Spring 2026 Impact Report

BREAKING THE SILENCE > ENDING CHILD SLAVERY

A well-known Haitian proverb says timoun se pye banann—children are like banana trees they grow from the roots of those who came before them. As one generation ages, the next rises. For ten-year-old Edline, this cycle was tested by loss and displacement, but ultimately restored through the vigilance of her community.

Edline lived on Haiti’s mainland with her aunt until her aunt’s death. She ended up staying with distant relatives after that, who fled gang violence and moved back to Lagonav with Edline. It soon became clear she lacked the stable support every child needs.

Local Child Protection Brigade members noticed Edline at school; she often arrived without basic supplies or a uniform. Despite providing hygiene kits, school fees, and child rights education, the Brigade remained worried. They didn’t just see poverty; they saw warning signs that Edline was being exploited for domestic labor rather than being raised as a member of the family.

The Brigade reached out to a Neighborhood Survivor Group—adult survivors of child slavery who now work to protect children in their own communities. Together, these groups—galvanized by Beyond Borders' Movement to End Child Slavery—began a search for Edline’s biological family.

They located her grandmother, Iracia. Already caring for two of Edline’s siblings, Iracia did not hesitate. When she learned what her granddaughter was experiencing, she insisted Edline come home to her.

In January, the Brigade and Survivor Group coordinated with local authorities to bring Edline to her grandmother. The reunion was deeply emotional. “When they brought her to me and I saw the state she was in, I just cried,” Iracia recalls. “I opened both my arms to her. Now she is home with me.”

To Iracia, her responsibility was clear. “Children are not like goats or chickens that you send away for others to raise,” she says. “It is better to care for your own because timoun se pye banann.”

Edline’s story reflects the strength of the Lagonav community care network—a growing grassroots protection system built by groups of activists spread across the island who have spent years learning and working together to keep children safe. Through their shared commitment, children facing neglect, exploitation, or abuse are protected and restored to safe and loving care.

Today, Edline is living safely with Iracia and her siblings—no longer adrift, but held fast by her family.

When neighbors see her walking to school or receiving her grandmother’s warm embrace (photo), it serves as a reminder: protecting children is a shared responsibility.

THE RIGHT TO THRIVE > DIGNIFIED WORK AND SUSTAINABLE LIVELIHOODS

Zette Simon has always been an entrepreneur of necessity—borrowing to buy and sell goods to care for her children, even when resources were scarce. A survivor of child domestic servitude (restavèk), her hardships began early, and she has weathered loss, severe illness, and economic instability. Medical care drained what little she had, and her home lacked basic facilities.

Then Zette’s house burned down. "We fled with our lives," Zette said. She was left without capital, housing, or a clear path forward.

Since the fire, Zette has been sheltering in a leaky structure built of tarps and aluminum sheeting. Her children have been sleeping at a neighbor's house, where she helps them get ready each morning and walks them to school. At night, she tucks them in and returns to her shelter.

Zette uses a Haitian proverb to describe her situation: Nan kay vwayajè, se gran pike ki mèt—in a traveler’s lodgings, the big man is master. If you don’t take care of your own, others will take advantage, and when you are forced to live in someone else’s space, you are never truly at ease—something Zette knows all too well as a survivor of restavèk.

Today, Zette is rebuilding her life. Recognized by her community as a family facing severe poverty without stable shelter, reliable meals, or support, Zette was selected to participate in Beyond Borders’ Family Graduation Program, implemented in partnership with the Association of Farmer Organizers of Lagonav (AAPLAG).

Participants receive cash transfers to stabilize income, training, livelihood assets, a secure home, and weekly coaching visits. “It was like I had no one at all—like an orphan. But now I have a person who comes to see me,” Zette says. "I am not alone."

Zette learned to treat the drinking water she collects from a local borehole, a first step toward safer water until she can access a rainwater catchment system in the future. Her 2-year-old daughter receives nutritional support through the program’s health component.

Zette received a pig and purchased additional chickens. "This pig is my hope," she says. She has begun saving for the first time—another source of hope for her future. She is constructing a stall for livestock, clearing space for a garden, and gathering wood, sand, and rocks to build a home for her children. "I didn't have the means to build a house before," Zette adds. “I couldn't even imagine it. But thanks to God, I've finished the foundation now. I have hope I’ll come out of the rain. This foundation is my greatest hope.”

With five of her children attending school regularly, Zette is no longer focused only on today’s crisis. She is looking ahead.

