Stories
Local profiles, fellow exchange pieces, place stories and enterprise stories from Jacmel.
A Year to Build a Mask
Papier-mache masks are Jacmel's signature craft and central to its UNESCO Creative City status; artisans reportedly begin the next year's masks immediately after Carnival ends.
Two Cooperatives, One Craft
These are the two main organizing bodies for Jacmel's papier-mache economy, per the Wozo Ayiti case study — directly useful for anyone wanting to commission or collaborate with Jacmel artisans.
Iron from Bruges, Heritage in Jacmel
The Iron Market is a landmark heritage structure at the center of Jacmel's historic district, tied to municipal and international heritage-restoration efforts.
Ten Years of the École-Atelier
A decade-long AECID-funded program trained over 350 young Haitians in construction/heritage trades directly tied to Jacmel's gingerbread-house and municipal-building restorations.
Flying Back to Jacmel
Direct air access to Jacmel, launched Nov 2025, is a concrete and recent change in how people (and potentially goods/visitors) can reach the city given road insecurity.
Jacmel Joins the Francophone Mayors
A concrete, dated institutional development: Jacmel's first formal international municipal-cooperation membership, potentially opening funding/partnership channels relevant to local orgs.
Coffee Port, Reimagined
A large private investment project directly tied to Jacmel's historic port and coffee-export heritage; relevant to both tourism and commerce angles, but needs a current-status check.
From Film Festival to Film School
Haiti's only film school grew directly out of a Jacmel cultural event (the Jacmel Film Festival) and remains one of the city's most concrete creative-education institutions.
After the Earthquake, Still Building
FOSAJ is arguably Jacmel's central multi-disciplinary arts institution, formed by a Haitian-South African artist partnership and rebuilt after 2010 earthquake damage.