gumelemi
Issue 3 Summer 2015
Gumelemi Issue No.3 Š September 2015 Gumelemi Magazine All rights reserved. No part of this magazine or any of its contents may be reproduced, copied, modified or adapted without written consent. Editor: Gabrielle Misiewicz Cover Photo: Ashley Bethel Cover Design: Sasha Dean gum elemi tree: Elora Williams
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gumelemi | gum•el•em•ee [noun] a magazine created by young bahamians for young bahamians. after the local tree with the same name. the gum elemi tree has a wide range of medicinal uses, particularly to resist disease, restore strength after illness, increase energy and improve circulation. gumelemi exists to energise our generation, to challenge us to think critically about our society, to circulate our thoughts with a view to taking them to the next level. as with bush medicine, where we use what is in our backyards to heal ourselves, the makers of gumelemi believe that we have in our country minds which possess the answers to our own problems, the ability to find the answers to our problems. gumelemi is here to inspire confidence in ourselves; to assist us in lifting our heads.
Dear Readers, The days, the weeks and the months continue to try us, to make us gnash our teeth in frustration and throw up our hands in disgust. How do we continue to have hope for a country that slides ever deeper into a pit of corruption, injustice and criminality? One that seems bogged down in antiquated methods and mindsets? I know these are questions all of us ponder, and I’m not going to try and answer them here. We could have a forum on the challenge of hopefulness alone. In spite of the gut-wrenching and mind-boggling incidents that have happened since last summer, many of us are still out there, fighting and taking risks and making sacrifices. We see this in the persistent efforts of people like Nikita Shiel-Rolle, founder of the Young Marine Explorers, an organisation she started to prepare Bahamian youth to be stewards of our environment.YME is almost ten years old now, and every year it becomes a stronger, further-reaching organisation, with graduates of the programme coming back to participate as interns and mentors. No doubt many of you have heard of Shift the Culture, a group that was started just last year and continues to gain traction among our peers, particularly those with entrepreneurial spirits. This summer was their inaugural Starter Island competition, a week-long event pitting teams of entrepreneurs against one another as they sailed around Exuma. It’s Our Turn, or IOT, is a service-oriented group that was started by Beijing Rodgers several years ago when she was a teenager, and one that she continues to develop. There, with just a few examples, is evidence of the creativity, intelligence, resourcefulness and perseverance of our peers, qualities we need to combat our social issues and which we have in spades! This issue of Gumelemi features work by still more passionate Bahamians.Yet again, we have fresh new content, which I find very exciting and hope that you do too. We’re familiar with written and photographic essays: this year a piece by Mikhail Bullard on the brain drain, myself on the Bahamas Junkanoo Carnival and a collection of photographs by Ashley Bethel. Photographs by Elora Williams and Craig Walkine Jr. are also included here. And now we have an interview and poetry to contemplate as well. I spoke with Noelle Sawyer, a PhD student of math, about her thoughts on math education. Our conversation was fun, surprising and informative.Yasmin Glinton, a teacher working in Abaco, wrote a poem imagining the future of our nation, in a time when some of us can no longer abide the status quo. It’s vivid, emotional and somewhat dystopian, but there is hope in her words too. I hope you enjoy and are challenged by Gumelemi 2015, and are inspired to craft pieces for the next issue when I come a-calling! Warmly,
Gabrielle Misiewicz Founder, Editor September 2015
Contents Rooster, Ashley Bethel..............................................................................................................................................1 “Ine Need No Calculator,” Interview with Noelle Sawyer...............................................................................2 Gloriosa, Elora Williams.........................................................................................................................................11 After the Rain, Craig Walkine Jr...........................................................................................................................13 On Tourism and the Bahamas Junkanoo Carnival, Gabrielle Misiewicz.....................................................15 Victoria Regina Et Imperatrix, Craig Walkine Jr...............................................................................................23 When the Bough Breaks, Yasmin Y. Glinton.......................................................................................................25 Duty - 1 and 11, Craig Walkine Jr......................................................................................................................26 “All Ah We is One”: Towards a Diaspora Engagement Policy For The Bahamian Diaspora in the United States, Mikhail Bullard..............................................................................................................................29 Old Water Pump, Ashley Bethel...........................................................................................................................39 Water Series, Ashley Bethel...................................................................................................................................41
“Ine Need No Calculator” Interview with Noelle Sawyer
First day of math class Looka all these numbers bey. This ga be easy. Um, excuse me, sir. What is this unit circle? I supposed to know? Yall learn this in school? No, sir I did not learn that. I know times tables. My mental math, sir. Ine need no calculator; Ask me anything! And I was right, man. I could multiply so good! This man was impressed. But new math to learn. What is this unit circle? Let me learn some more.
This interview was inspired by a joke between friends. It makes no sense trying to explain it here, but suffice it to say that Noelle Sawyer, a PhD student of math, told me she would send math poetry my way for Gumelemi. I wasn’t sure she was going to follow through, so I was surprised not only that she did, but also that I loved the poem so much that I wanted to use it! The haiku reveals some things about Noelle - she’s funny, warm and curious - but I thought it would be great to formally interview her to find out how she fell in love with math in the first place, and what she thinks about the state of math education in our country. Noelle went to St. John’s College for primary and high school, Vassar College, New York for undergraduate studies in math and history, and just finished her first year as a PhD student at Wesleyan University, Connecticut.The following is adapted from our conversation. 2
Gumelemi: How did you end up as a math grad
problems to do math with and that was the
student? Did you know any other Bahamian
first time I realised, “Oh hey, I can do cool
math professionals?
stuff with math,” and, “I guess they must need math at the Space Station,” “I guess they need
Noelle: I don’t really know any other
math for all these other things.” I felt really
Bahamian math professionals. I mean, I heard
interested in my math class, whereas before I
of someone else getting their PhD in math
had just been kinda good at math. That was
once I was done applying but I don’t really
the first time that I thought that that would
know him, I just know that a person exists.
be my major, one of my majors.
Me getting into math? I just had a string of pretty great math teachers at some point in
My other question is about you being a woman
time, or just very interesting math teachers,
in math.What was it like wanting to pursue math
and I said “Hey I could do this, I kinda like
in high school and college, and what’s it like now?
math,” and I said “I’m gonna do this,” and it happened. I’m still not really sure how I got
I didn’t feel it being a woman at home as
here, but I’m happy. I’m excited.
much as I do here [at Wesleyan], because at home there was actually more a general
In addition to it the rarity of a Bahamian studying
sense of, “What are you going to do with
math, being a woman in math is really unusual.
your math degree?” But once I got to the
So I have two questions. One of them is about
States everyone kept telling me how hard it
the string of really good math teachers, and the
was going to be as a woman in science and
other is about being a woman. First, the string of
math. There aren’t as many women [in the
really good math teachers: Do you feel like you
field] and right now there aren’t very many
had a very good math foundation? Is that what
female professors in my department and I
helped you to really enjoy math?
really feel that. Sometimes I just want to see a woman. If I can’t have a Bahamian around to
3
I feel like I had some teachers that sparked
talk to a woman would be really nice to talk
my interest more than anything. The one who
to. I had one female professor, I know one is
really did the trick was a physicist who was
on sabbatical and I think there are 1 or 2
teaching math at St. John’s and I think I was in
more? But then there are you know 15, 16
grade 11. He would give us all these physics
men. So I feel at a loss.
