‘Together, we can work to stop the climate crisis’

Five student researchers sit in a row of armchairs on stage during a panel discussion

International researchers, students, policymakers and community members exchanged insights and explored innovative solutions to climate change at the third annual Canada-Caribbean Institute Research Symposium, held at McMaster. (All photos by Ron Scheffler for McMaster University)

October 22, 2024

International scholars, policy makers and leaders joined McMaster students, faculty, staff and community members for a three-day event this month to share insights and explore innovative ways to address the increasingly urgent climate crisis.

The 2024 Canada-Caribbean Institute Symposium, held at McMaster last week, included panel discussions with globally recognized experts as well as student researchers. McMaster is the lead Canadian partner of the Canada-Caribbean Institute.

In addition to sharing research and ideas on a vast range of topics — climate justice, health, housing and food security, climate vulnerabilities, climate resilience, and promoting the adoption of alternative energy sources, to name a few — attendees from Canada and a large number of Caribbean nations also had an opportunity to create and strengthen relationships with peers, colleagues and allies in advocacy.

The symposium also emphasized McMaster’s ongoing partnerships and commitment to internationalization, sustainability, and collaboration across borders and disciplines to find solutions to the climate crisis.

Symposium attendees also toured the McMaster Nuclear Reactor, the new Learning and Discovery Greenhouse, and the archives of Miss Lou and Austin Clarke in the William Ready Division of Archives and Research Collections at the McMaster Library.

Here are some scenes from the symposium:

Elizabeth Thompson gestures with her hand while speaking at a podium on stage
Elizabeth Thompson, Barbados’ Ambassador with Responsibility for Climate Change, Small Island Developing States and Law of the Sea, delivered an electrifying keynote that painted a vivid picture of the terrible devastation climate change has brought to the Caribbean, and called for climate adaptation and mitigation.
Elizabeth Thompson, David Farrar and Julie Lashell Adderley sit on chairs on stage holding mics during a panel discussion.
Thompson, McMaster President David Farrar and Bahamas Senate President Julie Lashell Adderley led the first interactive panel discussion, which included audience questions and remarks on nuclear and other renewable sources of energy, development partnerships and advocacy.

McMaster President David Farrar, who welcomed attendees and also participated in a panel discussion with Thompson and Bahamas Senator Julie Lashell Adderley, spoke of the potential for small modular nuclear reactors, or SMRs, to help small island developing states move away from fossil fuels.

five headshots of individual speakers in a grid above a larger picture of them all sitting in a row, participating in a panel discussion on stage.
Top row: Student researchers Hosea Patrick, Kangyu So, Zilong Zhong, Kay-Ann Williams and Andrew Kemp each presented their research before participating in a panel discussion on climate change mitigation and adaptation.

Panel discussions with experts from universities in Canada and the Caribbean covered a range of topics, including climate change mitigation and adaptation strategies; the multifaceted implications of climate change on health; alternative energy technologies and solutions; climate justice and resilience; and sustainable development.

five panellists sit in armchairs on stage for a panel discussion.

five headshots of individual speakers in a grid above a larger picture of them all sitting in a row, participating in a panel discussion on stage.

Three professors sit on stage for a panel discussion, in front of a massive screen showing their slide presentation.
Familiar faces: From left, John Preston, nuclear strategic advisor to McMaster’s VP Research; McMaster chief nuclear officer and AVP Nuclear Dave Tucker; and McMaster thermal energy transfer expert Jim Cotton take questions after their discussion on nuclear energy and thermal networks.
Juiet Daniel speaks into a mic at a podium on stage.
Professor Juliet Daniel, the strategic advisor to the President for the Canada-Caribbean Institute at McMaster University, and the rest of the organizing team, worked tirelessly on the symposium, and their work paid off.
Four people stand in a line, smiling, outside the event.
From left: Sandrea Maynard, Pro Vice Chancellor of Global Affairs at the University of the West Indies; Barbados High Commissioner to Canada Gline Clarke; and CCI co-chairs: McMaster President David Farrar; and Northern Caribbean University President Lincoln Edwards.

About CCI

Established in 2020, the CCI’s mission is to bring together scholars from across Canada and the Caribbean to collaborate on economic, environmental and social issues that contribute to the shared prosperity of both regions.

Made up of 12 member institutions, the CCI supports research on a range of key policy areas including health; climate change; advancing the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals; trade and investment; Caribbean culture and the diaspora; and government and foreign relations, among other areas.

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