ST. KITTS TAXI/TOUR OPERATORS PARTICIPATING IN KALINAGO (CARIB) HERITAGE SURVEY WED. APRIL 15TH www2015

By Marlene Phillips April 12th 2015 3:30 pm

ST. KITTS DEPARTMENT OF CULTURES RESEARCH & DOCUMENTATION UNIT IS TRYING TO PRESERVE HERITAGE THROUGH COMMUNITY BASED PARTNERING.

The Survey will be conducted on Wednesday April 15th 2015 at Lucinda Phillip's Shop located at "Bloody Point" Challengers Village St.Kitts (across from Challengers Community Centre) 9:00 am - 12:00 pm and 1:00 pm - 3:00 pm and will involve students/young adults briefly engaging the Taxi/Tour Operators and their Passengers/Visitors when they stop at Bloody Point in Challengers during their tour. Michael Raheem Thatcher, Assistant to the RDU, will be managing the Survey activity making sure that the goal of conducting a total of 100 surveys is met.

The “Bloody Point Kalinago Heritage Survey” will help to discover if Taxi/Tour Operators and their Passengers/Visitors want more information about this Heritage Site to learn about the legacy of the Kalinago (Carib) People, the first inhabitants on St. Kitts and Nevis.  Currently, there is only a sign with minimal information at the road leading to the entrance of the Heritage Site.

St. Kitts Department of Culture RDU, through its "St. Kitts-Nevis Creative & Cultural Industry (CCI) Development - Out Reach Program is working with Lucinda Phillip, Owner of a shop on the main road in Challengers Village to develop it into “Kalinago Karbay” - Bloody Point Heritage Centre to preserve the Kalinago Legacy by sharing information about their culture, while fostering Lucinda's natural interest in craft and heritage.  The information that is collected will be used to inform future development of this area. Ultimately, this initiative will preserve and honour the existence of the first inhabitants of St. Kitts-Nevis and share their legacy with Nationals and Visitors now and in the future.  Visit the following link to see Lucinda Phillps interview for the "Heritage Perspectives Project"  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fqm28M-sQhI

www.facebook.com/stkittsculturebeat

ACTIVITY BACKGROUND

The RDU is networking with many agencies (Tourism, Education, Youth, Trade, Heritage Organizations, etc....) to contribute to the sustainable development of St. Kitts-Nevis Community preserving, Culture, Heritage, Traditions, and impacting Livelihoods through partnerships in a positive way.

St. Kitts Department of Culture is also collaborating with Dr. Corinne L Hoffman who is interested in assisting Lucinda Phillip with the developing the Kalinago Heritage Center in St. Kitts.  Dr. Hoffman has been conducting archaeological research in St. Kitts as the Principal Investigator on the NEXUS 1492 Project.  #1 Transformations Of Indigenous Caribbean Cultures And Societies Across The Historical Divide.  Project 1 forms the archaeological backbone of NEXUS1492 and aims to examine transformations of indigenous cultures and societies across the historical divide, bridging the pre-colonial and colonial era (AD 1000-1800). Ref. http://nexus1492.eu/   Dr. Hoffman was in St. Kitts for the Hera-Carib Workshop to present findings from research conducted under the the Nexus 1492 Project.

WORKSHOP BACKGROUND:

HERA-CARIB WORKSHOP MARCH 18TH - 20TH 2015

The St. Kitts Workshop has been organized by St. Christopher National Trust in collaboration with Brimstone Hill Society.

"To allow researchers of the participating institutes to share results of their research to date and while learning from previous and current Kittitian Archaeology and Heritage Experts, both Kittitian and non-Kittitian. To encourage discussions about archaeology practices and collective brainstorming on the future of archaeology as part of Kittitian Heritage".

