Keynote Speaker for the Opening of the 4th Country Conference, Dr. James Fletcher, Former Minister for the Public Service, Information, Broadcasting, Sustainable Development, Energy, Science and Technology.
CASTRIES, St. Lucia--The University of the West Indies (The UWI) Open Campus St. Lucia, in collaboration with the Global Environment Facility (GEF) Small Grants Programme (SGP) United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), will host its fourth Country Conference from February 15 to 17. The theme of this year’s Conference is “Visioning Sustainable Futures – Confronting the Threats of Climate Change and Climate Variability”, and it is expected to provide an avenue to share existing research and disseminate information on St. Lucia. The conference will take place using a virtual Zoom platform, anchored at the Conference Room, Floor 5, Finance Centre, Pointe Seraphine, Castries, St. Lucia.
Speaking on the raison d’être of the conference, The UWI St. Lucia Acting Head of Site Lesley Crane-Mitchell explained, “The University of the West Indies has a mandate to educate and to share information with the public, and to promote research and innovation as part of its mission to develop and maintain the sustainability of its contributing territories. As one means of carrying out this mandate, the former UWI School of Continuing Studies (now The UWI Open Campus) designed a series of multidisciplinary Country Conferences to be held in each of what were previously known as, the “UWI-12” (UWI contributing countries outside of Trinidad, Barbados and Jamaica).”
An exciting feature of this latest conference, continued Crane-Mitchell, “is that we have joined forces with the GEF SGP UNDP Knowledge Fair [see related story – Ed.], to uncover, present and document the most recent research conducted on St. Lucia, with a view to seeking solutions to the existential threat to our collective futures, caused by climate change and climate variability, and compounded by socio-economic inequalities.”
The UWI St. Lucia Country Conference begins on Monday, February 15, at 7:00pm with an Opening chaired by Embert Charles, Chair of the GEF SGP UNDP National Steering Committee. A welcome by Crane-Mitchell will be followed by remarks from Dr. Cheryl Sloley, Director of Open Campus Country Sites, Christianne Walcott, Operations Manager of The UWI Centre for Biosecurity Studies’ Cave Hill Campus, and key partner Giles Romulus, National Coordinator of the GEF Small Grants Programme UNDP.
The Keynote Address for the evening will be delivered by Dr. James Fletcher, Former Minister for the Public Service, Information, Broadcasting, Sustainable Development, Energy, Science and Technology, who will elucidate on the theme.
The conference continues on February 16 and 17, from 9:00am to 2:00pm daily. Day two of the conference will see presentations focused on a range of climate change-related topics including, Historical and Future trends in Climate Related Hazards, by Dr. Cedric Van Meerbeeck; Climate Change and Economic Development Implications for SIDS – The Case of St. Lucia, by Dr. Clarence Henry; St. Lucia’s Climate Policy Environment – Towards Concrete Action, by Dawn Pierre Nathaniel; The Impact of Climate Change on Fisheries and Aqua Culture, by Makeba Felix; and Climate Change and Neotropical Pollinators – The State of Knowledge, Policies and Programmes in Caribbean Small Island States, by Lena Dempwolf. The day’s proceedings will end with a unique presentation by Shareed Mohammed, Doctoral degree candidate in the Literatures in English programme.
The conference will conclude on day three with a sectoral focus on Fisheries, Forestry, Health and Energy. The first presentation will be by Dr. Shelly Ann Cox on the topic Climate Change Impacts on the Caribbean Fisheries Sector, followed by Shanna Emmanuel’s contribution on Climate Change and Knowledge Platforms. Other contributions will include The Epidemiology of Human Leptospirosis in St. Lucia, by Dr. Gemma Cherry; and The Morne Fortune Photovoltaic Project by Kurt Harris. The final presentation of the day will be made by Crispin D’Auvergne on The Eastern Caribbean Solar Challenge.
The public is invited to attend all three days of the Conference and to participate in the stimulating discussion that is sure to follow each presentation. The Conference can be accessed free of charge via the Facebook and You Tube links:
www.facebook.com/uwiopencampuscaribbean and
www.open.uwi.edu/livestream.
