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By Resaen Stoute

This semester was both good and bad due to numerous reasons. As a second year intern I now had to balance school work, my community partner, working on the Visualising Caribbean Literature project and my personal life.

I enrolled in 7 courses this semester which meant a full schedule and a lot of work. Seeing that I am majoring in both economics and hospitality, there was a great amount of things to be done. Some of my coursework included numerous tests, quizzes, assignments, groupworks, problem sets, case studies, models etc. With all this there were also some setbacks such as cancellation of classes, no internet connection and personal issues. Also, most of my classes were on campus therefore I had lots of “ups and downs” to do . To add to this, I had to spend four hours every week working on the Visualising Caribbean Literature project.

My task on the Visualising Caribbean Literature project dealt with author data sheets. Firstly, I had to separate the list into two sections; Authors who had data sheets and Authors who did not have. After this, I then fact checked the authors who had and then started working on completing those who did not have. However, while working there was an issue. The list we were working off of was not updated therefore I had to recheck to identify which authors were on that list. Another task I did was fixing all genre types for authors beginning with the letter “O”.

The next part of this semester was working with my community partner, the Dominica National Archives Unit. This unit is where all materials from the past, business court etc. are stored in hopes of preservation. To gain service learning hours, I spent six hours a week at the unit working on data entries for audio and video cassettes. Most days I entered approximately three boxes of information onto the system whereas other days my entries were a bit fewer. However, starting this project was not easy as there were quite a bit of technical difficulties, thankfully the issue was resolved in the following days. Secondly, I had to complete two hours three times a week and this was very hectic seeing that i had classes both before and after those free two hours. Then, the site crashed so all the work I entered was deleted and I had to re enter everything. That was very frustrating seeing that I could have been working on another box. Lastly, this place was very very cold and seeing that I was coming from the sun and sitting in this cold environment for two hours, I felt sick on numerous occasions and this was not really the best working environment for me. I both enjoyed and did not enjoy this experience due to numerous reasons. I enjoyed this seeing that all I had to do was sit by myself and do the work. On the other hand I did not enjoy this because there were several instances of miscommunication and issues that were uncalled for which made me want to stop, however, I kept it together and returned.

By Precious Peter

“My satisfaction comes from the commitment to advancing a better world.” – Faye Wattleton.

With that being said, I am back at Create for the second semester, on guard for all the challenges about to come my way. So far, this term has been a bit hectic for me, however, there were some very enjoyable and memorable moments. My Create life, paired with my school life, has been overwhelming especially with exams around the corner, but still, I try to give adequate attention to both and continue to show my 100% interest. Essentially, I intend to improve on my late submissions thus far. Reasons for such include; my failure to utilize time wisely sometimes, and struggling to get some sleep.

To be back at create is indeed a great feeling especially when assigned an interesting project. The first project I worked on was ‘The evolution of dress in Dominica’. This involved digging deeper into how our present creole wear became what it is today, and how both the men and women’s creole wear have blossomed over time. The research looked at how the creole dress has moved from something so formal to simple and creative modernized styles. Also, when I was younger I was told that each wrap on top the creole headpiece had a different meaning but was never told what they meant. Now, I am fully aware what each one means and this indeed saves me from wearing the headpiece irresponsibly.

Currently, the second project I have been assigned to for this semester appeals strongly to my creative and artistic side. I am to put together sketches and creative pieces for our Create Caribbean ‘Coloring Book’ which would mostly appeal to children but will be something that would capture the eye of anyone. I really look forward to this project as it helps me to put my creative eye to work and allows my imagination to be explored.

Interestingly, I was also introduced to a course called Digital Humanities (DH). Though I do not actually take this course as one of my subjects at school, Dr. Esprit has more than welcomed me into her class to learn and be involved just as much as her students. With such a busy schedule, I try to find time to follow up on what the DH students are doing, as this, is a tremendous help in making me a more internet savvy individual. I believe that any digital or research fanatic should take such a course. It opens you up to so much information and provides knowledge on how to go about doing things digitally correct. For instance, proper citation, learning about archives and so much more.

