Featuring: Geneviève Martel
Geneviève Martel is a French teacher by profession, for immigrants in Quebec City. She studied to be an elementary school teacher. Geneviève fell in love with Haiti and community volunteer work in 2000 during her college. It was when she went on her first trip to Haiti, as a student participant with Amitie Haïti-Lévis.
The administration council gave her the title of "Student's representative". Soon, she became the Secretary and then, in 2009, the President of the organization. Meanwhile, she did a one year universitary certificate in International Co-operation and kept traveling and learned Spanish to add to her skill set.
Interview:
1. What kind of events inspired you in your youth to work with developing nations like Dominican Republic and Haiti?
I've always been curious about others countries. I remember, as a 6-7 years old child, looking through the Atlas and being very interested by all the pictures taken in Africa. I’ve somehow always been touched by poverty.
2. Please tell us about the work you do there with your team.
Amitie Haïti-Lévis is a non-profit organization with two objectives. The first one and the most important is the sensibilization of the students, here, in Canada, about the situation of developing countries and the fact that the majority of the world population lives in a different kind of lifestyle, a lot different than ours and usually with less life-quality. To achieve that goal, the best way is to make the student live that kind of life. The founders didn’t want to organize some touristic trips to 1/3 world countries but they also wanted to help, on a small scale of course to the population visited.
At least once a year, a group between 8 to 12 students (from 18 to 25 years) travel to Haïti or Dominican Republic for 2 weeks. Forget about big hotels and luxurious transport! We want the students to be as close as possible with the reality of the majority : small hotels or when possible, sleeping in houses with families or very close to them, meals cooked by our local partners. We are taking about a real immersion into another culture and lifestyle.
How do we help? By doing small construction projects chosen by our local partners, respecting de real necessities of the population : we build chairs, desks for schools, we repair houses, etc.
We also love to had an educational part of the project : conferences about health, SIDA, etc. Since last year, we have also started durable project that encourages autonomy of the population, e.g. providing them goats and give them the possibility to have more goats, consequently food and money. Amitié Haïti-Lévis is small, we’re not hiding it. But there’s something harder to hide, i.e. the importance of our projects and the impact they have not only in Dominican Republic and Haïti, but also the change they provoke in the mentalities of the Canadian students. "Ti gren fè gwo pyebwa à" (From a little seed grows a great tree) This is what we are: with small resources but a lot of heart and honesty, we do great things!
3. Which sources and people do you draw your inspirations from?
I’m not a dreamer. I’m aware of our limits, us, as "small people". But I also know that we don’t have to do big things to have a positive impact. My inspiration, I find it in persons realistic that don’t lose their time trying to change the whole world, but in people like the person next door who helps the elderly of the neighbourhood doing their grocery.
4. Why is it so important for you and your team to work for international development? What motivates you guys?
We cannot escape it, it’s like if we were living in one big country now! Events happening far away having an impact on our life here! As Canadians, we are lucky because we have hundreds of organizations and government programs ready to help us if we lose our job, get sick. But 1/3 of world countries generally don't benefit from that kind of social welfare and assistance.
5. Why is it so important to work towards what you really believe in?
If we don’t.. then what are we going to work on? I want to be happy, to go to bed at night and feel good about what I’ve done in my day. How? By working towards what I believe in: helping others, simply by holding the door behind me.
6. What steps can governmental organizations take, to create a positive change for countries like Haiti and DR?
They can limit the cost of their own operations. I can write it a thousand time, it won’t be enough. That is the problem. Concentrate the money! we all have to the real projects. Those big organizations also need to communicate more with each other and take decisions together to create an overall view plan.
9. What are some of the ways by which regular people, particularly youth can help make a positive change for your cause?
Our goal is to sensibilize the youth here, in Quebec city, I think that one way to make a positive change is for everyone to take the time to learn about others cultures, not only their present but also their past, the history that built them, and of course, by transmitting that information forward! Being open!
10. More information on: Amitie Haïti-Lévis
Have you been inspired by someone who has brought a positive change or made a positive difference on a macro or a micro level?
Please get in touch with us and send your ideas and suggestions to: info@nomanslandpromotions.com
