ABOUT
With more than 20 years of working exclusively in Haiti, SOCIODIG is an independent research company providing research services and support to public, private and non-profit sector clients. Our team provides research support for your most simple to your most complex research projects, meeting or exceeding national and international ethics and research standards.
Over the years, Sociodig has developed a reputation for excellence in data analytics, research design, execution, and the delivery of solid data and actionable, evidence-based, practical solutions. Areas of expertise include Surveys, Focus Groups, Stakeholder Engagement, Value Chain Analysis, Project Evaluations, Pre and Post-Crisis Emergency Mapping
Our team and associates are fully qualified in using leading-edge qualitative, quantitative, online techniques, data mining and behavioural analytics.
Our Team
Timothy Schwartz has conducted research and worked on the island of Hispaniola for 27 years. He has also worked and done research in Afghanistan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Mexico, Montserrat, the Bahamas, and Kenya. He has designed, coordinated, done the analysis and written the reports for more than 100 major surveys and evaluations on issues from health to childcare to livelihood strategies to humanitarian aid program efficiency to the performance of engineering corporations on major infrastructural works.
Edward B Rackley
Technical Advisor
edwardrackley@gmail.com
Edward brings over 30 years of field experience in research and analysis consultancy focusing on conflict and socio-political change in the Sahel, Central, and West Africa. Edward holds a PhD in philosophy, and has authored many publications on humanitarian action, governance, security, and development matters in books, peer-reviewed journals, and the blogosphere. He has particular experience working in the Democratic Republic of Congo and speak fluently French, Lingala and Kikongo.
Stephane started his career as a photojournalist and graphic designer and has particular expertise in public relations, digital technology and mapping. He has worked in Haiti since 2004. In 2011 he co-created the platform that would become EKO-Haiti. He is the co-founder of MIEMS (Multi-Dimensional Interactive Mapping). He has been research consultant on jobs for USAID, WFP, ILO, NORC, IDB, FONKOZE, CASELI/Kellogg Foundation, UN DPPA and numerous other organizations. He is also an experienced researcher in the fields of Maternal and Child Health, Food Security and Education. Stephane strongly believes in a dialogical approach to local development that seeks to go beyond consultation to participation and beyond capacity building to consciousness-raising and empowerment.
Dr. Reuben O. Marwanga
Research Consultant
Dr. Reuben O. Marwanga has over 20 years’ experience conducting applied research and evaluations of cross-sectorial programs implemented in low resource countries. He is particularly experienced in designing, coordinating, and conducting research and evaluations of development projects dealing with water and sanitation, energy, transportation, manufacturing and capacity building for purposes of informing programmatic and policy decisions. He also has expertise in value chain mapping and analysis. Dr. Marwanga has a PhD in Industrial Engineering from Pennsylvania State University. He is an alumnus of both the UNESCO and Fulbright Fellowships and a Fellow of Higher Education Academy of the UK. He has worked throughout Sub-Saharan Africa and Afghanistan. Reuben speaks English and Swahili.
Patrick Delorme, MD, MPH
Head of Health Research
Mbata Koko Jean Fernand
Research Consultant
Through almost 2 decades of experience in international development, Patrick has developed a strong, deep, and balanced understanding of what it takes to work with local communities. He believes that local communities are not empty vessels and that there cannot be development without a genuine involvement of the local people. Patrick is a strategic and innovative thinker. Patrick brings a wealth of experience in program development and delivery in a wide array of contexts. He has worked extensively in the Caribbean and Africa (including Democratic Republic of Congo, Burkina Faso, Liberia). Patrick speaks fluently English, Haitian Kreyol, Spanish and Swahili
Congolese agricultural engineer, expert in management of agricultural development programs with more than 20 years of professional experience in support of agricultural producer cooperatives/collective agricultural enterprises. Koko excels at capacity building and skills transfer in the areas of financial education, institutional, organizational and economic development. He is also experienced in MEL, qualitative and quantitative surveys, market research, MM/GALS, gender mainstreaming. His passion is grassroots sustainable agriculture with perennial crops (Oil palm, Coffee, Cocoa, pineapple, fruit trees, caterpillar species) and food crops (Cassava, Maize, Rice, Peanut, Soybean, cowpea).
Sam Battistoli
Research Consultant
Damien Buchon
Research Consultant
Sam has more than a decade of experience directing agriculture, mobile technology, public health, and renewable energy programs and operations for NGOs and social enterprises in West Africa and the Caribbean (Suriname, Haiti, Liberia-- during the Ebola crisis--the Sahel).
Damien is a specialist in Rural Development, Social and Economic Studies, Impact Assessment, Community Development program, Stakeholders Engagement, Social Management, Resettlement and Livelihood Restoration. He has worked since 2011 as a consultant on large public infrastructure and development projects. He has been working mainly in West Africa and the Middle East but also in the Caribbean and Latin America. Damien has in-depth knowledge and experience in the fields of environmental and social impact assessment and implementing economic and social management plans.
Harold Maass
Senior Editor, Executive Director of translations and transcriptions
hmaass@sociodig.com
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Harold Maass studied journalism at Duke University and then went on to work at the Palm Beach post for 5 years before returning to school at the University of Florida and earning a dual Master's in Latin American Studies with a focus on History and Anthropology in Haiti. It was during this period that Maass first cultivated an interest in Kreyol orthography and translation. In 2012, Maass turned his attention back to Haiti, joining the Sociodig team and rekindling his interest in Kreyol orthography and semantics. Since that time, he has supervised surveys, conducted focus groups and open interviews, analyzed data, and written reports for numerous international donors and other Sociodig clients, including the World Food Programme, the Clinton Foundation, USAID, the German Red Cross, the Haitian Agriculture Ministry, Kellogg Foundation, FONKOZE, the ILO, USAID, NORC, as well as Columbia and Harvard University. He also speaks French and Spanish.
