Alliance Foundation is teaming with Global Investment Summits and the SImACT Foundation to identify participants, speakers and sponsors for the upcoming Haiti Reconstruction and Sustainability Summit.  The Summit will take place in Miami in September; click for the draft program.        

Lord Kevin Lumb of Global Investment Summits, Fritz Clairvil of SImACT Foundation and David Stillman, Public-Private Alliance Foundation, traveled from April 10-14 to Port-au-Prince, Leogane and Jacmel to prepare for the Summit and to view possible Haitian venues for a follow-up Summit. 

 They met representatives of government, business and international organizations, including the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, including its Investment Promotion Center, UN Development Programme, Clinton Bush Haiti Fund, the National Organization for the Advancement of Haitians, Donna Karen, creator of Donna Karen New York and DKNY, and others.  In Jacmel the team visited the Hotel Cap Lamandou and Belle Rive properties as investment prospects.  The trip provided many good contacts and future leads.  Meetings relevant to the Ethanol Cookstove Project also took place.

Kevin Lumb, Fritz Clairvil, David Stillman

 SImACT and the Public-Private Alliance Foundation are assisting Global Investment Summits (GIS), a company well experienced in convening business summits worldwide, in relation to the September event and possibly future ones re Haiti. GIS aims to donate  net profits from the September summit, to SImACT Foundation, which is registered as a non-profit in Haiti, for a project with visible results to assist Haiti’s rebuilding after the earthquake.   

At the Disaster Response and Recovery Summit in Orlando, Miyamoto International was a major sponsor and its president, Kit Miyamoto, made an impressive presentation on his company’s work for assessing earthquake damage in Port-au-Prince and engaging in repair of buildings.  See his presentation on Miyamoto’s Disaster Response Work in Haiti . Miyamoto also posted this video: Haiti Earthquake: One Year Later. 

On March 11 Kit Miyamoto was riding the subway in Tokyo when the Japanese earthquake and tsunami struck.   In a moment he became an observer, participant and expert.   He has written several circulars on what he has seen, and on March 24 his company posted this lengthy video Japan Earthquake March 11, 2011 – Presentation by Miyamoto  

Both the people of Haiti and Japan are suffering through the effects of calamity, and deserve all possible assistance.  Miyamoto International is one of the companies contributing to recovery.  We of the Public-Private Alliance Foundation offer condolences to families who have lost so much. those involved and a desire to work together for a brighter future.

On March 1-2 David Stillman will speak in Orlando, Florida at the Disaster Response and Recovery Summit, organized by Global Investment Summits, Ltd.  This will bring key decision makers in the aid and development community together with government policy-makers and partnering contractors looking to assist in the aftermath of disasters around the globe. 

 Morning sessions will introduce the presenters, while afternoon sessions will devoted to private consultations between attendees and participants to discuss key issues affecting disaster preparedness, response and recovery.

Stillman will participate in the panel on Aid and Relief.  His topic is “Lives, Livelihoods and the Environment in Post-Earthquake Haiti.”  Other panelists represent THW – the Federal Agency for Technical Relief (Germany), World Cares Center and Mercy Corps. 

The Summit will include panels on “Preparedness, Prediction and Assessment,” “Disaster Response,” “Public-Private Cooperation.” “Communications, Logistics & Supply Chain Management,” and “Reconstruction and Recovery.”     

In March 2010 Stillman spoke at a similar meeting, in Miami, “Haiti: Resources for Reconstruction and Humanitarian Assistance Summit.”   

The Public-Private Alliance Foundation organized meetings from January 13 through 17 for representatives of Blume Distillation, LLC, which is planning to manufacture community-level distilleries for alcohol production that fuel clean cookstoves, motorbikes, etc.  The distilleries will accept sugar cane and a variety of other feedstocks and can receive support through distance monitoring.  The aim is to encourage agribusiness both in feedstock production and in co-products of the distillation process which can enrich the soil and support secondary markets.

Meetings were held with several potential private investors, with Ambassadors to the UN from Madagascar and Haiti, and with UN officials.  On the 15^th SImACT, a Haitian-American investment group, organized a session with more than 50 participants at their Brooklyn headquarters for discussions on both the clean cookstoves and the distilleries. 

On January 14, Blume Distillation represented and investors joined Stillman at the Conference for Teaching About the UN.  Blume staffed a display table at the conference along with Project Gaia.  Stillman addressed the conference on the topic “Fighting the Silent Killer in the Kitchen: Achieving the MDGs.”

Photos are available on the Foundation’s Flickr account.

We join with all friends of Haiti in commemorating the tragic events of 12 January 2010.  We extend our sympathies to relatives and friends of those lost, and our hope and determination for a brighter future.  We are working with individuals and organizations to contribute toward rebuilding Haiti.

Remarks prepared for the Conference of the Committee for Teaching about the UN (CTAUN) – Achieving the MDGs – Teaching for Action

United Nations, 14 Jan 2011

David Stillman, PhD, Executive Director

 Public-Private Alliance Foundation

“Fighting the silent killer in the kitchen – Achieving the MDGs”

We think of a barbeque as a pleasant alternative for weekend outings in good weather.  For half the world’s population, biomass fuel (wood, dung, agricultural residues) is the everyday essential to meet all the basic energy needs of cooking, boiling water, lighting, and, depending on climatic conditions, for space heating.  This is not a picnic but a serious problem with implications across the range of issues treated in the Millennium Development Goals. 