You talked about studying math in high school
I’m still catching up I feel like! Well, it felt like
and how that one teacher in grade 11 was
I caught up at the beginning, but since I was
influential, or his teaching methods were really
taking a class that a lot of math majors had
influential for you in making the decision to
already done in high school, they were taking
major in math.What was it like when you went
higher level classes when I was still taking a
off to Vassar?
basic class or two. That spilled over to grad school a little bit, so some people have taken
Oh, well first of all I realised that I didn’t
some of the first year courses, and all of
really know anything about what I was going
them are new to me, so I always feel like I’m
to end up studying in math. I find that we
catching up a little bit. I don’t think I’m behind
[Bahamians] learn a lot of math concepts
anymore, I just feel like I have to do a little bit
from a lot of different areas, but I didn’t
more work.
necessarily know what I was going into with calculus and with linear algebra and all of
I know you double majored in math and history.
these areas of math. [Professors] would show
Did you struggle with liking one over the other?
up and ask, “What is the big idea behind
Did you feel like history was going to replace
calculus?” And I just didn’t know. I had a lot
math at any point?
to learn. Americans to me all had very similar backgrounds. For example they had done the
This is really rough because I really love them
same algebra, the same trigonometry, the
both, I really deeply could have gone to grad
same pre-calculus classes, and some of them
school for history. That was hard for me [in]
already had taken the [college] class I was in
my senior year because I didn’t know what to
when they were in high school, and so the
do. What it came down to was that above
first 4 weeks were me literally reading my
both of them I like to teach math, more than
textbook at night trying to figure out why
I like math or history. I do like math, I really
everybody knew what I didn’t. Once I caught
like it, but I like to teach math more than I
up I felt really good about it.
actually like math itself. That kind of put it on the top for me. Logistically it was also easier
How long do you think were you catching up?
to get funding to do a math degree than to do a history degree. I thought about splitting my applications and seeing what happened, 4
but what if I applied to half history and half
it’s different. It would be nice to figure out
math and got nowhere? So I thought I had to
what exactly we are geared toward. Are we
make the decision instead of letting it be
doing math for COB specifically? Is it math
made for me, and I just ended up applying to
geared toward UWI? How are we doing that?
a lot of math programmes. And we can always give what we teach more You said that you felt you were behind the
context. Once in a linear algebra class my
American students, and that you didn't really
professor said, “Oh, here’s this group of
know what you were getting yourself into when
numbers, this is a matrix and here are all the
you went to Vassar. At the same time though you
rules for multiplying.” I knew that because I
felt comfortable and confident with math in high
learned it in school, and other people didn’t
school. Can you talk about that gap between how
know it. But I didn’t know [at the time] that
well you thought you were prepared and how
what I was learning was linear algebra, I just
prepared you were actually, and whether that’s
thought, “I guess sometimes people put
more of a systematic approach to teaching
numbers in these boxes and they put weird
education in The Bahamas vs the US, or whether
rules on them to multiply,” and “I guess I’ll
it’s that Bahamians are underprepared compared
learn this because I want an A on my
to Americans?
BGCSE.” It would’ve been nice if I’d gotten more of what those concepts do, why they
I feel like Bahamians definitely prioritise
are important, whether they do anything
different things, so there were certain things
interesting, what kind of fun math things they
that I was better at when I went to college.
can lead to.
For instance mental math I was on top of, I would say I was one of the better people,
Can you talk about the use of this day to day
because we couldn’t have calculators until
math a little more?
really late in school. I feel like we prioritise a lot of very basic knowledge at home that is
Well for instance I’m far better at telling if my
more important for your day to day living.
change is wrong at the grocery store than
Maybe we’re underprepared for an American
anyone else.
math programme, but I don’t think that that means what we’re doing is wrong, I just think 5
So when you’re out with your math coworkers or
Analysis studies continuous change and ways
friends you’re better at that kind of thing?
to talk about how 'fast' things change.You can think of it as a huge extension of the idea
Yea because they didn’t have to do it. They
that speed is how fast distance changes and
never had to do it. Even when it comes down
acceleration is how fast speed changes. We
to saying, “Oh hey I have $17.25 but it was
get to do lots of fancy things with this idea
supposed to be 17 cents” - I already know
and currently I can use it to measure weird
how much I’m supposed to give back. It
sets and shapes.
seems to me that some people are really struggling with this, not that some Bahamians aren’t struggling with this, but…
With topology, you spend a lot of time defining ways to say that sets and objects are 'the same'. If you can stretch, shrink, or bend
It’s just funny because we think math people
one object into another, then you can work
should be able to do all of this like fire!
on one to find out lots of things about the other. So a coffee mug and a doughnut are
Oh no definitely not. I feel like math people get their multiplication wrong the most
the same to me because you can smash one into the shape of the other.
because they just don’t have to [focus on getting it right]. They’re like, “Oh we don’t care about your basic math anymore we want you to learn higher math.” Whereas I think it’s really important to add and multiply and I tell people that.
Algebra is the study of sets with an operation we place on them, so numbers and addition is a basic example.You can start making things more complicated though, like studying multiples of 14, or defining some sort of addition on the alphabet, like a+e=z. As long
Can you talk a bit more about the higher math?
as the operation follows a basic set of rules, we're fine.
Ok so it’s my first year of grad school and there are 3 basic areas of math that we’re learning right now. These aren’t the only areas, but we’re learning analysis, topology
When you were in undergrad did you have a better sense of what you would be getting into in grad school?
and algebra. 6
Yea I had more of a sense.
