Submitted/Debbie Baker
Debbie Baker, database manager at Kansas Biological Survey, learns to graft leaves onto orange trees in Haiti. Baker has traveled to Haiti to help improve record keeping at children's clinics, and hopes to improve ecotourism and reforestation efforts.
KBS staffer puts skills to work in poverty-stricken Haiti
Sometimes tragedy can present opportunity. Although political unrest in Kenya earlier this year lead to widespread rioting, it also led Debbie Baker to a place she never planned on going.
Baker, a database manager at the Kansas Biological Survey, planned to take a mission trip with her church to Kenya earlier this year, but the rioting that followed disputed elections changed those plans. Still wanting to help others, she ended up in Haiti, where she put the skills she uses in her job to work and found a new niche at the same time.
Baker was introduced to Kristi Mompremier, an Iowa native who has been a nurse in Haiti for more than a decade. In May, Baker visited the clinic where Mompremier works with local children in Pignon, near the central part of Haiti. She was surprised at what she saw.
"(Mompremier) has three nutritional centers, which are really just benches. She measures the height and weight of local children and distributes vitamins. She had just been keeping her records in a word file. I set up a database for her, so now she'll be able to take her info and graph it, and keep track of the children's progress," Baker said.
While in Pignon, Baker was invited to take part in the region's first-ever agricultural conference. Agriculturalists from around the area converged on the community — many had to walk because of poor roads and few automobiles — to discuss how they can combat the island's natural woes. For years, the island nation has been deforested. Native trees have been cut down for use as charcoal in cooking. Less than 2 percent of the natural trees remain, Baker said. As a result, nearly all rain water runs off, making it difficult to grow crops. The nation is almost entirely dependent on imported food.
Rising food prices have caused difficulty around the world, but in Haiti, one of the world's poorest countries, they lead to rioting. The riots occurred shortly before Baker's scheduled visit but subsided in time for her to make the trip.
A specialist in water quality, Baker was asked to speak about water and ecotourism. She assists in research into water quality through the Central Plains Center for Bio Assessment at KU. An effort is underway to reforest the region with orange trees. Baker talked about how important the effort is in maintaining rainwater to help with agricultural efforts and to provide more potable water.
Althought her professional skills were of value, one of her other passions helped make a difference in the lives of Pignon residents.
An avid birdwatcher, Baker took her binoculars and bird books along. She found scores of birds that a bird lover would never lay eyes on in North America. "The local residents fell in love with my bird books and wanted to take them everywhere. They have a lot of natural history in Haiti that we don't have here, and that I'm sure people would be interested in seeing," Baker said. "I realized ecotourism could be a good source of income for people in the region."
Baker is planning to return in February to work with local residents on establishing an ecotourism base.
While the tourism industry in Haiti is small, Baker is confident it could expand. The Pignon region receives a lot of visitors — both Rotary International and the United Nations have offices located there. She's selling photos from the island to raise funds to return with binoculars, bird books and supplies to get the effort off the ground. For more information, contact Baker at dbaker@ku.edu.
"I feel like I've found a niche," Baker said of helping launch the ecotourism effort. "It's exciting to equip people and help them learn to rely on their resources to make a sustainable living."
Email Page
Print Page