PARTICIPATING ORGANIZATIONS:

- St. Christopher National Trust, St. Kitts
- Brimstone Hill Society, St. Kitts
- St. Kitts Department of Culture
- University of Leiden, The Netherlands
- University of Konstanz, Germany
- University of Leuven, Belgium

The project CARIB, which is financially supported by the HERA Joint Research Programme (www.heranet.info) which is con-funded by AHRC, AKA, BMBF, via PTDLR, DASTI, ETAG, FCT, FNR, FNRS, FWF, FWO, HAZU, IRC, LMT, MHEST, NWO,NCN, RANNIS,

RCN, VR, and the European Union's Seventh Framework Programme for research, technological developments and demonstration under grant agreement no. 1133 and The NEXUS 1492 project financially supported by the European Research Council under the European Union's Seventh Framework Programme (FP7/2007-2013) ERC Grant Agreement no. 319209.

For More Information contact St. Kitts Department of Culture- Research & Documentation Unit Email: stkittsculture@gmail.com

WWW.CULTURESNAPS.KN HAS ARRIVED IN ST. KITTS AND NEVIS

CULTURAL ACTIVITIES, LOCAL CUISINE, ARTS, CRAFTS , HERITAGE, CREATIVE AND CULTURAL INDUSTRY (CCI) SERVICES CAN NOW BE IDENTIFIED ON A MAP OF ST. KITTS AND NEVIS "ON-LINE"

A new tool to help visitors locate hidden treasures of St. Kitts and Nevis, document their experiences, and share it with the world.

(L-R) Habiba, Pierre Bowrin, Traval ,
and Eloise Stancioff @ Dept. of IT St. Kitts

The St. Kitts Department of Culture - Research and Documentation Unit (RDU) and Researchers from NEXUS 1492 have developed a crowd-sourcing website for heritage, arts community and important places in St. Kitts as a creative initiative in the domains of education, tourism and research.  This initiative combines community input, national integration and global visibility.  It gathers crowd sourced data, collected directly from community members,- representing community perceptions of heritage, best parts of particular villages and sites to visit. It reaches a large spectrum of people, providing a broad range of responses on community handicrafts, important areas of interest, historic sites and beautiful vistas.

(L-R) Eloise Stancioff, Habiba, Pierre Bowrin, Traval -
Morris, and Sanco Duncan, @ Dept. of IT St. Kitts

On March 3rd 2014 preliminary discussions began between Marlene Phillips, Research & Documentation Specialist - St. Kitts Department of Culture RDU and Eloise Stancioff PhD Student Nexus 1492 Heritage Management Group about how a Crowd Sourcing Tool could assist with the documentation and preservation of St. Kitts and Nevis Culture and Heritage. As concepts for designing the tool began to take shape Habiba, a Postdoctorial Researcher - Algorithmics Group Department of Computer and Information Sciences at Konstanz University in Germany, Member of the ERC Synergy-Nexus 1492 Project, customized the "Ushahidi Platform" to meet the functionality needs that were requested.  On 

(L-R) Ophelia Blanchard, Eloise Stancioff, Habiba,
and Pierre Bowrin @ Dept. of IT St. Kitts

"The crowd sourcing tool developed for the St. Kitts Department of Culture - Government of Saint Christopher and Nevis is based on the Ushahidi framework [1]. Ushahidi is a non{profit technology company that builds open source platforms to help citizens, journalists, organizations, governments, and others gather, manage, analyze, and visualize crowd sourced data. After rigorous discussions with the Department of Culture officials we concluded that Ushahidi software provided us with a powerful basic framework to build a crowd sourcing tool for St. Kitts and Nevis to chronicle, disseminate, and gather information about the heritage and culture of St. Kitts and Nevis". Ref. Eloise Stancioff, Researcher Leiden University

HOW TO USE IT?

1. Log on to www.culturesnaps.kn
2. Create a Report by Uploading a Photograph of a Local Activity you are seeing, food/drinks that you are enjoying, or a site that you are visiting,  with a brief description or comment.
3. Select the correct Creative or Cultural Sector that defines the activity or site in your report.
4. Save It
5. Periodically the posts will be published on the www.culturesnaps.kn website as a report.

Note: The Information that is provided is not all factual and is shared from public opinion.

The public is being invited to visit  http://www.culturesnaps.kn and report on the following Creative, Cultural, and Heritage Activities that they experience in St. Kitts and Nevis to help make it a vibrant and informative site.