I just get excited sometimes thinking about the math things people knew before we had
So it was different than the leap from high school
the words to describe them. Like people
to undergrad?
doing construction. Numbers will be everywhere down to what speed is safe to
There was still a leap. I was panicking my first
stop your car at before a stoplight. And
semester because I felt like I didn’t know
there’s this whole area called voting theory
anything in class, and I asked my advisor if
which is sort of new for math that calculates
there’s an undergrad class I could take, and
how much power the president really has.
he just said “The gap is so great between
There’s math for all areas of your life.
what they teach you in undergrad and what we’re trying to teach you in grad school that
I want to talk again about math at home.What
it wouldn’t matter, it would be better for you
thoughts do you have about how we approach
to just take this class twice.” Another
math, how we think about math, how we
professor described it as a fire hose, “We just
encourage or discourage our students to get into
turn it on at you and hope you absorb
math?
something” - that made me laugh nervously. I’m coming to realise, or I don’t know if I Wow ok. Now that you know so much about
really thought about it before, but
math, I’m curious whether you see it connected
discouraging people from math isn’t
to your everyday life?
specifically a Bahamian problem it’s an all around the world problem. I think people say,
7
I do see it more now and it makes me sad
“Oh you’re not good at math,” and then
that it took me so long to see a lot of stuff.
that’s just it. Why would you try any harder at
For example, there’s something called fractals
math when someone says you’re probably
- no matter how much you zoom in on a
not a math person? It would be really great if
picture you see the same pattern over and
we could present math as very doable.
over again, and it’s not a simple pattern. If you
English is presented in class as a subject we
think of a leaf and you hold it up to a light
expect everyone to learn, we insist on having
you see the same thing over and over again.
good grammar, whereas math is like, “Uh, I
You see it a lot in nature, like coral and rocks.
guess if you learn to multiply you’ll make it.” I
was kind of lucky, my parents were like, "You
try again.You can always take the exams
can do this, you can learn all of this stuff."
again.
Nobody told me I wasn’t a math person, but had someone told me that in grade 5 for
Yea, and like you said because our math currently
instance, I would never be doing math right
is geared towards everyday situations, you could
now.
still figure out your change, multiply stuff and do things around your house, and bake with your
What do you think about the BGCSE results? And
fractions…
how people feel stressed out about them? Yea, that’s important, and if you feel like you Not to be callous, but everybody can’t get an
have enough math to go about in your daily
A on the BGCSE because then an A wouldn’t
life, and your grades aren’t actively prohibiting
mean anything. What I want people to know
you from doing what you want in your life,
is that you don’t have to feel bad if you got a
then you can always improve after the fact.
D on your math BGCSE. To me that means at
Your peak intelligence might not be in grade
least you can add and you can multiply
12 when you’re taking your exams.You might
something, because you could have gotten an
figure out those triangles when you are 35
E, F or G. We didn’t even get to U.You did
and sitting down and helping somebody’s
something.
child do their homework.You never know.
The results may seem bad and maybe it’s
Yea, I think that’s a really encouraging outlook.
because we think that the letter grades are
Can you talk a little more about fighting to cross
supposed to be A, B, C, D and F, so when
the gap between high school and Vassar, and
people hear a lot of students got D’s it
from Vassar to grad school? Even though you’ve
sounds really poor to them. But a D is in the
always been great at math, you had these
middle of the 7 letters from A to G. I’m not
struggles and didn’t just assume your case was
exactly sure how curving the grades works,
hopeless.
but if D is in the middle, that D should mean that you are average, and average isn’t a bad
Being great at something doesn’t necessarily
thing. Average means you can do something
mean that you don’t have to work hard at it.
with your life. If you get less than a D you can
Math doesn’t come really easily to me. I 8
spend a lot of late nights, I’ve been spending a
figure out how to teach people things, and
lot of late nights for a really long time doing
you can always change it up. It also kind of
math. But I also might’ve been spending late
feels like a puzzle to me, looking at someone
nights doing something totally different, like
who doesn’t understand something right
physics. I had late nights with history too, and
away and figuring out how to get it across to
I love them both.
them. I get really excited when somebody didn’t understand something and I’m the
This abstract math I’m doing sounds weird,
person who helped them to figure it out.
and it probably would be absolutely terrible
That’s probably a selfish reason, but I really
for some people, but doing applied math
enjoy that. I love making worksheets and I
would probably be terrible for me. Statistics
love seeing the differences between how
is scary to me, so I sound really smart saying
textbooks teach you things. Additionally, the
topology and algebra and analysis but I find
math that I would be teaching - not the math
statistics really hard. I also haven’t put enough
that I’m doing now but, everything below this
time in them to really know, so as a math
- is so much more tangible. There are
person me saying this should mean that if you
pictures and objects and lots of examples and
haven’t put a lot of time into math you might
room for creativity.You can write a lot of
never know. At the same time I know about
questions, and there’s the ultimate thing of
people who do very poorly for long periods
writing a textbook: you came up with your
of time at things and refuse to admit that
own way of how to explain this math subject
maybe that’s not their thing. So don’t be that
and this area to some people.
person! But, you never know until you try. Ok, so, can you tell me about your poem, and the What is it about teaching math that you enjoy so
unit circle?
much? Why do you like teaching math? My poem, which is my first foray into
9
I guess it’s partly because right now I don’t
Bahamian, haiku, math poetry, is pretty much
know if researching in math is going to be
how I felt on the first day of my first math
what I’m going to want to do. But teaching
class at Vassar. Which was literally: “I got this.
math, I don’t know there’s a kind of
Numbers. I’m ready. I’m so ready. I’m gonna
autonomy to it. There are different ways to
do math, I’m gonna do history, and I see my
entire life ahead of me and it’s beautiful and glorious,” and then, 20 minutes into class, this guy says something about the unit circle, and I did not know what that was. And the thing is, I’m not even necessarily certain that I wasn’t taught it, I just couldn’t bring it to mind right away.
Yea, I literally heard the words, my first class. He said unit circle, and I was already confused. And then he said, triangles, angles, degrees, sin and cosine, and I was just ready to leave. But I wasn’t sitting near enough the door so I had to stay. Really? Yea.
The unit circle is That’s the story, so this was freshman year.
just a circle with radius 1. If you had a piece of string and you put one finger
Freshman year. It was actually the second class I ever took at college.
in the middle of the circle, and another on the edge of the circle, and you move
Oh my gosh.What was the first?
the outside finger around the circle, as
Oh it was Chinese, I later dropped that, I
you hit different angles you would have all these different types of triangles, with different relations. The unit circle has really stable points that help you figure out the lengths of the sides of the
did not learn mandarin! Ok. So this was your first semester? First semester.
triangles. So your poem alludes to your confidence with everyday math because you were like, “Multiplication tables, I got this! But unit circle…
Wow. But you made it through! And you just explained what a unit circle is to me! Sort of. I wish I had a chalkboard, I’m really good with chalkboards.
I don’t know what you are.”
