BOYO project - Radio Guacanagaric

Max Jean-Louis is a social entrepreneur, journalist, writer and filmmaker from Haiti.

He is the Founder and Chairman of Radio Guacanagaric: a  citizen radio and social enterprise, headquartered in Sainte-Suzanne, Haiti. Having partnered with Deutsche Welle, he has developed radio programs that reach more than 300,000 people, bringing local reporting that highlights Sustainable Development Goals and life-saving coverage in times of natural disasters to underserved communities. 

In April 2020, Max has been appointed Special Advisor to the Minister of Culture and Communication of Haiti. At this position, he is working on a digital transformation plan and a national cultural policy for the next 25 years. 

In addition, he is also the CEO of Société de Finances et de Services S.A. (Sofiservices S.A.), a social enterprise that is providing financing solutions to small business owners and local entrepreneurs.

Prior, Max wrote for a number of media, including Ayibopost and Le Nouvelliste.

10 years after the 2010 Earthquake, that killed more than 300.000 people in Haiti, many scientific observations have revealed increasing activities for the past months, that hinted another major Earthquake that could happen anytime in Haiti, especially in the North! No later than January 2020, huge earthquakes occurred in Puerto Rico, Jamaica, and Cuba, all neighbors of Haiti.

On the other hand, Haiti is one of the countries most exposed to the severe effects of climate change. 

As a solution, the BOYO project intends to empower the populations of Haiti through multimedia storytelling and innovative technology tools: a mobile app and smart kiosks, in order to build resilience to natural disasters and climate change, in accordance with the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction and the SDGs.

This project that aims to save lives, is expected to become seminal and serve as an example to hundreds of communities worldwide...

Haiti remains extremely vulnerable to natural disasters with more than 96% of the population at risk.

Geological and geophysical studies have shown that Haiti is formed from three distinct tectonic domains.  Recent seismic occurrences are hinting that a major Earthquake and a powerful tsunami could happen at any moment, more specifically to the areas located on the Septentrional-Oriente fault zone. In 1842, the activities of this fault provoked a terrible Earthquake and a tsunami that destroyed Cap-Haitien, Haiti's second-largest city located in the North...It is not a matter of IF but a matter of WHEN...When it will occur, millions of lives could be taken! This also could fragilize more this country and destabilized the whole region, because of the instability and refugees it will provoke. 

Furthermore, Haiti‘s climate has changed over the past four decades: annual mean temperatures have risen, and the rainy season now begins up to three months later than usual. So, as an effect of global warming, hurricanes and floods are intensifying:  Based on complex modeling, NOAA has suggested that an increase in Category 4 and 5 hurricanes are likely, with hurricane wind speeds increasing by up to 10 percent.

The BOYO project, launched by the Radio Guacanagaric will empower the populations of Haiti through multimedia storytelling and innovative technologic tools, in order to build resilience to natural disasters and climate change

Storytelling, a modern technique, consists in using narrative discourse in a communication strategy. This new method echoes ancestral Haitian traditions of orality and the transmission of knowledge. Storytelling can be used to build resilience to natural disasters and climate change, to find or recreate collective practices in order to minimize the impacts of inevitable disasters and tackle the sources of other disasters resulting from climate change

The main goal of this project will be to produce multimedia contents and to design technological tools that will enable these populations to "exist in disasters", to know how to behave before, during and after the occurrence of natural disasters as well as the articulation of prospective, corrective and compensatory approaches to disaster risk management. 

The capsules will be broadcasted on the Radio Guacanagaric and other radios.

Plus, those empowering contents and technological tools such as solar-operated smart kiosks and a mobile application, will be available and implemented everywhere in Haiti, in city halls and other places.

KIOSK

KIOSK

While The BOYO project will be implemented in all Haiti, we will put an emphasis on the populations most exposed to the natural disasters, located mostly in the Greater North.

The direct beneficiaries of the project will be more than 2.189.774 men and women, located in the North, North-East and North-West departments of Haiti where is the Septentrional Fault. Those people for the most part, are living in cities  (Cap-Haitien, Ouanaminthe, Port-de-Paix, Fort-Liberté) with huge challenges like anarchic constructions and lack of adequate infrastructures. Some of the places are coastal cities, so they are subjected to tsunamis and floods.

