There are things I see in Haiti that just forces me to ask, “What’s wrong with this picture?” I mean, consider the cellphone company Digicel – owned by an Irish billionaire –  and its outsized presence across the country. Literally every inch of Haiti is covered with Digicel’s corporate brand – even the street signs!

The goal here is less about targeting a specific company (though they make it kind of easy) and more so about highlighting the incredible influence of foreign entities all over Haiti’s built environment.

After taking a look at these snapshots, let us know what you think!

I don’t even know how to begin addressing the perplexing nature of this photo. With the juxtaposition of Digicel’s corporate headquarters (taken from behind), the local architecture and the temporary – now permanent – ‘gift of the American people,’ this image is just something else.

Yes – gift of the American people! That’s what the tarp says.

…and I wasn’t making it up about the street signs. They used to look like this:

But now they look like this!

Problem, anyone?

Bottom line is, local context is important, fostering a sense of place is important and preserving a community’s character matters when thinking about urban planning in a place like Haiti (or anywhere to be honest).

Again, not to single out Digicel – which actually is my cellphone provider in Haiti – but in order to improve a place, one has to put the multifaceted wellbeing of that particular place above all other interests.

Not so sure this happening just yet…

 

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