Since adoption of the MDGs the World Health Organization has reported country by country on “percentage of population using solid fuels”, as a key indicator in relation to Goal 7, on environmental sustainability.   But WHO and others have found significant implications from noxious fumes for most of the MDGs, especially Goals 4 and 5 on children’s and mothers’ health.  That’s why WHO has coined the term “the silent killer in the kitchen” and has estimated that 1.9 million people die worldwide each year from exposure to cookstove smoke.  WHO and others have also found serious effects of smoke and gathering fuel in relation to Goal 1 on extreme poverty and Goal 3 on women.  Effects can also be counted in relation to Goal 2 on primary education and Goal 6 on serious diseases. 

The Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves, launched in September 2010 and housed in the UN Foundation, responds to this very simple problem which has such major negative effects.  The founding partners are an impressive group of organizations, companies and UN and government agencies, including strong support from the USA.  The aim is to save lives, empower women, improve livelihoods and combat climate change. 

The Public-Private Alliance Foundation is a partner in that organization, and works with many collaborators.   The Foundation aims to reduce poverty by networking with business, government, academia, the financial community, non-profits, the UN and others.  It focuses on several key issues in the focus countries of Haiti, the Dominican Republic and Madagascar.  Currently the chief emphasis is to promote and help implement in Haiti the introduction of ethanol stoves and fuel, chiefly from locally grown sugar cane.  That’s what I’ll talk about today, one year since the tremendous losses in the earthquake of January 12, 2010.

Burning wood and charcoal for cooking and small business is Haiti’s greatest energy use.  Trucks arrive daily into Port au Prince and other population centers with the charred remains of dwindling forest, often from clandestine operations.  With ever-increasing demand exceeding annual supply, this has stripped the country bare, leading to erosion and hurricane mudslides. Since the devastating earthquake one year ago, conditions have become worse, especially for over a million people now living in cramped tent camps.  Prices have gone up. Add to this the crisis of cholera, which would be greatly eased by ensuring that water was boiled before drinking or washing.

But sugar has a long history in Haiti, though agricultural production and mill output has declined greatly in recent decades.  Distillation for rum and home-made spirits is also well known, but with inefficient processes and much waste. 

So there are challenges but also opportunities, and the current situation of so much misery in the country has brought attention from all over to help and to find innovative solutions. 

Moreover, as the Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves has declared, the time is right internationally, in terms of awareness, research, technology, commitment and the potential of carbon financing.  Pilot projects can blossom into the creation of a thriving and sustainable clean cookstove industry.

Prospects are positive for alcohol fuel and stoves in Haiti.  Ethanol is cheaper than the alternatives – liquid propane gas (LPG), kerosene or charcoal, and the great majority of people can’t afford LPG fuel or stoves.  Ethanol is safe and clean, rivaling LPG in efficiency.  So-called Improved wood and charcoal stoves still rely on trees. 

Our efforts aim to improve the lives and pocketbooks of families, provide jobs for farmers, stove-makers and small entrepreneurs, encourage micro-finance and reduce deforestation.

Several areas of action must be addressed – ethanol production, ethanol distribution, stove production and stove promotion, sales and use.  Plus governmental policy, regulations and promotion.  Each of these involves various actors – public sector, business, technicians, funders and workers. 

The Public-Private Alliance Foundation is collaborating with several partners to take action in this seemingly simple but actually complicated area.  Representatives of some of these organizations are here in this room. 

One is a Haitian-American investment group known as SIMACT.  Most of the shareholders in SIMACT left Haiti in their youth.  They have become successful in the USA but their hearts and their resources extend back home to help develop their country of birth.

Another partner is Project Gaia, which has done research, mobilized collaborators, conducted pilot studies in several countries, and has selected the Dometic CleanCook stove as the ideal for production and use in Haiti and elsewhere.  This stove has been in production for many years, and is now going to the “bottom of the pyramid” market.  You can see an example at the information fair. 

I also want to introduce to you Blume Distillation LLC, which aims to produce community-level alcohol fuel distilleries, linked to sustainable agricultural options.  This grows out of the long-standing work of David Blume, founder of the international Institute for Ecological Agriculture.  The company is currently gathering investors and purchasers for appropriately scaled distillation systems that can use various feedstocks and have advanced flexibility, productivity and remote diagnostics.

In brief, our group of for-profit and non-profit partners is focusing on: 

• Simple cook stoves from a well-known marine and leisure camping company, 
• Syrup from a Haitian sugar mill and local sugar farmers, 
• Conversion of syrup into fuel by community-level distilleries,
• Target populations of low-income families, street vendors, and small businesses,
• Support by local and international relief organizations to people displaced by the earthquake,
• Participation by Haitian-American investors and supporters of micro-finance,
• Increased jobs and earnings by Haitian farmers and small entrepreneurs,
• Improved health, especially for women and children, and
• Decreased deforestation.

These efforts draw inspiration from the international policy priorities and constitute practical actions to help achieve the MDGs in Haiti, especially in relation to the themes of today’s panel – Poverty / Hunger / Sustainability.  Please talk with me if you would like to get involved.

 Thank you.