A significant part of them is also located in remote rural areas with no electricity, clean water or proper access to vital information and relevant content about the disasters risks. Those populations are the poorest so they are cutting trees for charcoal production. According to scientists, forests may be protecting continents and countries against cyclonic storms, such as hurricanes, typhoons and cyclones. But, as these forests disappear in Haiti, scientists anticipate more frequent and more destructive storms in the upcoming years.

On the other hand, in the medium term, the indirected beneficiaries will be the 11 millions of Haitians.

The BOYO project relates to the Elevate Prize and will constitute a breakthrough. It will seek to bring awareness to natural disasters and climate change. Nowadays, there is perhaps no more important set of challenges than understanding the impacts of disasters and climate change on our societies. And, 10 years after the 2010 Earthquake in Haiti that killed more than 300.000 people, the right lessons have clearly not been learned by local authorities, ordinary citizens, and the international community.

Also, Haiti is the poorest country of the Western Hemisphere and sustainability has been and still is a significant challenge. 

2020 marked the 10th anniversary of the January 2010 Earthquake, the 3rd deadliest Earthquake in the history of humankind. In the meantime, for 5 consecutive months, the "Bureau des Mines et de l'Energie" has observed  increasing seismic activities that hinted another major Earthquake could happen anytime in Haiti! 

Also, the hurricane season in 2019 was more intense than the previous ones, as a result of climate change.

Considering those issues, I was wondering as a journalist, media owner, and social entrepreneur, how to bring awareness to our communities about seismic risks and the effects of global warming. I was looking for ways to strengthen the culture of resilience to natural disasters and climate change, for communities to "exist in disasters", to know how to behave before, during, and after the occurrence of those tragic events.

For the last months, I have been interested in multimedia storytelling and  I found out I can use this communication method to build resilience.

Also, as a social innovator, I tried to conceive a mobile app and a "smart kiosk", that could be installed everywhere using solar energy and the Internet, to provide vital information and empowering contents to the vulnerable population, mostly left alone...

Being a native of  Haiti, the first Black-led Republic of the World is never without significance...it is often synonymous with resilience and hope!

When the earthquake of 2010 shook Haiti, I was in France studying cinema and writing for Agoravox France. My life, while comfortable materially, was too far removed from the struggles of post-disaster Haiti, and from that moment onward, I have dedicated myself to social entrepreneurship, community development, and journalism.

As a result of more than 300 years of intense exploitation colonization and slavery followed by decades of marginalization because we dared to proclaim racial equality while becoming independent in 1804; for us Haitians, our richness is our...lives. While watching the news, during those past weeks, I told myself that Haiti was the one saying "Black Lives Matter", more than 2 centuries ago.

For the past years, I have been passionate about saving those lives and making them flourish because I consider that Haitians Lives Matter, that all dreams are valid ! The most important threats to those lives are natural disasters. Millions of lives could be taken in a matter of seconds. Saving those lives is the mark that I want to leave on the world !

Born and raised in Haiti, the poorest country of the western hemisphere, I’ve always told myself that the power of change lies within all of us.

In 2017, I launched Radio Guacanagaric, an innovative citizen radio and popular university, broadcasting to more than 300.000 people. Its mission is to tackle the needs of information, culture, education, and development of the targeted population as well as to support the implementation of the SDGs. By launching this new medium, I wanted to propose updated and improved versions of 21st-century journalism and citizen radio mixing together community journalism, global journalism, and constructive journalism. 

In April 2020, we have launched the BOYO project by starting to do some interviews with experts (including former Ministers, geologists, and scientists) available here: http://tiny.cc/7hu9qz 

Interview with the Former Minister Eddy Lubin

Interview with the Former appointed Prime Minister Fritz A. Jean

We will use them for our informative capsules broadcasted on the Radio, available on the app and the solar-operated smart kiosks.

On the other hand, in April 2020, I have been appointed Special Advisor to the Minister of Culture and Communication. This is a great honor for me, especially as a 29-years old. It is not an end it itself, I feel that I have to prove myself. The Minister asked me to elaborate and develop a digital transformation plan and a national cultural policy for the next 25 years. What I am doing right now will give me more experience and will expand my network.

From July  2018 to November 2019, Haiti has been shaken by political instability. We knew several months of lockdown. This situation had severe effects on the economy which was already anemic. 