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On Tourism and the Bahamas Junkanoo Carnival Gabrielle Misiewicz
We all eat, sleep and breathe tourism.
basket, picking apart the issues demonstrates
Whether or not we work in the industry, it’s
other ways that relying on tourism is hurting
an intrinsic part of our lives, and having
our long-term development. We need to
grown up in this tourism-entrenched
make conscious decisions about our
environment, it’s shaped the way we view
priorities as a nation and how these will
ourselves and the world. I’ve been thinking
dictate our plans to move forward, and in
about this a lot lately, particularly because I
order to do that we need to fully understand
spent the past year studying the development
the implications of the status quo.
of the Bahamas Junkanoo Carnival. The
Tourism is the bread and butter of
obvious problem with the venture is that it
our economy, and has been for years. Our
used Trinidad’s Carnival as a template –
mastery of the industry has yielded great
although concessions to Bahamianise it were
rewards, transforming The Bahamas into one
made after protest. A lot can be said on this
of the wealthiest nations in the Caribbean,
subject, and diving in reveals further issues,
with a GNI per capita of $21,570.1 According
relating to our nation’s status as a postcolony,
to Minister of Youth, Sports and Culture Dr.
our relationships with other countries in the
Daniel Johnson, “The tourism industry
Caribbean, and the ways tourism affects the
accounts for more than 60 percent of the
functioning of our society on every level. The
country’s GDP and provides employment for
controversies surrounding the creation of the
about one-half of the country’s workforce”.2
Bahamas Junkanoo Carnival, and now with
Although economic inequalities are still a
the opening of Baha Mar, have created a
serious problem, and development has not
sense of urgency in many of us about the
been consistent across the archipelago, there
need to revise our economic model. Beyond
can be little argument that tourism dollars
the fact that we have all of our eggs in one "The Bahamas”, The World Bank, 2015, data.worldbank.org/country/bahamas. Says Bahamas Economic Model ‘Unsustainable’,” The Tribune, May 6, 2014, www.tribune242.com/news/2014/may/06/minister-says-bahamas-economic-model-unsustainable/. 1
2 “Minister
15
are responsible for the changes that
cultural sector; each announcement and
modernised and developed The Bahamas.
milestone was plagued with strife.
Small wonder, then, that the
Bahamians called in to radio talk
government would turn to tourism as a
shows, wrote letters to the editors of dailies,
saviour in the midst of an economic
weeklies and newsletters, and had
recession. Perry Christie stated baldly that he
conversations among themselves on
wanted a piece of the prosperity he saw
Facebook to discuss their issues with the
carnivals bringing to Trinidad, Brazil, New York
carnival. These included the cost, the logo and
and Canada.3 The Bahamas National Festival
original slogan, the costume designs, the
Commission (BNFC) and Dr. Johnson also
music and treatment of Bahamian musicians,
told the public that the Bahamas Junkanoo
and the fact that it seemed the government
Carnival should be thought of as an
was ignoring pressing social issues in favour
economic stimulus, and the event was
of party planning. Fundamentally, the Bahamas
explained the way any businessperson would
Junkanoo Carnival felt like a huge betrayal by
pitch a profitable venture. All of this is
the government. People constantly described
completely understandable given the role
the event as “copying”, or “copycatting”
tourism plays in our economy, but in the
Trinidad. It made many wonder: “Are we
sensitive realm of cultural heritage
good enough, is there anything we have that
approaching these kinds of festivals with a
someone else would value, are we smart
strictly business mindset is hugely
enough, are our ideas clever enough?”4
problematic. Although Christie and the BNFC
Moreover, people rightfully brought up how
expressed a belief that the carnival would
the carnival would make us look to our
invigorate and create a burst of
Caribbean neighbours, who already have a
entrepreneurship from the cultural sector,
hard time accepting us as part of the
the approach of the Commission alienated
community and viewing ours as a culture
most Bahamians, including those in the
independent of the United States. All these well documented objections - and
Krystel Rolle-Brown, “Carnival to Cost $9 Mil,” The Tribune, April 2, 2014, http:// www.thenassauguardian.com/news/46329-carnival-to-cost-9-million. 4 Candia Dames, “Uproar in Carnival Commission,” The Nassau Guardian, January 26, 2015. www.thenassauguardian.com/national-review/53345-uproar-in-carnival-commission. 3
16
recommendations for alternative approaches
American tourist, and on the other from our
- were met with almost total disregard by the
Caribbean neighbours. We have to please the
BNFC, creating even more rancour among
first and continually try to be in community
the public.
with the second, which involves a fair amount
The recently released figures for the
of gymnastic manoeuvring since the two
Bahamas Junkanoo Carnival have only made
obligations have almost opposite
matters worse, as we are faced with the hard
expectations, and require opposite priorities.
truth that although tens of thousands of
For instance, tourism forces
Bahamians were present at carnival events, it
Bahamians (and tourism-centred nations at
cost taxpayers $11.3m, $2.3m over what was
large) to be ever aware of, and to play to, the
already thought of as an excessive budget.5
desires of our visitors. These visitors are
Moreover, there were only 900 tourists,6 an
often looking for an ‘authentic’ experience,
incredibly disappointing (albeit unsurprising)
forcing us to negotiate the production of this
number, given the fact that the event was
authenticity. We know what they are looking
envisioned as a major tourist attraction. The
for: the brand of The Bahamas is synonymous
general consensus seems to be that the
with extraordinary beauty, the place to go for
government simply threw us one expensive
serenity and fun in the sun. The Caribbean in
party.
general has long been imagined as a tropical I’m not going to write a post mortem
paradise, warm and permissive, where the
of the carnival however; as I said earlier I’d
land, the resources, and the people are open
like to highlight the larger issues that the
to visitors’ use: the quintessential place to
venture reveals. The tensions surrounding the
play.7 Engineering this scenario means
creation of the carnival encapsulate the dual
adapting our product to this exotic vision,
pressures that we face as a nation: on the one
which simultaneously shapes and reinforces it
hand from the wider world, particularly the
Rashad Rolle, “Carnival Reveals ‘Significant’ Revenue Shortfall” The Tribune, July 29, 2015, http:// www.tribune242.com/news/2015/jul/29/carnival-reveals-significant-revenue-shortfall/. 6 ibid. 7 Mimi Sheller,“Demobilising and Remobilising Caribbean Paradise, “in Tourism Mobilities, ed. by Mimi Sheller and John Urry (London: Routledge, 2004), 13. 5
17
in the minds of tourists, thereby trapping us in an unending, unforgiving cycle.8 Carnival easily fits this dream of the
Underlying the relationship between Bahamians and tourists is the legacy of colonialism, which adds depth and complexity
Caribbean, and has proven elsewhere its
to all of our societal issues. Although
success as a money-generating enterprise.
colonialism has ended, colonial-type
Thus, Perry Christie’s decision to develop
relationships persist and continue to create
our own carnival is unsurprising and speaks
difficulties for us. Tourism “both reinforces
to the very system I just described.Yet, to
and is embedded in postcolonial relationships.
