Caribbean Studies Association Conference highlights regional challenges

The Caribbean Studies Association on Monday opened its first virtual conference, taking a dive at pressing affairs in the region and how countries can steer away from policies that will negatively affect growth.
Joining with the University of Guyana to deliver the conference virtually, the United States Embassy is the primary sponsor of the event.
President of the Caribbean Studies Association, Dr Tavis Jules acknowledged that the extant pandemic crisis has highlighted inequalities within the region, and is a wakeup call as to whether it can achieve current sustainable development goals.
“COVID-19 has shone a light on the inequalities that continues to exacerbate the region. It has brought to our attention, the plight of achieving the UN sustainable development goals by 2030 and the aspirations for a more inclusive and equitable world. In this context, the amplification of vaccine apartheid, which has left Caribbean countries undersupplied and vulnerable to the pandemic,” Dr Jules noted.

He added that the Caribbean identity is slowly changing, taking on the shape of globalisation. With this, there is a rise of “haphazard” development.
“Caribbean culture is metamorphising as globalisation has replaced indigenous Caribbean identities with McDonaldisation. Today’s Caribbean is not the Caribbean that our forefathers freed from the bosom of former colonial masters. Economic development has been haphazard and some countries rely on the monocrop of tourism and others staking their hopes on non-renewable fossil fuels such as oil as gas.”
The Assistant Professor of Layola University added, “It has long been recognised that small states of the Caribbean need each other to engender a sustainable development. Rather than band together to deepen economic integration, the regional project of today has become reliant on functional cooperation to achieve deeper regionalism.”
Meanwhile, Vice Chancellor, Professor Paloma Mohamed labelled this initiative as an opportunity to exchange research and build collaboration to address current problems.
“We will, over the next few days, be able to share our intellectual gifts, curiosities, solutions, creative and innovative talents as well as new and emerging research around the persistent problems of our day in a new and promising virtual environment.”
United States Ambassador to Guyana Sarah-Ann Lynch reassured that her country is committed to assisting the region on the educational front, through stronger partnerships.
“It is my hope that this conference builds stronger partnerships for the region and that the United States is considered the partner of choice when it comes to academic excellence…Education and research are the foundations for prosperity and you are in the vanguard of those efforts,” she expressed.
The conference will last until June 4, targeting politics, industry, ecology and the economy of the region.