When things started to get better, in March 2020, Haiti knew its first cases of coronavirus. Shortly after that, the state of health emergency was declared on all the country and almost everything closed. Again. 

So, Maintaining alive, the Radio Guacanagaric, a radio with such a unique and experimental approach and building new partnerships has been a serious challenge, especially in such troubled time for my country and for the world.

Coming from a land of struggle and dignity, however, I have taken challenges with resilience and hope. After the 2010 Earthquake, while studying in France, I could have easily chosen to remain and live outside of Haiti forever! But I chose to get back home, to commit myself !

It is precisely in time of crisis that the population needed us the most. We are actually saving lives by educating about the novel coronavirus.

In April 2020,  we have also launched the BOYO project, because natural disasters and climate are still a reality even during the pandemic.

In September 2009, I traveled to France for studies. A few months later, in January 2010, a deadly Earthquake killed 300.000+ people in Haiti. 

While being in Paris, with the French Red Cross, I've sent tons of emergency goods. In Mid- 2010, I became the President of Mouvement de l'Amérique Française in Paris (France)  and in December 2010, I was elected at the Board of the Centre de la Francophonie des Amériques, in Quebec (Canada).

In 2011, I founded Espace de Concertation to strengthen Haiti's national education system. As its first President, from 2011 to 2017, with our initiatives, we succeed to reduce by 75% the school failure rate in some areas. With our constant efforts, more men and most importantly more women got access to university in the North Region. This last achievement is the one I am really proud of because it shows me that I was right by choosing to get back to my country even though things have not been easy for the past years, for the past months... I have seen more than 90 % of my friends and schoolmates turned their back to Haiti but hope is still flourishing in my heart...

Haiti may have missed the two industrial revolutions but it is currently going through the digital revolution, it's a key that could open many doors. In 2020, the use of smartphones to access social networks and websites like WhatsApp and Youtube is increasing. Also, local populations use their phones to listen to the radio, the most popular medium in Haiti. 

With our project, in order to educate the populations of Haiti on how to behave before, during, and after the occurrence of natural disasters, we will produce multimedia contents related to storytelling that those populations in the North will be able to find using their regular radio, computer, and smartphones.

Multimedia storytelling is the practice of using computer-based tools to tell stories, combining the art of telling stories with a variety of multimedia, including graphics, audio, video, and Web publishing.

Also, we plan to prototype an innovative machine: a smart kiosk, like those at the airports, that will include the storytelling capsules and provide updated and specific information about the hurricanes, seismic activities, and other disasters. They will include specific instructions for each community about the shelter places and other life-saving informations. Also in times of natural disasters, they will allow the inhabitants to send video updates to the authorities. We will install those kiosks in the most vulnerable and remote locations as well as big cities, in Haiti. They will be solar-operated and will be connected to the internet. Those machines will use technology to save millions of lives.

Haiti is one of the most exposed countries in the world to natural hazards that include hurricanes, floods, earthquakes, landslides, and droughts. From 1994-2013, Haiti was considered the third most affected country by extreme weather events in terms of lives lost and economic damages. More than 96 percent of the population is at risk of two or more hazards, and 56 percent of the country’s GDP is linked to areas exposed to risk from two or more hazards. Scientists told that another big Earthquake can happen at any time in Haiti, especially on the Septentrionale fault, where the last big Earthquake happened in 1842 and killed more than 50% of the population in the area affected by it. 

At the very beginning of our project, we have conducted several interviews with specialists who have confirmed the urgency of the matter. 

As a solution, with the BOYO project, millions of lives will be impacted and ultimately saved. 

 In the short term: 

- Local populations will be better informed about seismic risks and the effects of global warming. They will thus be better prepared for the occurrences of these natural disasters. 

- The culture of resilience to natural disasters and climate change will be strengthened. 

In the medium and long-term:

Local and national authorities will be encouraged to carry out an in-depth analysis of the underlying vulnerability factors and, thanks to innovative means, will be able to provide responses adapted to the scale of the challenges, as outlined by Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction, signed by the Government of Haiti

The number of victims and the economic damage caused by natural disasters will be reduced, in order to consolidate sustainable development. 