meet the tourist vision, the BNFC made
Issues of identity, contestation and
decisions which collapsed differences
representation [central to postcolonial
between The Bahamas and Trinidad. This
studies] are increasingly recognised as central
helped the event fit the generic and exotic
to the nature of tourism”.9 Ideas about the
vision of the Caribbean, and made ‘our’
people and culture of the Caribbean
culture simple and understandable to tourists,
populated during colonial times, serving
but undermined our nation’s identity-building
colonial ends, inform tourists’ expectations
process and our relationship with our
and understanding of authenticity. Not only
neighbours. Belonging to the community of
do these ideas feed into that cycle, they have
Caribbean states involves uniting over our
also contributed to our conception of
similarities, but also preserving what makes
ourselves. Among other things, this dictates
us distinct from the whole - securing not only
whether or not we take steps to end the
our position as member but our unique
cycle, with for example an empowering
contribution to the body. In commodifying
cultivation of our own culture, a refusal to
Trinidad’s Carnival, the government shouted
meet stereotypes and instead working to
to the region that we have no distinguishing
create an industry that serves us and our
culture of our own, and thus do not truly
visitors. In other words, the approach so
belong in the community.
many Bahamians were advocating for with the Bahamas Junkanoo Carnival.
For further discussion on this subject, see Jerome Camal, “DestiNation: The Festival Gwoka, Tourism, and Anticolonialism,” in Sun, Sea, and Sound: Music and Tourism in the Circum-Caribbean, ed. by Timothy Rommen and Daniel T. Neely (New York: Oxford University Press, 2014). 9 Michael C. Hall and Hazel Tucker, Tourism and Postcolonialism: Contested Discourses, Identities and Representations (London and New York: Routledge 2004), 2. 8
18
The ‘foreign is better’ mentality is another inheritance from our colonial past. This was reinforced in the production of the
or any other industry is detrimental to this process. Culture and identity are in an obvious
Bahamas Junkanoo Carnival because its
feedback loop. Analysing the development of
template, as well as its highest profile events,
the Bahamas Junkanoo Carnival also makes
were all sourced from non-Bahamian
plain the relationship between culture, the
elements. Our feelings of inadequacy -
economy (specifically the tourism industry)
because of these decisions - and betrayal -
and identity. The carnival, a new form of
because (most of us) know we are fully
cultural expression, was initiated out of an
capable - are closely linked and rooted in this
economic need. It’s too early to tell whether
mentality; it explains the overwhelming
it will have traction with Bahamians in the
outcry against the carnival.10 Three centuries
long-term, but judging by the amount of
of colonial rule are not easily erased, and we
people who attended the events, and the fact
have a herculean task to overcome the
that so many support the idea of a summer-
ideologies and systems that it left behind. The
time festival, it’s definitely possible. Tourism
late Michael Manley, former Prime Minister of
has also influenced the development of older
Jamaica, described colonialism as a “period of
forms of cultural expression. The most
cultural strangulation,” resulting inevitably in a
obvious example here would be Junkanoo,
nation’s reduced self-confidence.11 Thus, if
which certainly wasn’t started for visitors, but
postcolonial societies are to “re-establish
once the upper classes and the government
self-confidence and re-embark upon the
saw its potential for economic development,
process of self-discovery,” they must
it was seized for commercialisation.
rediscover the validity of their own culture.12
The Bahamas Junkanoo Carnival also
Being pressured to do otherwise for tourism
helps us realise that, because tourism is our number one source of income, even the
How then to explain the huge crowds at carnival events? I think curiosity, the opportunity to do something fun and new and fresh, the desire to support people we knew who were involved, and an unwillingness for such a huge venture to fail. 11 Michael Manley, The Politics of Change: A Jamaican Testament (London: André Deutsch Limited, 1974), 145. 12 ibid, 146. Manley asserts that these nations must return to the point of colonial intervention and retrace the steps through history. This is not quite possible in The Bahamas since after the decimation of the Lucayans there has always been a colonial presence. Nevertheless, the sentiment rings true. 10
19
things which are most intimate to ourselves
accountable to guard13 our culture and/or
are vulnerable to be called into its service.
heritage? Is this even a reasonable question
While Junkanoo is regulated and controlled
to ask? Considering the government
in ways it never was initially, it remains firmly
instigated the Bahamas Junkanoo Carnival,
in the domain of Bahamians and provides a
and aggravated the public in its unwillingness
forum for us to commune with one another,
– for the most part – to receive criticism, we
comment on social issues and air our
are a far way from an ideal stewardship
grievances. Nevertheless, there was no
scenario. To be clear, I’m not saying that we
debate over whether it should be at the
shouldn’t want to share our heritage with
centre of the carnival, an event
non-Bahamians. I’m advocating for us to
conceptualised specifically for outsiders - this
consider the implications of this action and
shared desire seemed completely instinctive
the best ways for this to happen. It is a
and natural. But why? It occurred to me that
complicated balance: being empowered to
if it were not for the copying of Trinidad
develop and harness our culture the way we
Carnival, the Bahamas Junkanoo Carnival,
see fit, while protecting ourselves from the
masquerading as a Bahamian event while
greedy and destructive sides of the tourism
keeping true local culture away from the
industry.
consumption and gaze of tourists, could be
I’m not sure exactly when, but at
an effective way to combat neocolonial
some point I realised that I really disliked
relationships and put more power into the
tourism. I felt sometimes as though I could
hands of Bahamians in the host-visitor
not breathe, weighed down as I was by the
tourism dynamic.Yet this idea of protecting
brand of The Bahamas and non-Bahamians’
what is Bahamian from the forces of tourism
expectations of myself – how I should sound,
never came up in anything I read or heard.
the life story I should tell, the friendly and
Perhaps the nature of the host-visitor
inviting persona I should adopt when
relationship prevents that from being an
discussing my home. I don’t know whether
option.
other people feel the same way, but I carried This relationship prompts the
my share of the responsibility for the success
question: How do we hold the government
of our industry. Thus, in an effort to create a
I am not asking about a strict preservationist model of guardianship, rather, a conscious and thoughtful management of our cultural resources with room for change and growth. 13
20
small haven for myself, I actively avoided any
decisions that bring us closer to The Bahamas
work or projects related to tourism.14
of our dreams.
