The SALISES Mission is:
To influence academic, public and policy debates by undertaking research and graduate teaching from a Caribbean perspective within a multi-disciplinary, small-country and comparative context.
Notwithstanding the pandemic, the three SALISES campus units continued to implement the Institute's mission and regional strategic plan which is directed by The UWI's Triple A Strategic Plan's goals of Access, Alignment and Agility and governed by SALISES' strategic principles of transformation, excellence, accountability and mission-driven activities (TEAM). SALISES held regional staff meetings to increase its regional coordination.
SALISES successfully increased access to its graduate programmes. Prior to COVID-19, the Institute had received approval for the conversion of the MSc in Development Studies programme from face-to-face delivery mode to an online delivery platform. With funding from the Commonwealth of Learning (COL), SALISES staff were trained in preparation for the transition. Staff also benefited tremendously from guidance provided by the Office of Online Learning (OOL). Intense marketing efforts resulted in a 263% increase in student enrolment in the online MSc in Development Studies programme.
Research and publications were significant. The 14 Research Fellows at all three campuses provided some 30+ publications. The target of two plus (2+) research publications/outputs per Research Fellow per academic year was attained by most of the Research Fellows. A total of 24 conference papers were also presented at locally, regionally and internationally organized conferences and seminars.
Some staff achievements included: Dr. Hamid Ghany's promotion to Professor, Constitutional Affairs and Parliamentary Studies; Professor Aldrie Henry-Lee's Vice-Chancellor's Award for all-round excellence; Dr. Corin Bailey's Cave Hill Principal's Award for Excellence 2019/2020 in the Academic Category – Outstanding Research and Dr. Dacia Leslie's Mona Principal's Award for FSS Best Publication. Five Research Fellows were selected for the SALISES' internal Outstanding Lecturer awards, having gained 4.5 and over (out of a possible 5) in their student evaluations in the MSc in Development Studies. Professor Henry-Lee was the Outstanding Researcher for SALISES Mona for the academic year 2019/2020.
SALISES, through its commissioned research projects, also contributed to the financial health of The UWI. The Institute continued its alignment with the needs of the Caribbean region and SALISES staff were involved in several commissioned research projects sponsored by regional and international agencies, including the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB), United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Food and Agriculture Organization and USAID. The institute hosted or co-hosted successful several seminars and webinars on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. SALISES staff continued to provide outstanding university and public service.
SALISES' efforts to increase accountability was further strengthened by the establishment of an Advisory Board in November 2018. The second meeting was held on August 14, 2020. In spite of the challenges presented by the pandemic, it was a successful year for SALISES.
Staff at the three units of SALISES commenced instruction in the fully online MSc Development Studies at the start of the academic year 2020/2021. This is one of the few online Master's degrees and it is in keeping with both the alignment imperative to promote a cohesive single UWI brand consciousness and to improve the number of students enrolled in its postgraduate programme.
The MSc programme was marketed locally, regionally and internationally on social media platforms, magazines and a student recruitment website (masterstudies.com). Marketing initiatives resulted in a 263% increase in student numbers for the 2020/2021 academic year.
The target of two plus (2+) research publications/outputs per Research Fellow per academic year on average was attained by many of the Research Fellows. The 14 Research Fellows at all three campuses provided some 30+ publications. There were also some 24 conference/seminar presentations made by Research Fellows at international, regionally organized conferences/seminars.
Research clusters coordinated by Research Fellows continued their research, publication and activism.
SALISES Cave Hill launched The UWI-Global Belt and Road Research Magazine in January 2020 to stimulate discussion, raise awareness and share knowledge about China's evolving foreign lending, core rivalry power stakes and the overall implications for countries of the Caribbean and the Global South. The informed opinion editorials aim to fill a lacuna in China and South-South studies in the wider Caribbean region relying on members of The UWI-Global Belt and Road Research fraternity even as it is open to other contributors. See the link: https://indd.adobe.com/view/89b684b9-ac39-419e-b99f-46677c2c8492
SALISES Mona Staff presented at SALISES staff seminars and other conferences/seminars. They made a total of 16 presentations.
SALISES Cave Hill hosted the 14th Annual Caribbean Child Conference at the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Conference Centre from November 14–15, 2019, under the theme: "The CRC @30: What does it mean for Caribbean Children?" The Caribbean Child Research Conference is an annual research conference which aims to share research on children, strengthen the network of researchers on children's issues, and encourage critical investigation in areas that are often under-researched.