Currently, Radio Guacanagaric and the BOYO project are serving more than 300.000 people, located in 20 municipalities in the North and the North’East of Haiti.

In one year, we will be serving the  2.189.774 people, the inhabitants of the North, North-East and North-West.

In 5 years, we intend to serve the whole 11 millions inhabitants of Haiti.

The recent seismic activities have convinced the specialists that a major Earthquake could happen at any moment, so our immediate and most urgent goal is to save lives. For the next year, we will seek to bring awareness and educate about natural disasters and climate change. Surveys that we have to conduce have shown that more than 80 % of the Haitians don't know how to react in the occurrence of natural disasters and more than 96% of them don't know anything about climate change. So for the first year, we will produce multimedia contents and broadcast them on the Radio Guacanagaric

We will also prototype an app that will include the educational contents, real-time updates, and some other vital information regarding mitigations measures for each community. We will also prototype the "Resilience Kiosk"  that will incorporate the same features. At the end of Year 1, the app and the Resilience Kiosk will be available 

For the next five years, we will:

- Broadcast the multimedia contents and reach more audience. To do so, we will establish a network of partners radio. Radio is the most popular source of news and information in Haiti. Nearly every household has a radio set and many people listen to the radio on their mobile phone. A media consumption survey of 4,907 people across found that 96%  listened to the radio every day. 

- Install dozens of smart kiosks everywhere.

- Develop, run and promote the app.

- Work with local and national authorities.

The state of the Haitian economy will surely be a challenge. In fact, Instability has hindered Haiti’s economic and social development. GDP is estimated to have contracted by 0.9% in 2019, and the country has experienced rapid currency depreciation, (25.5% at the end of the fiscal year) and rampant inflation (20% at the end of the fiscal year). 

Another barrier could be political instability. During 2018 and 2019, the climate of socio-political unrest that has affected the country for months, causing heavy losses of lives, injuries and important properties damaged. 

The lack of electricity will also be a barrier, especially in rural areas. In the report "The Spectator Index" published in January 2018, Haiti was ranked the third-worst country in the world out of 137 countries in terms of access to electricity.

The difficulties that I have mentioned are the very reason why this project is  important. Because the bad economy and political instability will weaken the ability of local and national authorities as well as the ability of the citizens to address the issue of natural disasters and climate change.

As a solution to the systemic economic problem, we will seek to build solid partnerships, especially to cover the production cost: both for manufacturing the Resilience Kiosks, and to develop the contents. This way, we will only have to cover the operational cost and the maintenance cost with the income we will generate.

Regarding the political instability, we will work closely with local authorities and local leaders, from various political tendencies to ensure that we have a complete understanding and broad range of support of the local residents in each community where we will work.

Regarding the lack of electricity, we will prototype our "Resilience Kiosks", in a way for them to be able to run with solar electricity. According to the Worldwatch Institute’s new Haiti Sustainable Energy Roadmap report, tremendous opportunities and actionable solutions exist for sustainable energy.

1. Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Federal Republic of Germany / German Embassy in Haiti

• • Initial installation of the Radio Guacanagaric
  • Partnership with the Deutsche Welle (DW)
  • Participation in the DW Global Media Forum in Bonn, in June 2018

2. United Nations Office for Partnerships

• • Support in fund-seeking for the solar system installation in 2019
  • Implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals on the Radio Guacanagaric's programming

3. The Open Society Foundation/FOKAL

• • Acquisition of additional materials for the production
  • Trainings for young contributors and anchors to the radio
  • Explanatory process to identify the needs in community development of the targeted population
  • Support for the production of the initial capsules of the BOYO project

4. The Government of the Republic of Haiti

• Explanatory process to identify the needs in community development of the targeted population
• Support for the production of the initial capsules of the BOYO project

5. Association of Mayors

We are working with several mayors in order to produce, develop, and implement multimedia contents and smart kiosks. For example, we have interviewed, Mrs. Yvrose Pierre, the Mayor of Cap-Haïtien, the second largest city of Haiti:

https://tinyurl.com/yax95seu

When the Resilience Kiosks will be ready, we plan to install a majority of them in the city halls. Those mayors will be important allies in order to reach the vulnerable populations and to ensure the viability of the kiosks.

