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The UWI to play major role at UN High-Level Political Forum

For Release Upon Receipt - July 10, 2019

UWI


As world leaders, policy makers and academics around the world meet this week at the United Nations’ High-Level Political Forum 2019 (HLPF) on Sustainable Development, The University of the West Indies (The UWI) will be centre stage in the discussions.

The UWI will be represented at a number of events during the Forum which takes place from Tuesday 9 July, to Thursday 18 July, 2019 under the auspices of the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC). Established in 2012, the annual Forum is the UN’s main platform on sustainable development with a central role in the follow-up and review of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the 2030 Agenda at the global level.

Articulating the significance of The UWI’s participation in the forum, Director of Development, Dr Stacy Richards-Kennedy noted, “Universities play a unique role in advancing the 2030 global development agenda by serving as powerful drivers of knowledge, innovation, development solutions and partnerships.  The interconnected social, economic and environmental challenges faced by societies across the globe cannot be overcome without scientific inquiry, data and evidence-informed policies.  The UWI, as an activist university, committed to revitalising Caribbean development, is therefore focused on deepening its engagement in the regional and global development agenda.” She added, “Following the CARICOM Heads of Government Meeting held in Saint Lucia last week (3-5 July, 2019) in which the firm resolve of member states was expressed in the Castries Call for Collective Commitment and Action on Sustainable Development, The UWI’s participation at the HLPF is timely and critical to ensuring that the regional university is embedded in discussions around the implementation of the SDGs in the Caribbean.”

Both Dr Stacy Richards-Kennedy as well as Coordinator of The UWI’s Institute for Sustainable Development (ISD) and Director of the Centre for Environmental Management (CEM), Dr David Smith will be speaking and moderating sessions on 10 and 11 July.  Then on Friday 12 July, The UWI will co-host a symposium on Research and Innovation 4 Climate Action. This event will bring together representatives from the Permanent Missions in New York, United Nations agencies, multilateral development banks and other-intergovernmental organisations, academia, the private sector and civil society. The Symposium will feature presentations by partner higher education institutions of the Global University Consortium on SDG13 Climate Action and include question and answer sessions to facilitate knowledge exchange. A complete schedule of The UWI’s engagements follows:  

Wed 10 July (10am EST)

·  The International Association of Universities (IAU) High Level Political Forum (HLPF) Workshop - Innovative approaches and partnerships to strengthen the role of educators and academia to implement the SDGs: Coordinator of The UWI’s Institute for Sustainable Development (ISD) and Director of the Centre for Environmental Management (CEM), Dr David Smith is a presenter.

·  UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC)/ United Nations Economic and Social Council (UNDESA) Panel Discussion on Perspectives of Small Island States: The UWI’s Director of Development, Dr Stacy Richards-Kennedy is a lead discussant.

Thurs 11 July (11am – 1pm)

·  Science policy interface including the briefing from the independent group of scientists on the Global Sustainable Development Report (GSDR): Dr. David Smith is a Contributing Author for the Global Sustainable Development Report.

Thurs 11 July (6.30pm-8.30pm EST)

·  Mind Matters More Than Money: Boosting Cognitive Competences for Sustainable Development through Science and Education hosted by Permanent Missions of Germany, Jamaica and Finland to the United Nations in collaboration with The UWI, Leopoldine, SKYE and International Science Council: Coordinator of The UWI’s Institute for Sustainable Development (ISD) and Director of the Centre for Environmental Management (CEM), Dr David Smith is a presenter. 

Friday 12 July (1pm-2:30pm EST)

· The UWI-organised Symposium on Research and Innovation for Climate Action in collaboration with UNDESA: The UWI’s Director of Development, Dr Stacy Richards-Kennedy will serve as moderator; Coordinator of The UWI’s Institute for Sustainable Development (ISD) and Director of the Centre for Environmental Management (CEM), Dr David Smith is a presenter. Presentations will also be made by other members of the Global University Consortium on SDG 13, including Dr. Leena Srivastava, Vice Chancellor, TERI School of Advanced Studies (India), Dr. Helga Klieven, University of Bergen (Norway), and Mr. Justin Heavey, SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry. 

For more information on the week’s agenda, visit https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/hlpf/2019 and for more on the Global University Consortium on SDG 13, visit: www.universities4climateaction.org 

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Note to the Editor

Related News:

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The UWI selected to lead Climate-Smart World

 

About The UWI

For over 70 years The University of the West Indies (The UWI) has provided service and leadership to the Caribbean region and wider world. The UWI has evolved from a university college of London in Jamaica with 33 medical students in 1948 to an internationally respected, regional university with near 50,000 students and four campuses: Mona in Jamaica, St. Augustine in Trinidad and Tobago, Cave Hill in Barbados, and an Open Campus. As part of its robust globalization agenda, The UWI has established partnering centres with universities in North America, Latin America, Asia, and Africa including the State University of New York (SUNY)-UWI Center for Leadership and Sustainable Development; the Canada-Caribbean Studies Institute with Brock University; the Strategic Alliance for Hemispheric Development with Universidad de los Andes (UNIANDES); the UWI-China Institute of Information Technology, the University of Lagos (UNILAG)-UWI Institute of African and Diaspora Studies and the Institute for Global African Affairs with the University of Johannesburg (UJ). The UWI offers over 800 certificate, diploma, undergraduate and postgraduate degree options in Food & Agriculture, Engineering, Humanities & Education, Law, Medical Sciences, Science & Technology, Social Sciences and Sport. 

As the region’s premier research academy, The UWI’s foremost objective is driving the growth and development of the regional economy. Times Higher Education ranked The UWI among the top 1,258 universities in world for 2019, and the 40 best universities in its Latin America Rankings for 2018. The UWI was the only Caribbean-based university to make the prestigious lists.  For more, visit www.uwi.edu.

(Please note that the proper name of the university is The University of the West Indies, inclusive of the “The”, hence The UWI.)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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