In his 35 years of international medical relief work, Dr. Larry Kaplan of Wellesley has helped establish a Cambodian refugee camp after the fall of Pol Pot in 1979. He has evaluated medical needs in Honduras in the aftermath of Hurricane Mitch in 1998 and provided emergency care after the earthquake in Haiti in 2010.

For the last six years, the retired gastroenterologist has also been volunteering closer to home. At Wellesley High School, he has provided more than 150 students in business teacher Jane Lord’s global-marketing classes with a greater understanding of Third World issues and ways they can help.

In addition to learning about the economic, cultural, political, and social problems affecting the country, the students are marketing traditional Haitian metal art purchased from artisans whose sales have plummeted from the loss of tourism.

“These are kids from one of the wealthiest suburbs in Massachusetts,’’ said Kaplan, who was formerly chairman of the Wellesley School Committee and president and chief executive of the MetroWest Medical Center in Framingham and Natick. “It’s pretty eye-opening for them.’’

Two months after witnessing the earthquake devastation firsthand in Port-au-Prince, Kaplan founded the Cite Soleil Opportunity Council, a Haitian-run nonprofit organization providing job creation, small business loans, environmental cleanup, a visiting nurse program, electricity for homes, and community revitalization.

Since its inception in March 2010, the organization has purchased more than $45,000 of art and returned profits from US sales to the community. This year, the Haitian Collaboration project at Wellesley High School includes a new component in which students are marketing hand-cut, hand-painted reproductions of logos on metal recycled from oil drums to businesses, foundations, and nonprofit organizations.

Beyond providing sustainable relief to artists in one of the world’s most impoverished countries, Kaplan said he hopes he is imparting lessons that will last a lifetime. He is pleased by the sincere eagerness and dedication of the students, some of whom have expressed interest in becoming entrepreneurs.

“They’re learning about international trade and so much more,’’ he said. “It’s a remarkable project that goes well beyond grades.’’

For more information, visit creative- haiti.com.

Cindy Cantrell

Cindy Cantrell can be reached at cindycantrell20@gmail.com.