It has been a while since I have posted. Three new class preps have occupied almost all my time. Any additional time has gone to research. I am determined, however, to spend some additional time on my blog in the coming weeks.

It is interesting how little I have heard about Haiti in the news lately. I generally understand, considering the current economic crisis and the 2008 presidential elections to name a few. It has been well documented how busy news periods detract from international disaster relief. This may be one of the contributing factors in the shortfall of relief to Haiti. From Relief Web:

The United Nations today appealed to donors to make up an enormous shortfall in emergency funding for relief work in Haiti, where hundreds of thousands of people are still suffering from the devastation caused by four hurricanes over the past month.

Only 2 per cent of the $108 million flash appeal has so far been donated, nine days after it was launched, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reported.

OCHA stressed that the situation remains very serious in the impoverished Caribbean country, where over 320 people were killed by the storms and flooding, and 160,000 others are still living in the open, exposed to disease and malnutrition.

Some $54 million are needed for emergency food aid. The UN World Food Programme (WFP) has already helped feed some 298,000 people since the start of the crisis.

OCHA is also concerned over access to those who have not yet received aid, including people in the Artibonne and Nippes regions, where continued rains might complicate relief efforts.

From BBC