Research, the Oxford Dictionary states, is “a careful study of a subject, especially in order to discover new facts or information about it.”

It is also one of the key factors in human progress. There is almost no way to overstate the contribution that research has made to our species. And one of the chief agents for supporting and implementing this “careful study” is the university. In the Caribbean, that role is filled primarily by The University of the West Indies.

In its 75 years of existence, The UWI has been the home of a staggering amount of research, some of which whose findings have reverberated through academia worldwide, influenced policy, improved practices across numerous sectors, developed technologies, addressed and helped solve urgent crises, and given us a better understanding of our history, norms, art, and culture.

As early as 1954, a mere six years after the establishment of The UWI as the University College of the West Indies, the institution was already being recognised for its work.

The UWI’s historical records state that in that year, “a Visiting Committee chaired by Dame Lillian Penson, former Vice-Chancellor of the University of London, termed the work of the first six years ‘a most remarkable beginning’ and gave special kudos to ‘the excellence of research in the humanities, in pure, and applied science and in medicine which is being undertaken at the college’ as well as to the work of the Extra-Mural Department.”

UWI St Augustine’s research roots extend even further back. Before becoming part of The UWI in 1960, the campus was the headquarters for the Imperial College of Tropical Agriculture (ICTA). Founded in 1921 (originally as the West Indies Agricultural College), ICTA was the British Empire’s centre for postgraduate education as well as research in tropical agriculture.

ICTA’s research was an asset to the agricultural sector, and its legacy lives on through its “descendant” entities at UWI St Augustine such as the Faculty of Food and Agriculture and the Department of Life Sciences in the Faculty of Science and Technology.

Today, The UWI has an extensive and well-articulated research culture, consisting not only of the work being carried out in its faculties, but also in several units and centres. The UWI’s many researchers have contributed to numerous peer-reviewed, reputable academic journals, and the university itself publishes several research publications.

At UWI St Augustine, the The UWI Trinidad and Tobago Research and Development Impact (RDI) Fund has provided funding support for over 47 projects going back to 2012. These projects can be viewed at the RDI Fund website, https://sta.uwi.edu/rdifund/.

For a comprehensive listing of UWI researchers and their work, visit the university’s online repository, UWI Scholar at https://uwischolar.sta.uwi.edu/.

For more information on research at UWI St Augustine and opportunities and tools for researchers, go to the School of Graduate Studies and Research at https://sta.uwi.edu/research/.