Gwoup Konbit
GWOUP KONBIT
Gwoup Konbit is a Haitian social movement and platform facilitating connections, resource sharing, and knowledge exchange among leaders and groups that espouse the principles of konbit. Konbit is a traditional, historical form of collective labor rooted in mutual aid and solidarity–a powerful concept in Haiti that Gwoup Konbit has tapped into in building its movement. Gwoup Konbit serves as a funder and incubator for organizations and leaders across Haiti as they design and implement projects guided by the values of konbit.
Gwoup Konbit was officially founded in 2021, when a group of community leaders from across Haiti gathered for the first annual ‘An n Devlope Konbit’ (“Let’s develop Konbit”) workshop in Port-au-Prince. Gwoup Konbit came about organically out of a desire from Haitian groups and leaders to learn from the work and successes of Kobit Solèy Leve, which began in 2011 in Cité Soleil.
In addition to Roots of Development, Gwoup Konbit is supported by: the Vitol Foundation, the Lighthouse Foundation, and others.
GWOUP KONBIT’S WORK
Promoting Konbit and Growing the Movement
Gwoup Konbit documents the experiences, achievements, and lessons learned of its members and creates the tools needed to create awareness around the principles of konbit. It also promotes shared resources, knowledge, and ideas, while amplifying and honoring exemplary actions rooted in konbit. Gwoup Konbit hosts an annual “Let’s Develop Konbit” workshop each year in Port-au-Prince and its members are currently working to develop a guide on the practice of konbit.
Seeding and cultivating groups across the country
Gwoup Konbit identifies groups working in the spirit of konbit in their respective communities and accompanies them as they strengthen their solidarity and collective actions. In some cases, this may require small sums of financial support to complement existing local resources which in essence are konbit-based actions on a smaller-scale.
Supporting groups functioning in the full spirit of Konbit to improve their communities
Gwoup Konbit offers grants to groups who have been accompanied for some time and have strongly developed their konbit capacities and are focused on the progress of their communities. It requires that these groups are not dependent solely on external groups for resources, but using their own and finding others as a collective effort to move community-based initiatives forward. These groups include Rasin Devlopman, Konbit San Pou San, Leaders de Demain, and Le Paradis Haitian.
Photos from Leaders de Demain
Photos from Gwoup Konbit Workshops
Photos from Konbit San pou San
FAQS
What is Gwoup Konbit?
Gwoup Konbit is not a traditional NGO–it is a collective movement, governed democratically by its members, both individuals and organizations. Gwoup Konbit serves as a funder and incubator for organizations and leaders across Haiti as they design and implement projects guided by the values of konbit.
When did Gwoup Konbit start?
Gwoup Konbit was officially founded in 2021, but it inherited a 10+ year history of community-led work in Haiti from its founders, including Konbit Solèy Leve, Rasin Devlopman, Konbit San Pou San, Leaders de Demain, and Le Paradis Haitien. Click here to learn more about Gwoup Konbit’s history.
What is Konbit?
Konbit is a traditional, historical form of collective labor rooted in mutual aid and solidarity–a powerful concept in Haiti that Gwoup Konbit has tapped into in building its movement.
What does Gwoup Konbit do?
Gwoup Konbit currently has three main priorities:
- Promoting Konbit and Growing the Movement
This includes the creation of a guide to the practice of konbit, which Gwoup Konbit has been working on for over a year, creating and sharing resources around konbit, investing in the movement’s internal capacities, and hosting workshops and trainings around konbit values, including the annual Let’s Develop Konbit conference held each year on June 25th.
- Seeding and cultivating groups across the country
Gwoup Konbit provides small seed grants to organizations across Haiti undertaking community-led projects and initiatives. Each month, Gwoup Konbit accepts applications, and grantees are selected through a combination of popular vote (via social media) and committee review.
- Supporting groups functioning in the full spirit of Konbit to improve their communities
Gwoup Konbit issues grants in larger amounts to its founding members, all of whom operate in the full spirit of konbit community-led development.
How does Roots and Gwoup Konbit’s partnership work?
Our partnership with Gwoup Konbit works a lot like our partnership with Rasin Devlopman! In addition to securing funding for Gwoup Konbit’s projects and priorities, we are involved in strategic planning discussions and lend targeted capacity support where appropriate. Click here to learn more about how our partnerships work.
Who are Gwoup Konbit’s members? What do they do, and what is their relationship to Roots?
Gwoup Konbit comprises a network of hundreds of leaders and organizations across Haiti. Four organizations represent the founding members and key leadership of Gwoup Konbit: Rasin Devlopman, Konbit San Pou San, Leaders de Demain, and Le Paradis Haitien.
Rasin Devlopman and Gwoup Konbit are both partners of Roots of Development, receiving the full support of our organization through financial, technical, and advisory assistance. The other three founding members of Gwoup Konbit (Konbit San Pou San, Leaders de Demain, and Le Paradis Haitien), receive financial support from Roots via our grants to Gwoup Konbit, but are not full Roots partners like Rasin and Gwoup Konbit.
Konbit San Pou San: Konbit San Pou San (KSPS) is based in Port-au-Prince but operates on a national scale. KSPS aims to: 1) Inform the Haitian population on the need for regular blood donations, 2) Organize blood drives for the benefit of the Haitian population, 3) Work in collaboration with institutions working in the field of advocacy, and 4) Raise awareness of blood donation. Their projects include holding regular blood drives and trainings on first aid/CPR and STD transmission.
Leaders de Demain: Leaders de Demain (Leaders of Tomorrow) is another founding member of Roots’ new partner, Gwoup Konbit. Leaders De Demain’s mission is: “The involvement of young Haitians in the development of their community.” They have three key objectives: 1) Help young people discover their potential and use it for their own good and that of their community. 2) Help young people become good leaders capable of building their own team and inspiring other young people to become good leaders themselves. 3) Encourage young people to take useful initiatives and get involved with their community. They offer seminars, training, and mentoring to teenagers, young adults, and women.
Le Paradis Haitien: Le Paradis Haitien is a community group that operates in the fields of tourism, history, and heritage. Through their initiatives, projects, and trips in Haiti, they are working to build and strengthen a better Haitian narrative. Their vision is to see a Haiti where every Haitian living in Haiti or overseas has a direct and personal connection with their home and its culture and history, where every Haitian is a cultural ambassador for Haiti, and where Haiti is an adventure and tourism destination in the Caribbean. They aim to: 1) Connect or reconnect every Haitian who is in Haiti or who is close to Haiti by allowing them to discover or rediscover their home, 2) Create a feeling of belonging to the country in every Haitian’s home thanks to an unparalleled experience and everything that defines Haiti in its nature, 3) Create a space to promote the cultural diversity of Haiti’s resources and wealth in order to help better build and strengthen the Haitian narrative.