Benar Geer (Producer/Cinematographer/ Green Builder)- Benar traveled to Haiti right after the January 2010 earthquake to document the relief efforts of grassroots organizations responsible for the rebuild of schools, medical centers, orphanages and permaculture communities in hard-to-reach areas of the disaster-struck country. Film credits include a award winning documentary “Save the World” (2009) that followed a group of 10 volunteers doing good by building a complete home for an impoverished family in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico for under $10K project cost in one week. He co-lead and documented programs for YouthBuild, a non-profit that provided eco-based job training for at-risk teens of Los Angeles and is the designer of the 10’x12’ recycled steel frame “GeerPod”- a fast, easy to assemble green building that requires no build permit and can be built with unskilled labor. He is the Founder of The Love & Haiti Project.

The Love & Haiti Project’s mission is to provide the people of Haiti a safe, transitional sub-permanent housing alternative, teach a curriculum of skills to empower villagers to self-sufficiency with earthbuilding and permaculture farming, and assist with the rebuild of this recently disaster-struck country by serving the 1.3 million displaced people still living in tent cities.

Our team consists of a group of Filmmakers, Natural Builders and Permaculturists that are sharing the technologies of sustainable building and farming methodologies with our brothers and sisters of Haiti. In March 2011- The Love & Haiti Project will be arriving to Haiti with all the equipment necessary to build a 12 family eco-village with superadobe that will consist of 12- 10'x20' living units, full water catchment/aquaponics system and a permaculture farm (location has been contracted and funding obtained). Upon completion, we will return to the US with our experiences of this build and piece together a full teaching curriculum to then return to Haiti with in July 2011. Our model is to work with the people of Haiti to ensure that the program in alignment with their cultural practices and "teach the teachers" through community empowerment so that they can create these sustainable eco-villages on their own.

You may find more information on this project by visiting our website: http://www.loveandhaitiproject.org
and we invite you to watch our short documentary on the project: http://www.youtube.com/user/loveandhaiti

We are a project listed under the 501(c)3 donor-direct Inter-Nation Cultural Foundation.

NOW OFFERING A PDC IN HAITI (MAY 1-MAY 14 2011)

The Love & Haiti Project has partnered up with instructors Larry Santoyo and Hunter Heaivilin to offer a Permaculture Design Certification course in Haiti May 1st - May 14th 2011. Space is very limited and the Early-Bird discount ends 4/05.

The Love & Haiti Project Website

For more information on The Love & Haiti Project bringing permaculture to Haiti, please visit www.loveandhaitiproject.org