Solange Joseph signs the Matriculation Register with UWI St Augustine Campus Registrar Dr Dawn-Marie De Four-Gill (left) and Assistant Registrar Ms Simone Roberts looking on. PHOTO: ANEEL KARIM
Being chosen as the top matriculant surprised first-year Faculty of Law student, Solange Joseph. Not only was she not expecting to be chosen, but Joseph nearly missed the Matriculation Ceremony’s RSVP deadline. In the end, however, Joseph made it to the ceremony and was able to be recognised for her academic excellence, and sign the Matriculation Register on behalf of her class. It’s an opportunity Joseph appreciates, and a tradition she hopes to continue to uphold.
“UWI recognised how much effort I put into my academics, and I am grateful to have been selected. I wouldn’t be here without God, my parents, my brother, and everyone who supported me along the way,” she said.
“It was nice to hear from the Principal and Vice-Chancellor; to enjoy the performance, and to be the representative on behalf of the matriculants felt rewarding, but also like a big responsibility. I feel some pressure, not particularly external pressure, but from myself. I know that since I’ve made it this far, I can keep achieving. It’s just a matter of me concentrating and doing what I have to do.”
The Arima born-and-bred, St Augustine Girls High School alumna said she chose UWI because of its ranking as one of the top universities in the world in addition to its location. “I knew that going abroad was an option, but I don’t think that, at this stage in my life, I would’ve been able to stay away from parents for so long and survive on my own in a completely different environment, so UWI was the best option to meet both academic needs and personal needs.”
UWI was also a perfect fit for Joseph for following the family tradition. Her brother is currently a year-three BSc Agriculture student, while her mother received a Master’s in Small and Medium Enterprise Management from the Arthur Lok Jack Global School of Business in 2021.
Although Joseph doesn’t refer to herself as an environmentalist, she practices sustainability, and wants to practice law to positively impact the environment in T&T and the wider Caribbean.
“I do try my best to be as environmentally conscious as possible, but it is difficult in this society, where to a very large extent not much emphasis is placed on protection and preservation. I have a home garden and do a bit of composting as well,” she noted.
“Law felt like a good avenue through which I could make a change. I feel that not enough energy is being focused on trying to find alternative sources of energy, and we just need more help in that area, and I think that law would be the best area to do it,” said Joseph.
She also plans on attending Hugh Wooding Law School after completing the LLB. “In the long run, I’d like to maybe become a judge, and overall, I hope that during my time in the law field, I’ll be able to contribute to legislation to regulate the impact of industry on the environment and try to steer T&T in a direction away from the path we’re on right now.”
Her passion for environmentalism was inspired by studying about issues such as climate change and participating in programmes like the Carbon Zero Initiative of T&T.
“Throughout secondary school, learning about climate change and actually being able to experience increasingly hotter temperatures made me do research and realise that, while we cannot reverse the deterioration of the earth, we can mitigate it to some extent. It also opened my eyes to the extent of the severity of the state of the environment.”
These lessons solidified Joseph’s commitment to making changes to environmental legislation. “As a society, presumably because of our dependence on oil, I don’t think enough is being done to make the general public more aware of their effects on the environment. Furthermore, the exploitation of and disregard for wildlife and marine life, locally and internationally, made me want to contribute in some way toward humans being able to exist without further infringing on animals and their natural habitats. We need to realise that the more we destroy the environment, we indirectly destroy ourselves, as we cannot survive without it.”
An all-rounder who has been involved in charity work, sports and the arts, Joseph said she intends on joining the Student Guild in the near future. Joseph believes that success isn’t achieved with talent alone, but also conscientiousness.
“If you put your mind to anything, you can achieve it,” she says. “I don’t think of myself as extraordinary, but I work hard. There’s a quote that I like that goes something like, ‘You didn’t reach this far to only get this far’, so try and push forward.”