PERFORMING ARTS (Groups/Performances - Music/Dance/Theatre)

VISUAL ARTS (Crafts, Artists Studios - Painters/Photographers/Videographers, Costume Makers)

LITERARY ARTS (Author Studios, Poetry Recitals/Book Launches, Newspaper/Magazine Offices, Libraries, Book Stores)

CULINARY ARTS (National/Local - Food and Drink Stands/Restaurants, Farms)

PROFESSIONAL CREATIVE SERVICES OR INSTITUTIONS (Businesses that provide Support Services to the Creative and Cultural Industry Eg. Stage/Tent Rental, Music Studio, Hair Salons etc....)

HERITAGE SITES(Landmarks, Sites of Heritage buildings/events)

GO FISH!  Playing Cards have been designed by Mereke Van Garderen and Professor Dr. Ulrik Brandes.  These cards will be used by St. Kitts Department of Culture RDU to promote http://www.culturesnaps.kn to young adults and children as a fun way to learn about their St. Kitts and Nevis Heritage.

For More Information Contact St. Kitts Department of Culture - RDU  Emai: stkittsculture@gmail.com

THE 3RD CARIFORUM BUSINESS EU FORUM MONTEGO BAY JAMAICA APRIL 15TH & 16TH 2015

Posted By Marlene Phillips April 12th 2015 11:00 Am

MAKING CONNECTIONS. BUILDING BUSINESSES. INCREASING TRADE AND INVESTMENT

The 3rd Cariforum Business EU Forum takes place in Montego Bay Jamaica on April 15th and 16th 2015

The 3rd CARIFORUM-European Union (EU) Business Forum (Forum), will be held in collaboration with the African, Caribbean & Pacific States’ Business Climate Facility (ACP BizClim) and the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH, on April 15-16, 2015 in Montego Bay, Jamaica.

This initiative is designed to strengthen business relationships and promote greater trade between the Caribbean, the EU, Africa and the Pacific. Focus during this year’s Forum, which will be attended by over 150 policy makers and firms, will be placed on the following sectors: agro-processing (herbs and spices and cocoa), higher education and creative industries (music). Participants will have the opportunity to network with buyers from the EU and influential persons within the various sectors. Ref. Pamela Coke Executive Director 3rd Cariforum Business EU Forum

The CARIFORUM-EU Business Forum is an international trade and business development conference designed to connect Caribbean, African, European and Pacific businesses. 

Taking place from April 15 – 16, 2015 in the beautiful location of Montego Bay, Jamaica the forum will focus on agro-processing (cocoa, herbs and spices), music and higher education sectors.  This high-profile event will bring together over 150 carefully selected stakeholders to develop and build international partnerships through participating in business to business meetings, networking and professional consultations.

The forum seeks to build on the success of the first two events and support the ongoing efforts of Caribbean businesses to build meaningful and mutually beneficial relationships with European counterparts to increase trade and investment and build local capacity and know-how. At the same time it will help connect European firms and buyers with suppliers in the Caribbean.

Find out more on the dedicated event website www.cariforum.eu

The entire event will be streamed live online.  Register your interest in participating via the online forum.

Download the 3rd CARIFORUM-EU Business Forum Agenda or read it online here http://www.carib-export.com/3rdcariforumeu/

"HERITAGE PERSPECTIVES" ST. KITTS VOICES OF THE CARIBBEAN

By Marlene Phillips April 15th 2015 8:15 am

Are we doing enough to preserve Our Caribbean Heritage?  Or do other people see more value in Our past than We do?

St. Kitts Department of Culture - Research and Documentation Unit (RDU) collaborated with Leiden University(Netherlands) on a project titled “Heritage Perspectives”.  A variety of Heritage Stakeholders from St. Kitts National Community were interviewed and shared their opinion on the following heritage sites; Brimstone Hill Fortress National Park, Charles Fort, and Bloody Point. 