Admittedly, it has certainly been a challenge to stay fully committed to, and punctual at, Create Caribbean Research Institute, especially trying to balance school, my painting hobby, and my other internship at Dominica National Council of Women (DNCW), but I am aware of the endless opportunities opened to me. In addition to that, I didn’t try so hard to get into this institution to just give up so easily, therefore I will continue this journey with my create family and friends. This is me CREATing a future which emanates from CREATivity!

By Mikayah Antonio

Though unknown to Create Caribbean and its members, they have been the stepping stones guiding me across this seemingly infinite obstacle course known as college. Create Caribbean provided a somewhat welcoming, peaceful, and suitable environment for me to not only conduct my studies but to complete other tasks assigned to me. Here I received the needed experience, constructive criticisms, guidelines, moral support and opportunities needed to ensure that my stay at the Dominica State College is a prosperous one.

Though I have yet to take full advantage of the opportunities granted to be by this organization, it continues to benefit me in the best ways possible. My fellow interns and the staff are fun to be around and they somewhat motivate me as a person. I plan to continue my stay here in this institute, ensuring that I do my best to benefit them both as a friend and co-worker.

Another semester within this institution provides the opportunity to right my wrongs, gain more knowledge and build up myself as I go along. Though this semester opens up room for improvement, however simultaneously makes room for failure. Keeping such in mind I shall attempt to learn from my mistakes ensuring that failure only breeds new knowledge and perspectives, rather than a mere repeat of history. Moreover, I intend to use my college mistakes as guidelines as to how I should go about completing my daily tasks. Therefore, with this semester, Create shall not only remain as a means of acquiring new experience and knowledge but also provide what is needed to successfully complete the next phase of my life.

Furthermore, I wish to fully complete the Carisealand project prior to the end of this semester. This project is one in which we are required to use the data collected by my fellow intern Jodine Robin, to create a well-organized map that displays all the required information about Caribbean islands that practice sustainable development projects. Although I wished to use the semester as a time of self-analyzation, I shall strive to be a beneficial factor within Create Caribbean. With time being a limiting factor, I hope to successfully complete my work within the time range required by my leaders.

By Rhea Xavier

I have a theory which revolves around the belief that getting something in motion is more difficult than keeping it in motion. I hold this belief in many aspects of my life, from something as trivial as beginning a new habit, to something as critical as having a lifestyle change. With no surprise, I had difficulty starting this blog. The reasons behind my difficulty can span from procrastination to simply not knowing how to begin. As a result, I was constantly reminded by my supervisors, Mia and Jada, and finally decided to put my thoughts on paper.

Throughout my current tenure at the Create Caribbean Research Institute, I’ve learned a lot revolving around history and collaboration. Currently, I’m working on the SPAT (Small Projects Assistance Team) Memory Project alongside a fellow colleague, Gael Thomas, and I must say that it has been a truly amazing thing to interview and meet some of the SPAT Members. These people have been movers and shakers, who have greatly impacted our society in Dominica. SPAT was a Non-Government Organization (NGO), which operated for about 20 years succeeding Hurricane David in 1979. After aiding in relief efforts, SPAT then assisted in the education of women and farmers. I was responsible for organizing information about the members of SPAT and I must say it was quite trying at times. Working with people like Ronald Green and Francisco Esprit made me realize how many people work in this country and can easily go unnoticed or unaccredited.

As a result of being an intern at Create, I am required to do a course called Digital Humanities at the Dominica State College and I must say that it has been incredibly eye opening. Prior to beginning this course, I was uninterested in current affairs simply labeling it as ‘too depressing’. However, I am learning the importance of staying updated on all things current; international news and how it can impact me in Dominica. Also, I learned why social media and the internet is so important and how it is beneficial globally. Within this course, Our class will be working on a project entitled Resistance and Caribbean Reality.