SALISES Cave Hill also hosted a Vice-Chancellor's Forum on "Evolving Canada-Caribbean Relations" featuring a roundtable discussion on December 4, 2019 at the Errol Barrow Centre for Creative Imagination (EBCCI). The forum featured presentations from Her Excellency Ms. Marie Legault, High Commissioner, Canadian High Commission; The Right Honourable Professor Owen S. Arthur, Professor of Practice, The UWI, Cave Hill Campus. The discussants were Professor Kamala Kempadoo and Mr. Andrew Millington, and the moderator was Dr. Don Marshall.
There were two joint SALISES webinars on COVID-19 Socio-Economic Effects. Directors of the respective SALISES Units—Cave Hill, St Augustine and Mona—mobilised early public engagement on the socio-economic impacts of the first wave lockdowns on Caribbean countries. The first joint SALISES webinar took place on May 28, 2020. It was entitled "COVID-19 and Fiscal Sustainability—Debt, Balance of Payments and Financing for Development". The presenters were Dr. Kevin Williams (SALISES, Mona); Dr. Andre Haughton (Department of Economics, Mona) and Dr. Don Marshall (SALISES, Cave Hill). The moderator was Dr. Preeya Mohan (SALISES, St. Augustine).
The second joint SALISES webinar was staged on Friday, June 5, 2020. A number of presenters delivered contributions to the topic "New Economy Models, Post COVID-19 Policies for Productivity, Health and Social Wealth". The contributors were: Dr. Patricia Northover (SALISES, Mona); Mr. Danny Roberts (Head of the Hugh Shearer Labour Studies Institute); Dr. Preeya Mohan (SALISES, St. Augustine) and Mr. Hugh Johnson (President of the Small Business Association, Jamaica). The moderator was Professor Emeritus, Patrick Watson (former Director, SALISES, St. Augustine).
SALISES St. Augustine hosted its 3rd Annual Sir Arthur Lewis Memorial Symposium at the SALISES Conference Room on January 23, 2020. This symposium was started in 2018 as a means of highlighting the life and work of Sir Arthur Lewis. It also hosted its 3rd Annual Sir Arthur Lewis Distinguished Lecture at the University Inn and Conference Centre, delivered by Professor Gordon Houlden, Director of the China Centre at the University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada on the topic: "China's Rise as a Global Economic Power: What are the Implications for the Developing World?" This was followed by its's 3rd Annual SALISES St. Augustine Research Days: A Festival of Seminars on February 3-5, 2020 at the SALISES Conference Room. This event highlighted the research being conducted by SALISES Fellows, Affiliates, Associates and its M.Phil./Ph.D. students.
SALISES St. Augustine published the 3rd edition of its SALISES Abstracts on January 27, 2020 which is a compendium of all the research being undertaken at SALISES St. Augustine or has either passed through or is projected to pass through SALISES St. Augustine by the publication date. These research abstracts are normally linked to the SALISES St. Augustine Research Days.
There was a SALISES St. Augustine/ILO Webinar on "Labour Markets and Resilience in the Caribbean" on May 29, 2020. This was sponsored by the ILO as part of their contribution to the 21st Annual SALISES Conference that had to be postponed from May 5-8, 2020 owing to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Staff at all three campus units continued to serve on several local, regional and international boards. Several Research Fellows were invited to be featured speakers at numerous events.
SALISES Research Fellows' research skills are highly sought and Research Fellows from across the three campuses were involved in 14 commissioned research projects. SALISES Cave Hill Fellows engaged industry partners as a single team to undertake interdisciplinary research in accordance with the merged outlook of the organization and that of SALISES. The result was the landing of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) study with funding totalling USD$84,650.00. It is a model intended to guide our future engagements and it opens avenues for future research as we strive to highlight issues for further sponsorship. The gains in time saving, value-added research inquiry and closer collaboration with donor and international development agencies make this an optimal initiative.
SALISES Mona provided consultancy services for six commissioned research projects valued at USD 792,694.00 and received USD22,500.00 for four external grants.
SALISES St. Augustine fast-tracked the digital transformation of its business operations by completing its teaching programmes in an online mode after March 14, 2020 when a Government-ordered lockdown was ordered. All teaching and examinations were successfully completed using alternative assessments. A summer programme was mounted from June 29, 2020 and the following MSc Development Statistics courses were offered: SALI 6010-Development Theory and Policy, SALI 6012-Research methods in the Social Sciences, SALI 6023-Monitoring and Evaluation, and, SALI 6031-Techniques of Applied Social Statistical Analysis.
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