The Islanders at the Helm project started in 2021 for a period of five years. In the meantime, more than 20 researchers have explored a wide range of questions regarding how islanders on St. Maarten, Saba, St. Eustatius, Aruba, Bonaire, and Curaçao have been living with climate challenges, both in the past and the present. From policy research to visual anthropology, to ethnopaleontology, to musicology, and more - our researchers have utilized a myriad of different perspectives from the social sciences, humanities, and beyond to ponder a variety of issues surrounding climate adaption.
During the upcoming conference (21-23 October), the researchers will present their findings, reflect on the last four years of the project, and share insights that matter to everyone living and working on any of the islands, including policymakers, researchers, artists, activists, students and those in the private, social and culture sectors. We invite you to join us in these conversations in Curaçao this October.
Call for abstracts and papers.
The project also invites external scholars, practitioners, and artists to contribute papers for the conference. We are seeking papers from professionals dedicated to exploring the intersections of cultural, heritage, climate challenges, policy, governance, and sustainable adaptation in the Dutch and wider Caribbean. We invite reflective works that address poetics, policy, governance, research, architecture, and development, encouraging exploration of aesthetics, writers' voices, imaginaries, and the shifting narratives of Caribbean futures. Abstracts may focus on any area of the Caribbean and may explore these questions in relation to the evolving environmental, cultural, and political dynamics of the region. The call is organized along two research lines: one on climate poetics and one on the politics of climate governance. The deadline for this call is 31 March 2025. Please visit our website for more information and details: https://www.kitlv.nl/islanders-at-the-helm/