She turns every small resource into a building block. She manages cash assistance with care, setting aside savings while using the rest for food and building assets. Zette anticipates earning new income from her animals, with eggs to sell and piglets and goats she can raise or sell.

Zette is preparing garden beds to plant peppers, papaya, and sorghum for food, income, and livestock fodder. She plans to start a small business and is learning to read and write—another foundation for the future.

With each step, Zette is building what once felt impossible.

THE RIGHT TO LEARN > UNIVERSAL ACCESS TO QUALITY EDUCATION

Forty-one-year-old Jean-Rode Sybrun is father to two boys, and he teaches primary school in the same community where he was raised on Lagonav Island.

A few years ago, his classroom looked very different.

Like many teachers trained in rigid, punitive systems, Jean-Rode relied on pressure and corporal punishment to maintain discipline. A wrong answer or disruption could mean humiliation in front of classmates. It was what he had learned. It was what he believed authority required.

In 2023, Jean-Rode began participating in capacity-building trainings offered by the Beyond Borders and its partner, The Matenwa Community Learning Center (MCLC). He attended numerous sessions on Village Savings and Loan Associations (VSLA), budgeting, narrative reporting, advocacy, new technology, and child-centered, nonviolent classroom management.

At first, he came simply to learn new skills. Over time, the training began to challenge something deeper. “I came to understand that when I hit a child, it is violence. When I shame them, it is violence. Now I teach through dialogue.”

At school instead of punishing students for wrong answers, Jean-Rode began asking questions. Instead of silencing them, he invited reflection. Slowly, the atmosphere in his classroom changed.

Students who once kept their heads down began sharing about their ambitions to become doctors, nurses, or agronomists. They leaned forward instead of withdrawing. Others began to notice. Colleagues started adapting their own teaching methods. Students carried the approach home, telling their parents that dialogue works better than punishment.

For Jean-Rode, education is no longer simply instruction. It is prevention.

The trainings also strengthened his leadership beyond the classroom. Today in his coordination role he supports Child Protection Brigades and Neighborhood Survivor Groups across six Lagonav communities. He facilitates discussions on children’s rights with peer teachers and within his church community, and he accompanies families navigating protection concerns.

Whenever a new training is announced, Jean-Rode makes it a priority to attend. He sees each session not as personal advancement, but as responsibility—knowledge to be shared and passed forward within his community.

Jean-Rode’s journey reflects a broader shift underway on Lagonav Island: teachers becoming protectors, equipped as stewards of a public good, classrooms becoming spaces of dialogue, and communities recognizing that community-led child protection begins with how adults use their power.

By investing in local leaders like Jean-Rode, Beyond Borders is helping communities build schools that do more than teach lessons—they cultivate dignity, reduce violence, and shape the kind of society children deserve.

RETHINKING POWER > PREVENTING VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN AND GIRLS

Her mother noticed her growing confidence and leadership at home, and neighbors began recognizing her as a role model for other girls. Empowered by this new sense of self, Rosemine enrolled in a sewing course. By mastering the rhythm of the machine and starting a small business, she began contributing to her household income—strengthening her independence and proving to her family and community that she was no longer a girl to be restricted, but a leader to be followed.

Today, Rosemine is a catalyst for change. As the coordinator of a girls-led advocacy group, she works with local schools to help girls stay in school and avoid early pregnancy. She has come full circle, becoming a mentor herself for a new Girls’ Club in another community—ensuring the same opportunity for a new generation of girls

Rosemine’s growth is exactly what the Power to Girls methodology—a holistic approach created by Beyond Borders—is designed to achieve. While girls thrive in Girls Clubs, their parents, classmates, teachers, religious leaders, and neighbors are also changing through guided conversations and activities that challenge the attitudes that limit girls and put them at risk of violence. This way, when girls claim and use their power, their communities are ready to embrace them.

As we co-lead Beyond Borders forward, we are honored to steward a mission that belongs to the staff, movement leaders and families whose courage makes this work possible. Because you choose to stand with them, lasting change is not a service being delivered; it is being crafted in community by the Haitian people. Thank you for providing the sustained support that allows families to liberate themselves from poverty and hunger, survivors to find healing and belonging, and for local, visionary leaders to rise and mobilize their neighbors to action. We are deeply moved by your commitment to helping us build a world where all people find the power to question, dream, and act together.

Coleen Hedglin and Smith Maximé Co-Executive Directors