By Eddelia Bontiff

The University of the West Indies (UWI) Five Islands Campus and the University of Toronto have celebrated the successful completion of a groundbreaking three-week academic exchange programme, describing it as the foundation of a long-term partnership that promises to strengthen international teaching, research and student mobility.

The inaugural programme brought a cohort of University of Toronto students to Antigua and Barbuda for an immersive course titled “Rethinking Crime, Law, and Power in the Caribbean Region,” offering participants a unique opportunity to examine the Caribbean’s criminal justice system through the lenses of colonial history, race, law and contemporary social issues.

Over the three weeks, students moved beyond the traditional classroom experience, participating in lectures, panel discussions and educational visits to key national institutions, including Parliament, His Majesty’s Prison and the Boys Training School. The programme provided firsthand exposure to the realities of governance, law enforcement and criminal justice in Antigua and Barbuda while encouraging critical discussion on post-colonial Caribbean society.

Professor Kamari Clarke of the University of Toronto described the initiative as the beginning of what both universities hope will become a lasting and meaningful academic relationship.

“Tomorrow marks the final day that our students have been here for three weeks, and those three weeks represent the beginning of what we hope will become an important and enduring collaboration with the UWI Five Islands Campus,” Professor Clarke said.

She praised Principal Professor Justin Robinson, Campus Registrar Dr. Camille Samuel, Professor Harold Lovell, Professor Blake and members of the UWI faculty for their support in delivering the programme.

“It has been wonderful working alongside colleagues here while teaching students, engaging with the community, visiting important sites and immersing ourselves in Caribbean life,” she added.

Principal of UWI Five Islands Campus, Professor Justin Robinson, said the partnership reflects the campus’ vision of delivering world-class education while remaining deeply connected to the Caribbean.

Principal of UWI Five Islands, Professor Justin Robinson

“We are grounded in the Caribbean, but our aspirations are global,” Robinson said. “We want to offer Caribbean citizens a world-class education right here in their backyard.”

He noted that international partnerships are essential to achieving that vision by exposing Caribbean students to global academic experiences while also attracting international scholars to study the region’s unique social and developmental challenges.

Professor Robinson also highlighted what he termed the Caribbean’s “Triple C Crisis” — climate change, chronic non-communicable diseases and crime, as areas where international collaboration and cutting-edge research are urgently needed.

“We have a crime crisis,” he said, noting that despite the Caribbean’s reputation for warmth and hospitality, violent crime remains one of the region’s most pressing concerns.

He expressed optimism that the programme would become an annual or biennial initiative and eventually evolve into a reciprocal exchange, allowing UWI students and faculty to study and conduct research at the University of Toronto.

Campus Registrar Dr. Camille Samuel said the programme demonstrated the true value of higher education by creating opportunities for cultural understanding and intellectual exchange.

“These types of programmes remind us why we are in education,” Samuel said. “We do not simply teach within four walls. We create opportunities for students and academics to engage directly with different societies, where ideas become stronger through lived experiences.”

She added that future exchanges should place even greater emphasis on interaction between visiting students and UWI students to deepen cultural understanding and foster lasting academic relationships.

Adjunct Professor Harold Lovell said one of the programme’s greatest strengths was its experiential approach to learning, which allowed students to connect academic theory with real-world practice.

Students explored the realities of crime, law and governance through direct engagement with national institutions, gaining firsthand insight into the social, historical and legal forces shaping the Caribbean justice system.

“The students were able to explore the realities of crime, law and violence within the post-colonial reality of Antigua and Barbuda,” Lovell said. “They did this not only through lectures and interactive sessions, but also through visits to His Majesty’s Prison, Parliament, the Boys Training School and other institutions, which gave them a very clear understanding of the post-colonial reality in the Caribbean.”

He described the initiative as an invaluable educational experience and expressed hope that it would become the first of many successful collaborations between the two institutions.

Professor Blake echoed that sentiment, describing the partnership as the beginning of a relationship that will create significant opportunities for collaborative research, faculty engagement and student exchanges.

“This is the start; it is the genesis,” she said. “We hope great things will come from this collaboration.”

She also thanked the University of Toronto for choosing Antigua and Barbuda, and specifically the UWI Five Islands Campus, as the host institution for the exchange.

The programme concluded with both universities reaffirming their commitment to expanding the partnership through future summer schools, reciprocal student exchanges, faculty mobility initiatives and joint research projects focused on addressing some of the Caribbean’s most pressing challenges.

University officials expressed confidence that the collaboration will strengthen academic excellence, deepen international cooperation and equip students from both Canada and the Caribbean with the knowledge, global perspective and practical experience needed to address complex social issues in an increasingly interconnected world.