Recently established UG press to launch first publication today

Dec 13, 2018 News

The first publication of the recently established University of Guyana Press [UGP], ‘Dynamics of Caribbean Diaspora Engagement: People, Policy, Practice’, will be launched today in the Education Lecture Theatre at the Turkeyen Campus.
The 452-page book was edited by Professor George K. Danns, Professor of Sociology at the University of North Georgia, United States; Professor Ivelaw Lloyd Griffith, Vice-Chancellor and Principal of The University of Guyana; and Dr. Fitzgerald Yaw, Director of Strategic Initiatives at UG.
According to Vice-Chancellor Griffith, “the launch of this book—in print and kindle versions—is an historic milestone in the journey along Renaissance Road, as we boost our academic enterprise in the area of research and publishing. This is one of several initiatives to strengthen research and scholarship by faculty and students, to make UG a place of pride in relation to research and scholarship.”
The Vice-Chancellor explained further that, “UGP will not only publish books; we soon will release the first monographs in an occasional paper series called The Renaissance Papers, with the first authors being Professors Jay Mandle, Michael Scott, Gomathinayagam Subramanian and Mr. Charles Ceres.”
Building on UG’s first Diaspora Engagement conference, which was held in 2017, the publication is said to be a ground-breaking volume which highlights the multi-dimensional points of Diaspora engagement and commences the conversation towards a systematic and structured approach to harnessing all the Diaspora has to offer.
In his endorsement of the book, Professor Sir Hilary Beckles, Vice-Chancellor of the University of the West Indies [UWI], said, “The Caribbean nation-building project was conceived within a development discourse that sought to eliminate political boundaries that kept citizens apart. It has not fulfilled its potential.”
“Now, a new discursive leadership is emerging within academia that shows how Diaspora is to be deposited in the heartland of the nation in terms of both policy and praxis. This is the key to unlocking a new ‘Caribbeanness’ in energetic and innovative ways. Our editors, Danns, Griffith and Yaw have given us a text that serves as the manifesto for the mission,” he added.

UG Vice Chancellor, Ivelaw Griffith

The volume brings together contributions from over 30 authors, from the academy, government and Non-Governmental Organisations, and they include scholars, diplomats, and entrepreneurs. It is organised into seven sections: Overview of the Caribbean Diaspora, Enhancing Development through Diaspora Engagement, the Role of Hometown Associations, Identity Issues in the Caribbean Diaspora Experience, the Lived Experience, Diaspora Policy and Practice Lessons from Another Diaspora Experience.
It also covers economics, culture, migration, politics and development, scholarly perspectives as well as the lived experiences of the Caribbean Diaspora, all explored with a view to enhancing Diaspora engagement.
Professor Neville Ying, Pro-Chancellor of Mico University College and Executive Director of the Jamaica Diaspora Institute, described the book as “an important addition to the literature on Caribbean Diaspora Issues that can inform Policy development and Practices for effective Diaspora Engagement by CARICOM countries.” He further said, “I invite the authors and readers, researchers, practitioners and policy-makers to interrogate the content and focus on the practice aspect of the theme of the book.
The publication is being touted as a useful source document for initiating dialogue and collaborative initiatives with institutions and agencies in the CARICOM Region such as the Jamaica Diaspora Institute and the Planning Institute of Jamaica which have done and are doing important and ground-breaking research and development initiatives that contribute to the development of policies and practices for Effective Diaspora Engagement.”
His Excellency Dr. Riyad Insanally, Ambassador of Guyana to the United States and the Organisation of American States, is confident that “Dynamics of Caribbean Diaspora Engagement: People, Policy, Practice will prove to be an invaluable contribution to the burgeoning national conversation on the role of our Diaspora and the need for a more systematic and structured approach to go beyond nostalgia and patriotism and tap into the huge reservoirs of talent and finance available in our large and far-flung Diaspora.”
He believes that, “it is hugely significant that this is not only the first title to be published by the recently-established UG Press, but also purports to be the first comprehensive collection of published materials on Diaspora engagement in the Caribbean.”
Ambassador Insanally further commended the Vice-Chancellor Griffith, “for having convened the First Diaspora Engagement Conference, in Guyana, in July 2017 and for following-up, in collaboration with co-editors – Professor Danns and Dr. Yaw – with this publication as a concrete output of the conference.”
He continued, “In drawing on the more thoughtful presentations made regarding experiences across the region but with a primary focus, of course, on Guyana, they have provided us with indispensable reading, integral to building engagement and charting a course towards a brighter and more inclusive future.”
The publication currently is available at a cost of US$39.95 or G$8,400 at the UG Campus Store and the UG Press Office at Turkeyen. It will also be available at local bookstores, ugress.com, ianrandlepublishers.com, and Amazon.com [Kindle book].