My group focuses mainly on how Science and Religion impact the aforementioned topic and consists of four people, which includes two fellow interns, Jodine and Gael. Through this project, we essentially learned the importance of collaboration as well as developing skills like intensive reading. (See: The Transformation of Reading) This course essentially teaches me how everything impacts everything and how we can document it. The lecturer, Dr. Schuyler Esprit, has been imparting this knowledge to us in an interesting and fun way as we learn about websites like Zotero, Knightlab, Omeka and Neatline, and how we can apply it in our daily lives. This, in turn, allows us to be more productive and creative in our Create projects, as well as other courses.

This internship has been extremely beneficial in my life by allowing me to change my perspective, my lifestyle choices and my methods of research. And although my theory was not proven wrong since I wrote this blog relatively fast, I do hope that through the grace of God, that I am able to continue and eventually complete this internship believing that there is more in store that I may be able to learn here at Create Caribbean.

By Jodine Robin

My journey continues over the past two years I have been at the forefront of the Carisealand project. As we know, this project is environmental friendly where sustainable and conservative organizations, businesses and natural sites are exhibited. My main role is to gather and organize the resources, however this semester I am also interested in mapping and plotting that data onto the site. Although each aspect of the project has its importance, being involved in this part is vital since that is what viewers will see.

Additionally, this semester I am enrolled in a Digital Humanities (DH) course that coincides with the work done at Create Caribbean. The University of Southern California (USC) defines Digital Humanities as ” A collaborative and interdisciplinary research. It comprises a broad collection of scholarly activities that apply new technologies to humanities such as History, Literature, Philosophy while expanding traditional forms of scholarly communication”. Create Caribbean in itself is a Digital Humanities organization where the projects are digitized, which is a major factor for all DH projects. There are about eight types of Digital Humanities Projects including a digitized version of text project, like the Road to Independence and a mapping project such as Carisealand.

In teaching students how to create and develop Digital Humanities projects, there must be a project to work with. Hence the class project is Resistance and Caribbean Reality: History of Dominica’s Resistance in a Global Context. The main goal of the project is to put Dominica on the ‘map’, in terms of pertinence to worldwide issues. The topic is broad, therefore in order to narrow it down, there are six sub-topics including religion and science which my group is responsible for. I am very much looking forward to working on this project because we decide everything about the assignment with guidance from Dr.Esprit, the lecturer, and director of Create Caribbean.

This semester at Create will be unlike like any other since it is my last semester at DSC, however, I do not believe that my time at Create will end there. Create Caribbean has always been an organization where I could be myself. I am always open to new experiences, lessons, and people, which is the door and path set at Create. So as my time a college dwindles I am certain that my journey as an intern at Create Caribbean will continue.

‘Each day is a journey, and the journey itself is home.’— Matsuo Basho

By Madisha LeBlanc

This is my second semester as an intern at the Create Caribbean institute and it is promised to be a very busy one. At this institute we the interns are responsible for doing research on given projects, we should complete at least five hours per week, alongside our school assignments. It sounds like a lot of time and work, but it is managed simply and fairly by us interns having the privilege to choose the time that best suits us during the week to complete our required hours. We are also allowed to use and evolve our talents and learn new skills while at work.

There are many projects to work on this semester such as the Eastern Caribbean Maroons, SPAT: Alliance of Cuba and Dominica, and The evolution of dress in Dominica, just to name a few. All of these require thorough research and learning the history behind it all. Despite all the projects available, not all talents can be used, but those like graphic designing, video editing, drawing, management, and researching can be very useful at Create.

I assist in the completion of projects at Create Caribbean by creating graphic images and drawings relating to the topics of projects if it is needed by my fellow interns. This semester I am focusing on developing my knowledge and skills in graphic designing. Right now, I am mostly productive at graphic image skills and drawing when it is done manually, as I have not yet been able to familiarize myself with graphic designing sites or software and apps. However, I now know a few names of graphic designing software, thanks to Garvin Le Blanc, a fellow intern responsible for graphics at Create.

