The difference in Port-au-Prince and Washington DC is just a microcosm of what can, and needs, to be done in Haiti's post earthquake reconstruction. There is no comparison, really, between navigating Haiti's capital, Port-au-Prince, and the orderly, manicured streets of DC. With so much of Haiti's roads under rubble or the treads of heavy equipment, maneuvering is at best a challenge, an exercise in patience, dodge-ball, agility, and did I say, patience?

That goes for just about everything in this impoverished nation's capital, from the distribution of water to food to housing and reporting, which is why I am blogging. It's why I am going to spend a year in Haiti working hand-in-hand with journalists to bolster their investigative skills to best track the $8.8 billion pledged by the international community. The goal, for Haitian journalists  to document the money trail with transparency and sourcing, is as monumental as reconstructing homes for the 1.5 million who have been displaced.

In contrast to the rumblings on January 12 that killed over 230,000, Haiti is now crippled by stagnation - in housing development, city planning and transforming pledges into actual projects. With the hurricane season already dumping heavy rains, the possibility of exacerbating the disaster is as real as the standing pools of water in and around the 1,300 tent camps that blanket the capital. Looming like storm clouds is the potential for more deaths, flooding, disease and social  unrest.

Washington, with its sturdy, historic statues paying tribute to the wisdom of its forefathers, is not without its  problems, but as I spend my week here in the ICFJ training, I cannot help but wish that Haiti, too, could boast of its heritage: the first black independent country in the western hemisphere, the only nation in the world to defeat Napoleon's army. The few statues that commemorate its victories are surrounded by puddles of water and a sea of tents as opposed to reflecting pools.

Just a few months ago, Haiti held the world's attention. Today, at best, a single eye spotlights the western half of Hispaniola. I hope, as the Fellowship progresses, world focus will return to Haiti, not the result of a political or natural disaster, but because of a new era of Haitians reporting on Haiti with accuracy and detail, precision and impartiality.

The former resident of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, along with Haitian Prime Minister Max Bellerive, will  co-chair the commission that is charged with overseeing the distribution of aid money. Bill Clinton knows the benefits of a functioning capital. His motto for Haiti is " Build Back Better."

Change, like building a city, doesn't happen overnight. But it's time to lay down the foundation, one brick at a time.

For updates on Haiti's progress, the investigative skills of its journalist and the interventions of the Fellowship, stay tuned to this blog.