Barbara Carby to keynote UCC research conference

Disaster risk-management expert Dr Barbara Carby will deliver the keynote address at the University of the Commonwealth Caribbean’s (UCC) 10th Annual Research Conference on September 23-24 at the university’s Worthington Avenue campus in St Andrew.

Carby brings decades of experience in disaster-preparedness, risk-reduction and emergency management across Jamaica and the wider Caribbean. A former director general of Jamaica’s Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM), she later held a senior disaster-management position in the Cayman Islands. More recently, she has been associated with The University of the West Indies’ Disaster Risk Reduction Centre and has contributed to regional and international initiatives aimed at strengthening resilience to natural hazards.

Her work has focused on disaster-planning, risk-assessment and preparedness policy, helping to shape approaches to hazard management in Jamaica and across the Caribbean.

Hosted by UCC’s College of Graduate Studies and Research (CGSR), the conference will examine the role of research in resilience and disaster management under the theme, ‘Moving into a Sustainable Future: Readiness, Recovery and Resilience’.

The two-day event will bring together researchers, practitioners and graduate students to explore issues including climate change and education, mental health and well-being, and artificial intelligence governance and regulation.

Among the featured presenters are UCC Chancellor Professor John MacIntyre, who will address artificial intelligence and security, and Professor Philip Anyanwu, whose presentation will focus on meta-analysis.

Dr Andrea Sutherland, dean of UCC’s College of Graduate Studies and Research, said the conference builds on the university’s ongoing emphasis on resilience and evidence-based decision-making. It also follows the Rickert Allen Memorial Lecture, held in April under the theme, ‘Strength of the Caribbean: Readiness, Recovery and Resilience’.

“The Rickert Allen Memorial Lecture underscored the importance of data-driven planning and evidence-based decision-making. The research conference now takes that conversation further by examining emerging risks and how research can help build more resilient communities and institutions.”