This picture you see was drawn by me using the paint software installed on computers. I learned to do this by exploring and testing the available tools and using my imagination to create an image. The first images I created on Paint were houses, trees, a view of the mountains with a waterfall flowing down, a night sky, and cartoon characters. Now I aim to learn to create more graphical designs and even animation. My time at Create Caribbean has been exciting and educational and I am looking forward to learning new skills and knowledge at this institute.

By Ashfred Norris

It’s such an amazing feeling to be back at Create Caribbean again. It’s already my second semester, and I once more had the opportunity to reunite with my Create family, get more involved in the affairs and works of the institution, and the best part; the projects! Now, I know you may be thinking, “Why is he so excited about amassing large quantities of primary and secondary sources of information, transforming and interpreting them, in order to present a cohesive and well-constructed piece of research, while also having his college assignments and work to be done, and a personal life to tend to?”

In our very first meeting with Dr. Esprit this semester, she entered the room and asked, “Are you all tired?”, “Have you been staying up late?” She asked these questions to get us to understand that if we are aspiring to be successful people, then we have to drill the concepts of hard work and dedication into our systems now. She then left us saying, “If it hurts, that means it’s being done right”. I took this motivation and applied it to my new project entitled; “The Roseau Valley: from estates to villages”.

The sole purpose of the project is to inform its audience about the Roseau Valley and explain how these estates were transformed into villages and residential areas. I found it both ironic and intriguing as I am from the Roseau Valley, however, I did not have any knowledge on the topic prior to my research. It was quite interesting to find out who were the owners of the estates before, and this further explained how the ownership shifted and landed in the hands of certain persons today.

I enjoyed going to institutions such as; The National Archives and Documentation Center, where I received some of the content which is displayed in the exhibit, and I also had time to look through their collections on Dominican history, and I was  also fascinated by some of the things I found. One in particular, being a report from the Seismic Research Unit, UWI issuing a volcano hazard report in 2001 where they explored the possibilities of having a volcanic eruption in the Southern parts of Dominica, and as a result, various earthquakes from 1998 into 2001.

In closing, the assignments and projects that are done at Create are not just extra work we have given ourselves. The projects assist us in becoming well-rounded individuals who can manage their time effectively. Hence, we have enough time to complete both Create and school assignments and, as one intern said, even have time for ‘recreational relaxation’. The research and tech skills enable us to differentiate between actual and alternative facts, amongst other qualities which can be incorporated in our school work and subsequent ventures. In my opinion, Create Caribbean is an asset and the value cannot be depreciated!

By Garvin LeBlanc

Year two as a Create Caribbean intern and so far, so good. So far, my projects this semester have been a bit different than last year. Last year, I was dealing mainly with just graphic design and illustration with a few dabs of video editing. This year, I had to step up my game. I bought a camera for Christmas and I’ve been responsible for videography, photography, graphic design, illustration as well as something I’ve been willing to try out for about two years now – music production. I had fun doing the intern photo and video shoot as well as compiling a short bloopers reel where one of our new favorite phrase “recreational relaxation” can be found. The music production was a bit of a heavy task but I’m happy I got the chance to tinker with it and get a feel of how it is to actually conceptualize a sound and bring it to life.

It’s an intern’s privilege at Create Caribbean to be enrolled in the Digital Humanities course at Dominica State College, where we can learn how to properly do the work that is required of us as interns. I’ve learned a lot about digital humanities projects this semester, such as the components that make them unique, as well as ways in which I can produce effective digital humanities projects. So far, as an intern, I haven’t had to do as much as research as the other interns so I’m keeping my mind open and prepared to do my best to on my digital humanities project. Our project is titled “Caribbean Resistance and Reality” and my group is responsible for dealing with “Art and Education” as a theme. I consider myself an art enthusiast, so I’m really looking forward to finding out ways in which art was involved in resistance in both Dominica and the wider region.