The Bahamas Junkanoo Carnival was too big to ignore, however, and having studied it I now realise the great benefit in interrogating our industry. The carnival
Gabrielle wrote about the Bahamas Junkanoo
demonstrates the slippery relationship
Carnival for her master’s thesis, which she’s
between ourselves and tourism: the things
happy to share with you if you’d like to read it.
the government is prepared to ask us to do
Send her an email at gmisiewicz@gmail.com.
in service of the industry; the ways we so readily adapt our lives for the industry; the ways questions about tourism become questions about ourselves. This latter category was one unexpected benefit of the carnival - the controversy opened up a space for us to discuss who we are and how we want to be seen. We have to keep pressing though, especially now that the inaugural event is over. This essay just scratches the surface in terms of the issues created and perpetuated by the tourism industry, and we must not stop probing the consequences of such a mammoth entity on our individual and collective lives. These conversations are vital for total awareness of our postcolonial condition, thereby equipping us to make the
References: Camal, Jerome. “DestiNation: The Festival Gwoka, Tourism, and Anticolonialism.” In Sun, Sea and Sound: Music and Tourism in the Circum-Caribbean, edited by Timothy Rommen and Daniel T. Neely, 213-237. New York: Oxford University Press, 2014. Dames, Candia. “Uproar in Carnival Commission”. The Nassau Guardian, January 26, 2015, www.thenassauguardian.com/nationalreview/53345-uproar-in-carnivalcommission. Hall, Michael C. and Hazel Tucker. Tourism and Postcolonialism: Contested Discourses, Identities and Representations. London and New York: Routledge, 2004. Manley, Michael, The Politics of Change: A Jamaican Testament. London: André Deutsch Limited, 1974.
I had these feelings even though I’ve never worked in the tourism industry, and my family, for the most part, did not depend on work in the industry to sustain our livelihoods. I imagine that the psychological effects are much greater on Bahamians who have, or have had, direct involvement with tourism, whether through their own work or that of a parent or guardian. 14
21
Rolle, Rashad. “Carnival Reveals ‘Significant’ Revenue Shortfall.” The Tribune, July 29, 2015, http://www.tribune242.com/news/ 2015/jul/29/carnival-reveals-significantrevenue-shortfall/. Rolle-Brown, Krystel. “Carnival to Cost $9 Mil.” The Tribune, April 2, 2014, http://www.thenassauguardian.com/news/ 46329-carnival-to-cost-9-million. Sheller, Mimi. “Demobilising and Remobilising Caribbean Paradise.” In Tourism Mobilities, edited by Mimi Sheller and John Urry, 13-21. London: Routledge, 2004. The Tribune. “Minister Says Bahamas Economic Model ‘Unsustainable’.” May 6, 2014, www.tribune242.com/news/2014/may/06/ minister-says-bahamas-economic-modelunsustainable/. The World Bank.“The Bahamas.” 2015, http://data.worldbank.org/country/bahamas.
22
When the Bough Breaks Yasmin Y. Glinton When the bough breaks dreams will fall from the lips and lids of the dreamers. They will pick up pencils and paintbrushes scalpels and hearts heavy with the desire to create with no thought of what used to be. They will call this city their own making buildings pregnant with sketches bold, vulgar radical and explicit. They shall create wounds in the flesh of the people too long ignored, use their blood as paint and plaster their cries along the shoreline. Comfort shall rot and fester under their truth. Under their aggression. Some shall stand ready to whitewash the face placed upon them. Unable to escape the mirrors of their deeds painted along the walls of the city. Lies will wage war consuming newspapers, instagram and twitter feeds Like rabid dogs they will hunt for flesh as they drag dreamers through debauchery and perversion. Some shall call the dreamers rebels and radicals, never the luxury of the power of their name, while destroying what does not benefit them. But, at the base, beneath the dreamers’ hope and someone’s outrage upon the cusp of a revolution | of change you will stand, with your knowledge and art, with your passion and hunger born of hand and heart.
And, it will be you
who is left to build after the bough breaks.
Yasmin is a graduate of St.Thomas University in Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada. She is a writer and teacher in The Bahamas, and can be reached at yasminglinton@gmail.com. 25
“All Ah We is One”: Towards a Diaspora Engagement Policy For The Bahamian Diaspora in the United States Mikhail Bullard
Migration has always been a natural
from the Caribbean. Statistics from the
phenomenon in the Caribbean region. In an
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and
age of pressures for rapid and sustainable
Development (OECD) highlight that during
development and of competitive rivalry
the latter half of the 20th century the
between countries, however, contemporary
Caribbean region had the highest brain drain
Caribbean policy makers continue to struggle
rate of any region in the world. 16 In fact, 13
with the intractable negative externalities of
of the top 20 global emigration rates for the
emigration of the highly skilled. The
educated labour force to OECD Countries
Caribbean region suffers disproportionately
during that time period belonged to
from the phenomenon of ‘brain drain’. Brain
CARICOM Countries.17
drain is the “international transfer of
For the Bahamas, this level has
resources in the form of human capital and
approached 65% of the tertiary educated
mainly applies to the migration of relatively
population over the latter decades of the 20th
highly educated individuals from developing
century and for Jamaica it is an astounding
to developed countries”.15
85%.18 This loss of educated labour, while
The most alarming statistic with
certainly a byproduct of perceived limitations
respect to brain drain concerns the
in the availability of education and job
emigration of the educated labour force away
opportunities at home, has depleted the
Michel Biene et. al, “Brain Drain and Human Capital Formation in Developing Countries: Winners and Losers,” The Economic Journal118 (April 2008): 631. 16 Frédéric Docquier and Abdeslam Marfouk, “International Migration by Educational Attainment,” in International Migration, Remittances and the Brain Drain, ed. by Çaglar Ozden and Maurice Shiff (World Bank and Palgrave Macmillan, 2005). 17 ibid. 18 Punya Mishra, “Emigration and Brain Drain: Evidence From the Caribbean,” (IMF Working Paper, Western Hemisphere Department, 2006), 17. 15
29
Caribbean of human capital that is an important driver of development.
30
Caribbean of human capital that is an
total Bahamian emigrants to OECD member
important driver of development. The
states, more than any other Caribbean
negative effects of the loss of educated
country, have chosen to migrate to the U.S.
labour is exacerbated as in the main those
over the latter half of the 20th century,
leaving or choosing to remain abroad are in
including more than six out of every ten
large part trained in specific occupations that
educated Bahamians.21 US Census
are intricately woven into a country’s
information highlights that an estimated
development, such as nurses, doctors,
32,578 Bahamians lived in the United States
teachers and engineers, all of which have
in 2012, two thirds of whom had been there
been the most undersupplied regionally in
for at least ten years with the majority living
the Caribbean as a result of the brain drain.19
in South Florida. 22
There is also a fiscal toll from this
According to U.S. 2000 census data,
phenomenon due to the high level of sunk
one quarter of Bahamian residents in the
costs20 from government investment in the
United States older than 25 years had at least
education of those immigrating, and the loss
a Bachelor’s degree.23 The United States also
of tax revenue.