Nel-Ange is an environmental activist and the founder and CEO of the company VALPLAST (Valorization of Plastic Waste), a company that recycles and transforms plastics into cobblestones and brick in Haiti for which she won the 'Her Future summit award' from Forbes Magazine. She is a graduate of Quisqueya University in Haiti where she earned a degree in Agronomy (Protection et Aménagement de l’environnement) She is also a graduate of the prestigious Kellogg-funded Haiti Education and Leadership Program (HELP). She has worked with Sociodig intermittently as an intern since 2019. Today she is a full partner in Sociodig and Operations Manager.
Juan Rodriguez Acosta
Anthropologist / Human rights activist
Juan Rodriguez Acosta is an Anthropologist (specializing in Archaeology) and a human rights activist. Born in the Dominican Republic, Juan has spent a great deal of time establishing bridges for better relations between Haiti and the Dominican Republic. He was Executive Director of ‘Museo del Hombre Dominicano’ and Director General of Cultural Diversity for UNESCO Commission in the Dominican Republic between 2008-2011. Currently, Juan works as consultant and project director for the Musée de la Canne à Sucre (Haiti) on a project of ‘Underground Heritage Promotion Project’ financed by the Fondation de France and in partnership with the Bureau d’Ethnologie d’Haiti and the Université d’Etat d’Haiti (UEH).
Over the past decade, Hans has worked in Haiti on development relief and research assignments for the International Organization for Migration, the University of Florida, and USAID. He is an Agroforestry specialist. He took the lead on a nationwide community development project and carried out a comparative study on different approaches to planting trees in Haiti from which he produced a lessons learned report for stakeholders engaged in agroforestry and natural resource management. Hans also contributed to the launch of two agricultural capacity-building projects aimed at strengthening Haiti's agricultural research and extension systems.
Marie Josette Pierre
Health and Nutrition research
Jean Alain Civil
Transcription Supervisor
Born in and raised in Haiti, Marie Josette has a Master's in Public Health. She has 20 years of international professional experience in nutrition, public health, program management and organizational capacity building in developing countries. She believes that: ‘communities must take charge of their own destinies and must be able to choose their own model of development.’ Jojo worked in Haiti for three years for the French NGO Initiative Development, for two years for the German GOPA , for four years she was Manager of Operations for the World Food program.
Civil was born in Port-Salut, South Haiti. He has a degree in Agro-Economics from Quisqueya University of Haiti. He is an alumnus of HELP (Haitian Education and Leadership Program), where, in addition to his degree program, he received four years of training in Leadership, English, and Computer Science. During his university studies, Alain participated in community service projects at HELP, ACTIVEH and SAKALA (in Cite-Soleil) where he taught primary school. During summers he worked in Jacmel as an interpreter for an American summer camp program, an experience that sparked a keen interest in Kreyol communication methodology.
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Prophete Sylveste
Photographer
"Marco" is a self-taught photographer. Born in Lemonade Haiti, he lived in the Dominican Republic for 7 years. He created his own video production company and has worked for Sociodig as a surveyor since 2013. During that time Marco carved out his own niche as Sociodig's premier photographer, surpassing in skills and ability to 'get the photo' PhDs and professional photographers. Marco is a true example of what can be achieved with grit and determination.
Wilhem Trouillot
Director of Training
Wilhem has worked with Sociodig as a consultant in various capacities since 2013 and today he is director of training. He is currently a PHD Candidate at Sorbonne University in Paris. A Haitian national, he is a scion of the Trouillot family of renown for Haitian historians and Anthropologists
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Gisele Michel
Field Supervisor / Focus Group Coordinator
Gisel has worked on every major Sociodig project since 2016. She began as a surveyor and today is a lead field supervisor and focus group coordinator. Gisel has a degree in Computer Science
Schmide Nevelus
Transcriber
An agronomist and another graduate of the prestigious HELP (Haiti Education and Leadership Program), Schmide has worked as a freelance transcriber for Sociodig since 2019. Today she is our most skilled transcriber. She is fluent in Kreyol, French, and English
Osno Fils-Aime
Survey Supervisor
Osno is an agronomist and a graduate of the HELP (Haiti Education and Leadership Program). He has worked as a survey supervisor with Sociodig since 2021, helping us to bring to successful completion some of our most complex research tasks during extremely difficult times in Haiti. Osno is fluent in Kreyol, French, and English.
Pharell Emile
Head Survey Supervisor
Pharell is a co-founder of Sociodig and worked with the company’s other founders since 1998. He has performed as head survey supervisor on no fewer than 23 major surveys.
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Mrs Michel has 5-years experience doing surveying throughout Haiti. She began as a surveyor and worked up through supervisor to take over the role of Haiti Socio-Dig operations. She has worked on over 30 surveys commissioned by more than 40 of the largest international organizations working in Haiti, including IDB, ILO, FONKOZE, CRS, USAID subcontractor RTI, as well as Harvard University, the University of Chicago, and Haiti Leadership and Education Program. She has a degree in computer science, studied for two years as a nurse
INTERNS
Nathanaëlle Petit-Frère
4th year, Economics
University of Notre Dame d'Haïti.
Casimy Valcy
5th year, Agro-Economy
QUISQUEYA University.
Jovani Joë Sami Kervin Guerrier
4th year, Economics
University of Notre Dame d'Haïti.