zach pippin

I just wanted to take a few minutes to talk about the useful roles different technologies are playing in the recovery efforts in Haiti. I’ll be speaking from my experience, but it is definitely not limited to how I used it.

WiFi- everything I used hinges on WiFi. With it I was able to use my iPod Touch to access the internet. Though food, water, and shelter are vital needs of the people, WiFi and internet access in general are playing a big role in the coordination of relief.

Twitter-Before I even left Twitter was helpful. People that saw my tweets about going to Haiti contacted contacted me. Through several degrees of communication, people in 4 different cities who had never met before coordinated to get more supplies down there. Now that I’m back, I’ve had people contact me via Twitter with questions and need of help. Not to mention Twitter was a simple way to keep everyone back home updated on the events on the ground.

Skype- $3 subscription for unlimited calls to and US number, iPod touch, headphones w/ mic, Skype app, and WiFi. Put them together and you can make phone calls to anyone in the US. This was useful not only to stay in contact with loved ones, but also to coordinate aid delivery.

Google Voice- If you’ve read my blog before you probably know what Google Voice is and how much I love that service. Since it is web-based, I was able to send and receive text messages as if I were on my phone in the US. Just another way to stay in contact with folks in the US who could sometimes get me information quicker than I could have gotten it by myself in Haiti.

Once again, I want to use this post to emphasize the importance of technology in aiding those in Haiti. Though not inherently helpful, without these tools workers on the ground would definitely not make as big of an impact as they are now.