Nicholas Kristof of the New York Times has written two excellent pieces on Haiti over the last week.  In one of them he mentions the innovative work of Sasha Kramer and the nonprofit S.O.I.L.  Sasha has led the effort to install composting toilets that turn human waste into fertilizer – something that is desperately needed by farmers in Haiti.   Sasha is a friend of mine and one of these composting toilets was placed at the St. Clare’s rectory a year ago.  Our hope is that it will fertilize the garden that is still in the vision stage, but hopefully will become reality in the months to come.   Click here to read Krostoff’s article.

Another powerful op-ed by Kristof called “At Stake Are More Than Banks” is about the G-20 summit and the toll of the global economic crisis on the poor in Haiti and elsewhere.  He writes, “As usual, the greatest price for incompetence at the summit will be borne by the poorest people in the world — who aren’t represented there and who never approved any bad loans.”  Click here for a link to this article.   Margaret Trost