The climate change countdown | Green By Erline Andrews | Issue 159 (September/October 2019) For decades, climate scientists have warned us about the consequences of global warming — and small island states like those in the Caribbean are especially vulnerable. 2017’s Hurricane Maria was just a taste of what the coming decades will bring, reports Erline Andrews, unless significant resources get directed to efforts to protect threatened coastlines and reefs
Archaeology’s eye in the sky | Discover By Erline Andrews | Issue 158 (July/August 2019) For centuries, much of the evidence for Mayan civilisation has been covered in dense rainforest. Now new developments in LiDAR technology have made it possible for archaeologists to do sophisticated aerial surveys — revealing tens of thousands of previously unknown structures. Erline Andrews learns more
Get a kick | On this day By James Ferguson | Issue 158 (July/August 2019) Kick ’Em Jenny sounds like a comic name, but for the scientists who study this underwater volcano, first recorded eighty years ago, it’s no laughing matter. The Caribbean was shaped by its volcanoes, says James Ferguson, which created our mountainous island landscapes — but can also wreak havoc
The parrotfish dilemma | Green By Erline Andrews | Issue 157 (May/June 2019) Among the most colourful marine species, parrotfish play a key role in keeping reefs and beaches healthy. They are also delicious, making fishing bans to protect them unpopular. Without these protections, learns Erline Andrews, they may be overfished into extinction
Football holiday | On this day By James Ferguson | Issue 157 (May/June 2019) When two English football clubs toured the Caribbean fifty-five years ago, local teams in Jamaica, Trinidad, and Barbados were no competition. Haiti was a different story, writes James Ferguson
Don’t buy shoes | Classic By Kerri Gilligan | Issue 157 (May/June 2019), Issue 73 (May/June 2005) Kerri Gilligan came to Trinidad for the first time when she fell in love. Then she met her sweetheart’s Tantie . . . Originally published in our May/June 2005 issue and re-published in our May/June 2019 issue
Diva Amon: as deep as it goes | Discover By Erline Andrews | Issue 156 (March/April 2019) The portion of the sea below two hundred metres is our planet’s biggest habitat, and the least known. Erline Andrews meets Trinidadian marine biologist Diva Amon, pioneering deep-sea research in our region
A flag on the island | On this day By James Ferguson | Issue 156 (March/April 2019) When a British military force landed in Anguilla fifty years ago, it was a strangely anachronistic moment in Caribbean colonial history — but one that Anguillans welcomed with open arms, suggests James Ferguson
The plastic wars | Green By Erline Andrews | Issue 155 (January/February 2019) Plastic pollution is a growing danger to the environment, to wildlife, and to ourselves. As Jamaica implements the first major plastics ban in the Caribbean, Erline Andrews learns about its possible impact — and pitfalls
Saved by microbes | Discover By Raymond Ramcharitar | Issue 155 (January/February 2019) Trinidadian microbiologist Adesh Ramsubhag is a pioneer in researching potentially revolutionary uses of the Caribbean’s native microorganisms, writes Raymond Ramcharitar
“Papa Doc” Duvalier: When the bogeyman is real | On this day By James Ferguson | Issue 155 (January/February 2019) Sixty years ago, Haitian dictator “Papa Doc” Duvalier set up a fearsome paramilitary corps to dispatch political opposition. James Ferguson looks back at the sinister history of the Tontons Macoutes
Ayurveda: finding the balance | Be well By Cate Young | Issue 154 (November/December 2018) Practised for millennia in the Indian subcontinent, traditional ayurvedic medicine, with its focus on achieving both physical and spiritual balance, was brought to the Caribbean in the nineteenth century — and recently has been more widely adopted as a form of “alternative medicine.” Cate Young learns more, and talks to two practitioners who say ayurveda has helped them bring their lives and health into equilibrium
The secret life of sunscreen | Green By Erline Andrews | Issue 154 (November/December 2018) The blazing rays of the tropical sun can take a heavy toll on your skin — which is why most beachgoers and swimmers in the Caribbean slather on a layer of protective sunscreen before they disrobe. But the very chemicals that protect human skin can be toxic for corals — and the Caribbean’s reefs pay the price. Erline Andrews investigates
The war after the war | On this day By James Ferguson | Issue 154 (November/December 2018) Thousands of men from the British West Indies enlisted in the armed forces during the First World War, playing a crucial but often thankless role in the Allied victory. And when the fighting was over, another struggle for respect and recognition began — feeding a new wave of self-determination in the Caribbean. James Ferguson remembers the events of a century ago that set it all in motion
Jaws of life | Green By Erline Andrews | Issue 153 (September/October 2018) Pop culture has given sharks an undeservedly scary reputation. What’s truly frightening, reports Erline Andrews, is a sea without sharks, vital for a healthy marine ecosystem. And after decades of neglect, the countries of the Caribbean are finally waking up to the importance of shark conservation — for the environment, but also for their economies
A plague from above | On this day By James Ferguson | Issue 153 (September/October 2018) It’s not just a story from the Bible: thirty years ago, thanks to unprecedented weather conditions, a massive swarm of locusts crossed the Atlantic and ended up in the Caribbean. James Ferguson investigates how, and what became of them
Eye on the sky — from Puerto Rico’s Arecibo Observatory | Discover By Erline Andrews | Issue 152 (July/August 2018) For five decades, one of the world’s most important radio telescopes, gathering essential information about outer space, has operated from Puerto Rico’s Arecibo, at the heart of the Caribbean, writes Erline Andrews
OK to be proud | Inspire By Bridget van Dongen | Issue 152 (July/August 2018) Six years ago, the tragic suicide of a teenager motivated the launch of an initiative to support young LGBTQ people in Trinidad and Tobago. Bridget van Dongen reports on the Silver Lining Foundation, and how they work to protect the vulnerable
Arthur Wint: long before Bolt | On this day By James Ferguson | Issue 152 (July/August 2018) Usain Bolt may be Jamaica’s most famous Olympic medallist — but he was far from the first. James Ferguson looks back at the life of Arthur Wint and his extraordinary achievements both on and off the track
Create Caribbean: tech to the people | Plugin By Lisa Allen-Agostini | Issue 151 (May/June 2018) Founded by scholar Schuyler Esprit, Dominica’s Create Caribbean was well on its way to making tech tools for education available to all. Then Hurricane Maria hit. Lisa Allen-Agostini discovers how the digital humanities project is putting the pieces back together
Sans-Souci, Haiti: uncovering a kingdom | Discover By Erline Andrews | Issue 151 (May/June 2018) It’s one of the Caribbean’s most resonant historic sites, but surprisingly little is known about the true history of Sans-Souci, the palace of Henri Christophe, writes Erline Andrews. Now a multinational team of archaeologists are using high-tech tools to resurvey the site, and perhaps rewrite Haitian history
Sin city: Jamaica’s Port Royal | On this day By James Ferguson | Issue 151 (May/June 2018) It was once known as “the Sodom of the New World” — until a catastropic earthquake sent it tumbling into the sea. On the 500th anniversary of its founding, James Ferguson recalls the history of Jamaica’s infamous Port Royal
