The earthquake that shook Haiti on January 12, 2010, sent social aftershocks far beyond the country’s borders. In response to the sixth deadliest earthquake in history, support poured in from across the globe to uplift the Caribbean country. And while it may seem like the disaster was just yesterday, half a year has passed. In honor of the six-month anniversary of the earthquake, our nonprofit partner CARE hosted a TweetChat on July 12, 2010 to discuss the lingering questions about how Haiti is doing six months later.

Questions bout Haiti’s recovery status were submitted via Facebook and Twitter with the hashtag #haiti6mo and Rick Perera, CARE emergency media officer who deployed to Haiti two days after the quake and remained until May answered them. Below are some of the highlights from the TweetChat:

Q: Ashok Trivedi via Facebook: What long term plan do you have for the victims? How far shall your operation run in Haiti?

A: @rickperera: CARE is committed to Haiti for the long term. We have a 5 year, $100 million recovery plan, and ongoing work continues to support self-sufficiency, including transitional shelter, prep for hurricane threats, health, education, water/sanitation and combating sexual violence.

Q: @jeffstein1212: What’s CARE doing to help women in Haiti?

A: @rickperera: Our work on reproductive health is making a big difference to women and girls living in displaced-persons camps. Women are beneficiaries of CARE’s cash-for-work projects, which provide payment for doing cleanup and recovery jobs. We strive to ensure 50% of these opportunities, including supervisory jobs, go to women. In all our work, including distribution of relief goods like emergency shelter items, we prioritize the most vulnerable. This includes female-headed households.

Q: Yas Adams via Facebook: Since most schools got damaged, what’s been done to make sure children don’t miss out on learning?

A: @rickperera: Medium-term CARE will help restore schools; in the meantime, we are providing recreational and learning materials to children in camps while training adults (parents and community leaders) in providing support to kids.

Q: @annaGannaG: What was the hardest part about your time in Haiti?

A: @rickperera: Seeing terrible devastation, including bodies in street, etc., was the worst thing I’d personally ever experienced, especially since so many of our Haitian CARE colleagues have suffered such losses themselves.

Q: @puresuprise: What else can be done to help the people in Haiti, in terms of nonmaterial support?

A: @rickperera: Haitians need to know they won’t be forgotten, even now that this immediate crisis is out of the headlines. One important step you can take is to advocate with your legislators. Ask them to maintain their support for the recovery and reconstruction effort over the long term. Learn more about how to be an advocate for Haiti and against global poverty, via CARE Action Network.

Q: @edgery: Are there ways individuals can support long-term sustainable development for Haiti’s women and children?

A: @rickperera: CARE’s work in Haiti will continue for years to come and supporters can continue to make a strong impact. Supporters can lend their voices to advocacy and awareness raising, keeping Haiti in the spotlight once media attention wanes.

View more from the TweetChat here.

What can you personally do to ensure a positive future for Haiti?

What questions do you still have about Haiti?

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CARE is a global nonprofit group fighting poverty by focusing on empowering women and girls. They primarily seek to improve basic education, expand economic opportunity, increase access to health services, and protect natural resources. And in response to the earthquake, CARE’s priorities include providing shelter to displaced families, protecting women and girls, providing water, promoting sanitation hygiene, supporting local families’ livelihoods by buying their produce and supplying jobs, and ensuring children’s psychological care and well-being.

[Photos from Flickr by dvids]