I’m still trying to juggle around my time better. Things are a lot more hectic in my life than I budgeted for. I have some responsibilities that make doing the things I’d like to a bit less of a reality than before but I’m managing. Thankfully, Dr. Esprit, as well as my Create Caribbean family make it easy to juggle my not so organized life and I’m grateful for that. This semester will be a good one, I can feel it in my bones. Até! Tchau 🙂

By Raissa Henderson

Time really passes by quickly as it was not too long ago, on September 21, 2016, to be exact, that I was accepted into the Internship Program at the Create Caribbean Research Institution. As always, this institution has provided a place full of opportunities and a time dedicated to growth in the wide field of research. The interns, like myself, have been busy contributing to this organization by doing in-depth research of the projects received, and by participating in the Digital Humanities course at the Dominica State College.

My project is a detailed exhibit of the Eastern Caribbean Maroons. Before beginning research on this historical theme, I was not very interested in it since I had little to no idea of its relevance to me. Yet, because of my understanding of the significance of the awareness of one’s history, I remained open-minded and now I am glad I did. The articles I have read, the pictures I have seen, and the stories I have heard are very inspiring to anyone who comes across it. The Maroons were strong people who fought hard for the emancipation of our ancestors, and their doings have contributed heavily to our present, (their future). I continue research on this topic ecstatically and eager to learn more.

The Digital Humanities course aims to teach students what digital humanities is and the different aspects of the field of study in both theoretical and practical ways. This course requires us students to analyze what it means to be a digital humanist studying and practicing the skills involved by doing weekly blog entries and reflections on various articles written by expert scholars. Our writing and analysis skills are also enhanced through the semester long project that pushes us to make our own research from a specific aspect of a topic and to understand the reason digital humanists do what they do. This semester’s project is Resistance and Caribbean Reality. The purpose of this project is to address the history of resistance in a global context and that history’s impact on the future generation of our country. The topic is divided into subtopics: Education, Economics, Art, Science, Politics, Religion, and Social Welfare. I have been appointed to Education and its subtle relation to Art, and it is something I am very interested in as a student and a young person. You can see the research proposals of the project here.

I must admit, it has been a challenge for me to stay consistent and punctual and seriously committed to this institution, but, “if it is too simple, there is no reason to try. If there is no reason to try, you do not”. There are many reasons for me to try and push to do my best and the staff of Create Caribbean constantly remind me of those reasons. Therefore, I desire to try my hardest and my best to continue and to do even better at this institution and to appreciate the opportunity given to me to be an intern here.

By Tonilia Eli

This semester I have made plans to work much harder than I did in the previous semester. The historical projects were really hard for me to make interesting and to make them come alive. I love to read and write, but historical information has always been difficult for me to process. I was thankful to have gotten a project which requires video editing. I enjoy video editing because it makes everything more interesting. It is difficult to master but I’m taking pleasure in the challenge.

For my project, I decided to do something I have never tried before; animation. At first, the ideas flowed and I could not wait to start, but once I did I knew it was going to be a long process. I only had to make a sixty-second video yet it took me almost 2 weeks and I’m sure if I had enough time to become acquainted with the different features of the software it would have been even better. I am proud of myself to have made my first animated video but my only concern was the staffs’ approval. Oh, how overjoyed I was when they expressed their satisfaction by my creation. I can only imagine how excited I will be with my next project and I only hope that it is yet another opportunity to improve my work with video editing.

This semester I decided to take the digital humanities course. I was excited because I saw it as another opportunity to improve my editing skills and I was much contented with Dr. Esprit being my lecturer. However, in the first class, she made sure to remind us that it will not be an easy course and I just had to remind myself, that in order to succeed you need to embark on the journey where the ride is rough. The projects and research proposals were difficult for me but every day I am getting better. The weekly blogs were fairly fun to do as I love literature and it requires us to read and analyze. The idea of the weekly quizzes scare me but I am making the effort to ensure that I am always prepared no matter what! I am really determined to pass this course and to grasp the concepts that will make me a great editor and digital humanist.

Create Caribbean has made this whole experience ten times better for me. Words cannot express how grateful I am for the chance to improve and to be exposed to new things. I have a passion for video editing software and now I can work hard and enhance the quality of my work.