IGDC Visit to Jamaica

The visit kicked off with a meeting of members from the Risk and Resilience in the coastal Caribbean network. This AHRC/GCRF-funded network brings together members with a range of disciplinary backgrounds from across the UK and Caribbean to develop research projects relating to disaster risk reduction and resilience.

The next day, additional stakeholders from the region were invited to a workshop to discuss priority areas and community needs for this research. Attendees included representatives from the University of West Indies (Mona and St Augustine), Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA), The Nature Conservancy and Jamaica’s Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM). The workshop displayed the benefits of interdisciplinary and inclusive projects, with a range of perspectives shared between arts and humanities scholars, environmental, physical and social scientists, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and inter-governmental organisations. Outcomes of the workshop included a more refined project plan, future funding ideas, and stronger new and existing partnerships.

Throughout the following week, IGDC research assistant Alice interviewed representatives from a range of non-governmental, research and inter-governmental organisations for the Centre’s Working with NGO Data for More Inclusive Development project. Led by Piran White, Henrice Altink and Jean Grugel, this ESRC Impact Acceleration Award-funded project aims to explore questions such as ‘Can data held by non-governmental organisations inform more inclusive research and policy in development?’ and ‘What are the key opportunities and challenges associated with NGO data?’  

Including perspectives and experiences of NGOs and other stakeholders is a key priority for this project. The interviews in Kingston centred on the opportunities and challenges of using secondary data for research and policy in the field of disaster risk and resilience. The interesting ideas that emerged from conversations with organisations including the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), Jamaica Environment Trust (JET), Caribbean Natural Resources Institute (CANARI) and Caribbean Coastal Area Management Foundation (C-CAM) will shape the future direction of the project.

Next steps for the NGO Data project include a series of workshops (event information here) and application to the ESRC Secondary Data Analysis Initiative grant, in collaboration with external partners.