Over 90% of Haiti’s surface and almost the entire population of 11 millions are exposed to earthquakes, hurricanes, and other natural disasters. If those disasters are unavoidable, better preparation and mitigation can reduce the number of human and economic losses.

The BOYO project that is targetting the most vulnerable populations will save millions of lives because, with the activities of the projects, those populations will know how to behave before, during, and after the occurrence of natural disasters. They will also have a better understanding of climate change.

For the production of the multimedia contents and for the prototyping and production of the mobile app and the Resilience Kiosks, we are welcoming sponsorship, donations, and grants. We will seek more of them.

For the operational and maintenance costs, we will use the incomes that we will generate to cover them.

The multimedia contents that will be produced will come to those populations in various forms. Part of them will be broadcasted on Radio Guacanagaric and other partners radio. Of course, receiving the signal of those radios is free...but in order to cover our production  costs, we will include commercials during the breaks. 

Videos, audios, infographics, real-time updates, customized GPS alarms will be incorporated in the mobile app that we will prototype and develop. There will be a free version of this app with the main features and some ads, there will also be a premium version with additional features and no ads. For the premium version, the user will have to pay a small monthly fee, in the local currency: the gourdes.

For the Resilience Kiosks, we will charge the municipalities a one-time fee to install them. 80 % of the features will be free on the kiosks for the local populations, but, for a few additional features, a small fee will be asked.

The incomes will be used to cover operating costs and maintenance costs. Also, the money that we will collect will guarantee the sustainability of the project.

In April 2020, we have received an initial grant from the Open Society Foundation / FOKAL. We will be glad to tell the amount of this grant to the Elevate Prize Team privately. 

We also have the support of the Ministry of Culture and Communication of Haiti and the Institut du Sauvegarde du Patrimoine National (ISPAN). We are currently discussing the terms of our partnership.

We plan also to invest part of the income of the Radio Guacanagaric.

We are also waiting for the final decision of some other possible partners, including the U.S. Embassy in Haiti

We are seeking, in the next 12 months, to raise $ 700.000 USD to produce the multimedia contents related to resilience to natural disasters and climate change, to prototype and develop the mobile application as well as the Resilience Kiosks and to install about 50+ of them in several vulnerable communities and urban areas in Haiti, in the next 3 to 5 years.

Our estimated expenses for 2020 is: $100.000

I believe that the solution we bring to the Elevate Prize is an innovative way to address a very serious issue - if no action is taken by the authorities, the civil society and the citizens - that potentially could become tragic. We are applying to the Elevate Prize because this prize can give us the unique opportunity to save millions of lives in Haiti and presents to the world an innovative way to reduce the impact of natural disasters and climate change in the countries that are most exposed to those challenges, including the U.S.

Having the chance to be selected for an Elevate Prize will give us access to an incredible network that will help us to improve our project because there's always room to do better. We would find possible mentors that will guide us on addressing those challenges that we are targeting. That will be the most important aspect, because with my experience, I know that networking and partnership building are key to success.

We are also hoping that being selected will allow us to find some technical human resources that could lack in Haiti (in I.T. for example).

Being selected will also come with new opportunities to get more funding and acting more quickly because hurricanes and earthquakes are happening and a major disaster could also happen anytime.

We are seeking funding to produce more multimedia contents in Haitian Creole that will learn people how to react before, during, after natural disasters, how to become resilient, and have a better understanding of climate change.

We also want funding to develop a mobile app that will incorporate those contents and include some interesting features like GPS customized information. 

We are also seeking funding to prototype and to develop the Resilience Kiosks. Those machines will be a major innovation in Haiti and in the world. They will become the "guardian angel" of the local populations by giving them vital updates and important contents. Each of them will be adapted to each community and will include the specific addresses for shelters, hospitals, etc. 

We would like to partner with Google, Microsoft, for technical assistance, especially in prototyping the Resilience App and the Resilience Kiosk.

We also want to partner with the Federal Emergency Management Agency  (FEMA) in order to benefit from their expertise in natural disasters.  We are also interested in having partnership with several Departments of Emergency Management  of certain cities like San Francisco, Los Angeles or Miami who have some experience in dealing with natural disasters such as earthquakes, tsunamis, and severe storms.

We would like to get funding from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the Rockefeller Foundation, Bloomberg Philanthropies, the Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation.

We are also opened to get suggestions from the Elevate Team...