The
UWI Regional Headquarters, Jamaica, Friday, September 11, 2020—The
Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (IAI) has
appointed UWI Scientist, Dr. David Smith, to its Science Policy
Advisory Committee (SPAC). Dr. Smith who serves as Director of the
Centre for Environmental Management and Coordinator of the Institute
for Sustainable Development (ISD) at The University of the West
Indies (The UWI) was elected to the Advisory Committee for a
three-year term, from 2020 to 2023.

The
election took place at the 28th Meeting of the Conference of the
Parties to the IAI (CoP-28). A regional intergovernmental
institution comprising 19 nations in the Americas, the IAI promotes
scientific research and capacity building related to global change
issues throughout the Americas to inform decision-makers.

As
a member of the SPAC, Dr. Smith will provide advice to the CoP and
the IAI Directorate on how to use and design science for policy and
decision-making.

This
latest appointment represents another contribution by Dr. Smith in
advancing The UWI’s overall strategic advocacy for Climate and
Sustainable Development Action. In 2019, Dr. Smith was one of 15
independent scientists who prepared the inaugural Global Sustainable
Development Report (GSDR), commissioned by the United Nations
Secretary General. Dr. Smith also serves as Coordinator of the
University Consortium of Small Island States (UCSIS), Caribbean
Coordinator for the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network
(UNSDSN Caribbean), and member of the advisory board of the SUNY-UWI
Center for Leadership and Sustainable Development, based in
Manhattan, New York.

Notably,
at the CoP-28 meeting on August 19, 2020, Jamaica was also elected as
member to the Executive Council of the IAI. Jamaica joins Canada,
Chile, Guatemala, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, United States of America
and Uruguay as Council members from 2020 to 2022. The role of the
Executive Council is to develop policy recommendations for submission
to and approval by the CoP and ensure that policies adopted by the
CoP are implemented by the IAI Directorate.

Earlier,
in April 2020, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade of
Jamaica designated The UWI, Mona and the National Commission on
Science and Technology (NCST) as the National Focal Points to the IAI
for Jamaica. From The UWI Mona Campus, Professor Michael Taylor, Dean
of the Faculty of Science and Technology, and Dr. Tannecia
Stephenson, Head of Physics were appointed to serve as the designated
representatives from Jamaica to the IAI.

END

Notes

For
more about The UWI’s ISD: https://www.uwi.edu/isd/

For
more about the IAI: www.iai.int/en/