UWI-IAI-WMO Hurricane Symposium to be held in Kingston, Jamaica with Strong Youth Support

The University of the West Indies (UWI) in partnership with the Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (IAI), headquartered in Panama, and the World Metrological Association (WMO), headquartered in Geneva, will host a Hurricane Symposium titled: Response and Resilience to Hurricanes in the Caribbean in a Changing Climate: Best Practices and Lessons Learned. This event will take place on Thursday, October 3, 2024, from 9:00 AM – 1:00 PM in the E. Nigel Harris Council Room at the Regional Headquarters of The University of the West Indies in Kingston, Jamaica, and is also accessible online.  This symposium is the one of the activities executed under the MoU signed between The UWI and the IAI in March 2023 to strengthen collaborative work and build scientific capacity across the Caribbean region.

The Caribbean region is the second most disaster-prone region in the world, regularly hit by hydro-meteorological hazards. Hurricanes and storms are the most common, all of which result in serious flooding and wind damage to infrastructure and property. The outcome has been a substantial setback to development, with losses being a significant percentage of gross domestic product (GDP). Tropical cyclones have caused serious loss to the tune of up to 90%, 200% and 226% of GDP in some instances. This was the case of Tropical Storm Erica and Hurricane Maria in Dominica (90% and 224% of GDP), and Hurricane Ivan in Grenada and the Cayman Islands (over 200% of GDP, and 183% of GDP respectively).

The overall aim of the symposium is to discuss the impact and lessons learned from cyclonic events in the Caribbean region over the past 20 years – especially Hurricane Ivan (2004) and Hurricane Beryl (2024) and recount the experiences of Caribbean islands such as Jamaica, Grenada and the Cayman Islands. Best practices will also be examined. Speakers for the symposium include Dr. David Smith, Coordinator of the Institute for Sustainable Development (UWI), Mr. Jeremy Collymore, Disaster and Resilience Specialist, Mr. Evan Thompson, Principal Director, the Jamaica Meteorological Service, Delroy Mclean, Senior Director for Enterprise, Cable & Wireless Business, Mr. Richard Thompson, Director General, Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM) and special guest, youth advocate Ms. Jovana Hoschtialek, founder of the organisation 195in365 Inc from Grenada.

Speakers and panellists will engage in robust discussions on critical questions such as: How have Caribbean countries managed recovery periods after hurricanes? What are the best practices/lessons learned for hurricane preparedness and response activities? How can the Caribbean pave the way towards becoming a resilient region?

The input of the youth, and next generation leaders will be critical in these discussions, as they will face some of the major challenges that Caribbean communities will experience.

English and Spanish language interpretation will be available for this symposium, and participants can register for online participation using the link: https://bit.ly/47drZ6o