Mentoring Our Vulnerable Boys: Not a Walk in the Park

July 6th, 2016

Have you ever considered mentoring? What are the pitfalls, and what are the rewards? Panos Caribbean enlisted the expertise of Claudette Richardson Pious, Executive Director of the Children First Agency in Spanish Town, to put prospective mentors through their paces at a recent workshop. Ms. Richardson Pious knows the challenges our young people face only […]

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HIV/AIDS in Jamaica: Are The Kids Alright?

June 18th, 2016

My last post was about health issues, and it seems there is much more to say. This time I would like to touch on the issue of sexual and reproductive health, in particular among our youth. I recently attended the annual Health for All forum, involving a number of non-governmental partners including Jamaica AIDS Support for Life, […]

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Healthy Seas…Happy People. Makes Sense!

May 27th, 2016

Do we think about the health of our seas, which occupy seventy-one per cent of the Earth’s surface?  Or do we just assume they are managing just fine? It’s a funny thing, but I believe we tend to think “out of sight, out of mind” when it comes to the ocean. We rarely peep beneath […]

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Should Masculinity in Jamaica Be Redefined?

April 5th, 2016

“Masculinity needs to be redefined.” So says Anika Gray. Anika Gray is an attorney-at-law. She is also a Chevening Scholar, who pursued her Masters in Public Policy at the Blavatnik School of Government, University of Oxford. Her focus is on Human Rights, Health and Infrastructure Policy. But today, at the launch of a U.S. and UK Government-funded […]

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Freedom is a Process, Says Farmer and Cafe Owner Anne Bailey

December 23rd, 2015

“I know it’s hard for Jamaicans to change their eating habits,” says Anne Bailey, smoothing down her apron. “It takes time.” Dr. Bailey has just opened a café in Kingston’s busy Half Way Tree area. It’s a café with a powerful message, as its name, Forever Free suggests. Tucked away upstairs in a small plaza, it offers a […]

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Msgr. Albert, HIV/AIDS and the Need to Recommit

December 1st, 2015

At breakfast today in a Kingston hotel, a large group of Jamaicans stood for a minute’s silence in remembrance of Msgr. “Father” Albert, who had passed away quite suddenly just the evening before. His presence seemed to hover among us for a few minutes; he was a regular participant in World AIDS Day ceremonies. Last […]

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