has continued to attract the bulk of Bahamians looking for tertiary education
The Bahamian Diaspora in the United
abroad. Over the past two decades, The
States
Bahamas has far outstripped any other While Bahamian migration to the
Caribbean region as a percentage of
United States has been a historical trend
population studying at tertiary institutions in
since the early 19th century, almost 90% of
the United States. The percentage of
Keith Nurse, Diaspora, Migration and Development in the Caribbean, (Ottawa, Canada: Canadian Foundation for the Americas (Focal), 2004), 7; The Nurse Labour and Education Markets in the EnglishSpeaking CARICOM: Issues and Options for Reform (World Bank, 2009),1-2. 20 Sunk costs are costs that have already been incurred and thus cannot be recovered. 21 Mishra, “Emigration and Brain Drain: Evidence From the Caribbean,” 2006, 15. 22 U.S. Census Bureau, American Fact Finder Census 2000 Demographic Profile Highlights for the Total U.S.: Bahamian,Trinidadian and Tobagonian, Jamaican, Barbadian (Washington D.C.: Census Bureau, Government of the United States, 2010). 23 ibid. 19
31
Bahamians studying at tertiary institutions in
developing the conditions for retention.
the United States has hovered near 0.7% of
These policies are preferable as they leverage
total local population, more than double the
the greatest human and economic capital
next closest Caribbean percentage over the
from emigrants. They are often difficult to
past two decades.24 In 2014, there were
implement for smaller states, however, given
1,744 Bahamian students studying in the
the movement by multilateral institutions
United States, which was the third highest
such as the International Labour
amount in the Caribbean after Jamaica
Organisation towards rights based migration
(2,502) and the Dominican Republic
policies,27 the fact that they will likely be
(1,746).25
costly to implement and the fact that in some instances they might require political
What can be done by small states about
cooperation from destination country
the brain drain?
governments.
Across the spectrum of responses to
The Diaspora option, with its focus
outward emigration, particularly for educated
on facilitating connection, essentially
labour, four central policy choices arise:
represents a second best policy that involves
control, compensation, creation or
drawing “on [a] nation’s expatriates,
connection.26 Control, compensation and
knowledge and financial resources to
creation policies involve efforts to prevent or
stimulate the transfer of resources to sending
manage migration, recoup lost investment or
countries in a relatively low cost way”.28 The
tax revenue from destination countries or
key to it being a low-cost, next-best
focus on increasing local human capital and
alternative is that there can be remote
Rhonda Chipman-Johnson and Joan Vanderpool, Higher Education Attainment by Gender, Enrolment and Employment in the Anglophone Caribbean, (Institute for Higher Education in Latin America and the Caribbean, 2003), 27. 25 Institute of International Education, “International Student Totals by Place of Origin, 2012/13-2013/14,” Open Doors Report on International Educational Exchange, 2014 http://www.iie.org/opendoors. 26 Jennifer Brinkerhoff, “Diaspora Mobilisation Factor and Policy Options,” in Converting Migration Drains into Gains: Harnessing the resources of Overseas Professionals, ed. by Clay Wescott and Jennifer Brinkerhoff (Manila, Philippines: Asian Development Bank, 2006),141-142. 27 Rights-based migration policies focus on human and labour rights of migrants, largely in destination countries. 28 Allan Findlay et al., "Brain Strain: Optimising Highly Skilled Migration from Developing Countries,” Asylum and Migration Working Paper 3, (London: Institute for Public Policy Research, 2004), 13. 24
32
mobilisation and association of expatriates
policies to further strengthen political
for the development of their countries of
integration of those abroad, the area with the
origin through the creation of links without
clearest potential for policy directed action
need for physical or permanent return.29
for Diaspora engagement is establishing a
There are three main policy objectives within the Diaspora option. A central objective involves “remittance
Diaspora networking strategy. i.
Developing Knowledge Transfer Networks The roughly one third of Bahamians
capture”, i.e. increasing the volume and
working in the United States that were
productivity of remittances and encouraging
tertiary educated - which does not even
diaspora Foreign Direct Investment (FDI).30
consider the nearly 1,744 university students
Additionally, other important goals require
that were in the United States of Bahamian
the development of both a “Diaspora
origin in 201433 - represents a significant
networking strategy”31 that provides
resource that could be tapped into for
intermediary functions to incentivise and
Diaspora networking purposes. To further
facilitate knowledge exchange, business
buttress the potential in the Bahamian
investment and diaspora philanthropy along
Diaspora in the US, between 1965 and 2006,
with a “Diaspora integration strategy”32 for
Bahamians in the United States registered the
extending citizen rights and coordinating
largest number of patents of any Caribbean
general diaspora outreach.
Diaspora at 378, more than double the nearest Caribbean country of Cuba at 162
Towards a Bahamian Diaspora Option
registered patents.34 This means that, despite
(Engagement Policy)
its limited numbers, there is certainly
While there are certainly
innovation and human capital in the Bahamian
opportunities for considering the creation of
Diaspora in the United States that is not
Diaspora-specific bonds or for developing
being leveraged. Therefore, there remains the
Uwem Ite,“Turning Brain Drain into Brain Gain: Personal Reflections on Using the Diaspora Option,” African Issues, 30 no.1(2002): 76. 30 Brinkerhoff, “Diaspora Mobilisation Factor and Policy Options,” 2006, 143. 31 ibid. 32 ibid, 144. 33 Institute of International Education, 2014. 34 Keith Nurse, Science Technology and Innovation in the Caribbean (Santiago, Chile: Technology Policy and Development in Latin America UNECLAC, 2007),11. 29
33
opportunity to connect those abroad with
graduate students abroad that may have
those at home in order to enhance transfer
taken on government debt to persuade them
of best practices and new knowledge in
to contribute to the development of the local
respective professions relevant to
university over the short term despite the
development goals. Health care, education,
potential for pay disparities with jobs they
computer and math, architectural and
may find overseas. Such policies would need
engineering occupations all also may provide
to be carefully instituted so that return is
significant areas of opportunity for
guaranteed through bond and employment is
knowledge transfer.
available for the returnee.
Knowledge transfer networks are also
ii.
