May 16, 2005 — The opening ceremony for the Summer Institute for Future Global Leaders in the Caribbean will be held from 8:30 to 10 a.m. on Tuesday, May 17, in the Chase Auditorium, room B110, on the St. Thomas campus.
Mauritius Ambassador to the United Nations Jagdish Koonjul will be the keynote speaker. Koonjul has served as a diplomat in the Mauritius government for almost two decades. He is also the chairman of the Alliance of Small Island States. His years of experience in various ambassadorial positions in Mauritius, an island nation located in the Indian Ocean off the eastern coast of Madagascar, makes him knowledgeable of the institute's theme, "Managing Global Challenges in the 21st Century."
Dr. Solomon Kabuka said a major thrust of this year's institute is to examine the challenges facing small states.
"Small states have fewer resources available to deal with challenges of the global environment," said Kabuka, the institute's director.
An example of those challenges involves the movement of products and resources to external markets.
The Summer Institute for Future Global Leaders aims to prepare university juniors, seniors and first-year graduates for global leadership roles.
"Many students have already expressed capabilities to being leaders," Kabuka said, noting that they are leaders at their universities, churches and communities. Students are from the Dutch, French, English and Spanish speaking Caribbean, the United States and Europe. The Institute is one of the ways the University remains globally interactive by providing a foundation for nurturing youths aspiring to leadership positions in a global environment.
The opening ceremony is just one of a series of lectures, workshops, round table discussions and forums in which the 50 student leaders from colleges and universities throughout the Caribbean will participate. During the two-week institute they will also attend field trips to the V.I. Superior Court and the Legislature.
The forums, which are highlights of the institute, address current global issues. Scheduled forums are:
— Caribbean Forum, "CARICOM: A Vanguard for Caribbean Integration and Prosperity," from 9 a.m. to 10:20 a.m. Wednesday, May 18 at the Chase Auditorium, room B110.
–African Forum, "Profiles and Perspectives on Development in a Global Environment," from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. Monday, May 23 at the Chase Auditorium, room B110.
— World Forum, "Is the United Nations A Viable Option for Small States' Development in the 21st Century," from 8:30 p.m. to 11:30 p.m. Wednesday, May 25. Location to be announced.
The forums are free and open to the public.
For more information call the office of the Summer Institute for Future Global Leaders in the Caribbean at 693-1309.