Encouraging Hometown and Business
important in the academic setting. Given the
Associations
substantial amount of students abroad in the
The most prominent Bahamian Diaspora
United States and workers with tertiary
organisations in the United States are in New
degrees, there is potential boon for the
York City and Miami, Florida: the Bahamian
College of The Bahamas, which is in the
American Cultural Society Inc., the Bahamian
process of transitioning to a university and
American Association Inc and the National
expanding the academic repertoire it offers.35
Association of The Bahamas. The existence of
Attracting those abroad with science, math
these social and cultural networks, which
or health care backgrounds for short term or
facilitate Bahamian community in the US,
interim academic assignments in research or
should also be encouraged in other strategic
teaching would strengthen existing
US cities and be engaged through
programmes offered by the college. Mexico
government outreach to become local
has implemented an interesting loan
reputational intermediaries and ambassadors
forgiveness programme for those who have
for Bahamian culture, products and services.
studied abroad and want to return home to
iii.
teach in a Mexican university;36 a similar program might be considered for Bahamian
Developing a Digital Knowledge Network One potentially rewarding use of
technology for networking can involve the
College of The Bahamas, “College to University – No Country Should Outsource the Higher Education of Its Citizens: Strategic plan 2009 -2019”(Nassau, Bahamas: College of The Bahamas 2009). 36 Lindsay B. Lowell, Policy Responses to the International Mobility of Skilled Labour (Geneva: International Labour Organisation, 2001), 5. 35
34
development of a skills bank that can be used
and lack of technical skills for an industrial-
to register the skills of the Diaspora. The
based economy are impeding implementation
bank could be searchable by officials at home
of the ‘Sustainable Economic Development
to digitally align and connect the skills of the
Plan for Grand Bahama’.39 A campaign that
Diaspora to potential shortages or needs at
targets members of the Diaspora in the
home.37 A searchable database might be
Southern United States for temporary work
useful for The Bahamas in areas where there
or even for longer term opportunities that
is a shortage of workers at home, such as
are involved in relevant areas of expertise
technical skills for industry,38 where there are
might be a short term solution to the
much greater proportions of the occupation
problem Grand Bahama currently faces.
abroad than at home, as is the case in the
Diplomatic and consular offices could
health professions, or where there are
be tasked with ensuring the registration of
potential experiences that might be valuable
Bahamians in the United States. Policy
to draw back home, such as those in
makers should be mindful, however, that
professional and management occupations in
whilst a skills bank can be a mechanism to fill
the United States. The database will also help
shortages with those abroad, this tool “does
give a more complete picture of the jobs that
not take into account the social relations
Bahamians are doing abroad and the extent
shaping how labour markets work” and could
of human capital that is offshore.
be ineffective if the culture and politics of
There also seems to be a shortage in The Bahamas of technical skills which are
employment at home does not encourage reaching out to those that are abroad.40
required for industrial or infrastructure projects. Officials of Grand Bahama, the nation’s second largest island whose major city is a free trade zone, have consistently indicated that the education levels of locals
Conclusion With regards to the bigger picture of a Diaspora engagement policy for small
L. M. Singhvi et. al., Report of High Level Committee on Indian Diaspora (New Delhi:Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India, 2010), 445. 38 Neil Hartnell, “Education Reform ‘Urgency’ Needed,” Tribune June 14, 2011, http://www.tribune242.com/06142011_G-Bahama_business_Page1-5. 39 ibid. 40 Beverley Mullings, “Diaspora Strategies, Skilled Migrants and Human Capital Enhancement in Jamaica,” Global Networks 11, no.1 (2011): 39. 37
35
developing countries like The Bahamas, I tend
perhaps even more relevant nowadays are
to agree with the academics that suggest one
perceptions of personal and communal safety
must be careful in arguing such policy
at home. As a second best policy option, a
prescriptions are the quick fix to the malaise
diaspora engagement policy should always be
of small island economy development. While I
wed to long term development plans and
have only outlined a few potential elements
utilised to focus on limiting, as far as possible,
of a Diaspora engagement policy, together,
the prevalence of these push factors. It is this
these should strengthen the financial gains
two-pronged approach that will bring the
The Bahamas can get from its Diaspora,
most success over the long term for
extend the exchange of knowledge between
leveraging the human capital of the nation. It
those abroad and those at home and further
is hoped that over the short term policy
integrate those abroad in the social and
makers in The Bahamas will seriously begin
political life of their homeland. In the short
engaging with the Diaspora to strengthen
term, this should lead to increased positive
their connection to home, as opposed to
contributions from the Diaspora to the
capitulating to the less certain path which
development of The Bahamas. Over the long
depends solely on the patriotism and
term, these initiatives should help bolster
proactivity of Bahamians abroad for
Bahamian development and decrease the
contributions to their country’s development.
incentives for outward migration, especially
We can no longer allow the country to
for the tertiary educated.
remain a passive casualty in the global war for
It is this long term that should always
talent.
remain the focus of policy makers, however. Commonly cited push factors for migrants, particular challenges for small developing
Mikhail has a bachelor’s degree in Criminology and
states, are lack of access to specialised
Political Economy and a master's in Public
education system and research facilities, low
Administration. While he has maintained a research
wages, political instability, underutilisation of
focus on migration, brain drain and diaspora
qualified workers, perceived lack of freedom, perceived lack of meritocracy or transparency in appointments, perceived lack of social anonymity in home societies and
engagement, he broadly has research interests in public policy to foster Bahamian (and Caribbean) development. He can be contacted at mikhailgbullard@gmail.com.
36
References: Beine, Michel, Frédéric Docquier and Hillel Rapoport. “Brain Drain and Human Capital Formation in Developing Countries: Winners and Losers.” The Economic Journal, 118 (April 2008): 631– 652. Brinkerhoff, Jennifer M. “Diaspora Mobilisation Factor and Policy Options.” In Converting Migration Drains into Gains: Harnessing the Resources of Overseas Professionals, edited by Clay Wescott and Jennifer Brinkerhoff, 127-150. Manila, Philippines: Asian Development Bank, 2006. Chipman-Johnson, Rhonda and Joan Vanderpool. Higher Education Attainment by Gender, Enrolment and Employment in the Anglophone Caribbean. International Institute for Higher Education in Latin America and the Caribbean, 2003. College of The Bahamas. “College to University – No country Should Outsource the Higher Education of Its Citizens: Strategic plan 2009 -2019”. Nassau, Bahamas: College of The Bahamas, 2009. Docquier, Frédéric and Abdeslam Marfouk. “International Migration by Educational Attainment”. In International Migration, Remittances and the Brain Drain, edited by Çaglar Ozden and Maurice Shiff. Washington DC: World Bank and New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2005. Hartnell, Neil. “Education Reform ‘Urgency’ Needed.” Business editorial, Tribune, June 14, 2011. http://www.tribune242.com/ 06142011_G-Bahama_business_Page1-5.
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Institute of International Education. International Student Totals by Place of Origin, 2012/13-2013/14. Open Doors Report on International Educational Exchange, 2014. Retrieved from: http://www.iie.org/opendoors
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Water Series Ashley Bethel
In The Bahamas, the ocean is our constant companion. Our islands are so small that it’s never far away, and many of us are lucky enough to see it as we go about our daily lives. Heading off the beaten track puts us in contact with other bodies of water as well - lakes, blue holes, mangroves - all with their own beauty and role in our ecology. We don’t seem to think about it, but water is as much a part of feeling and seeing and being Bahamian as knowing what a conch snack is. This collection of photographs by Ashley Bethel give us a glimpse at its power, serenity and the life always teeming underneath.
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