Dr. Sjoerd Van der Linde, Assistant Professor World Heritage Faculty of Archaeology – Leiden University is conducting research activities about indigenous Amerindian Cultures and Societies in the Caribbean Region under the “Nexus 1492” project http://nexus1492.eu/ that seeks to show how stakeholders in Caribbean Islands relate and value different kinds of heritage.  While in St. Kitts, Dr. Van der Linde and his team of archaeologists engaged Brimstone Hill Fortress National Park Society, St. Christopher National Trust and St. Kitts Department of Culture to find out more about heritage sites Brimstone Hill Fortress, Charles Fort and the Kalinago (Carib) presence in Challengers Village.

Marlene Phillips and Michel Raheem -
 Thatcher, RDU- St. Kitts Dept. of Culture
http://www.nevispages.com/pep-makes-
right-connection-for-computer-savvy-intern/

During the week of August 18th to 22nd 2014 Marlene Phillips, Research & Documentation Specialist, Raheem Thatcher, Assistant to St. Kitts Department - RDU and Project Assistant Dakeza Samuel worked with Dr. Sjoerd Van der Linde and Dr. Jimmy Mans- Leiden University and Vida Rawlins, Provida Multi-Media Video Productions to conduct interviews with the following Stakeholders; Former Minister of Culture, Honourable Marcella Liburd, Antonio Maynard – Secretary General St. Kitts and Nevis Commission for UNESCO, Historian Sir Probyn Innis – Former Governor St. Kitts and Nevis (1975 -1981), Melnecia Marshall Products/Standards/Cruise – St. Kitts Ministry of Tourism,Graeme Browne - Physical Planning & Environment, Cosbert Manchester – Executive Director, St. Christopher National Trust, Cameron Gill – C.E.O. Brimstone Hill Fortress National Park Society, Dr. Sjoerd van der Linde – Faculty of Archaeology Leiden University, Dr. Jimmy Mans – Faculty of Archaeology Leiden University, Maurice Widdowson – Owner, Caribelle Batik/Island Hopper, Greg Pereira – Owner, Greg’s Safaris, 

Vida Rawlins, Film Maker
Provida Multi- Media Video Prod.

Lucinda Phillips – Owner, Kalinago Karbay Challengers Village, Perry Peats - Stone Fort Heights,Emile Davis - Stone Fort Heights,Lloyd Cranston - Stone Fort Project, Adolphus King – Old Road,Winston Caines – Old Road,Oliver Spencer, Old Road,Lionel Stevens - Sandy Point, Debbie Thomas – Sandy Point, and Ben Culp – Lower Bourryeau Estate, St. Kitts West Indies. A Documentary will be produced in by Film Maker Vida Rawlins in the future, but in the mean time you can view the individual interviews she produced at the following link. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sAImdMd9oxY&list=PLeCAdMqf1rUtB81SIt9CMId__hjh5IEm0

Dr. Sjoerd Van der Linde,
Leiden University - Netherlands

Dr. Sjoerd Van der Linde gives a synopsis on the objectives of the video component of the "Heritage Perspectives" project. “Generally, the project tries to document, archive and present the different perspectives on the multi-varied and complex heritage of the Caribbean, focused specifically on Amerindian Heritage in relation to other forms of heritage, and within the framework of the research undertaken in the EU Nexus 1492 Project. The videos will be available in a searchable and publicly accessible database of the Nexus Project.

In addition, the project seeks to inform local heritage management practices by visualizing the value and perspectives of stakeholders surrounding specific heritage sites in need of management, and by raising the awareness of sites though integration in local web platforms and through short documentaries screened on TV and dissemination through social media.

On several islands, short video interviews will therefore be collected about sites and projects that are locally significant and relate as well to the research of the Nexus staff, showing how different stakeholders on the islands relate to and value different kinds of heritage. Broadly speaking, this way a better understanding can be gained about the current identifications with Amerindian heritage, (in relation to colonial and modern heritage), informing critical research on the multi-valor nature of heritage. The research will start with a pilot study on St Kitts, and is expected to be continued on other islands in the region".

For More information about "Heritage Perspectives" contact St. Kitts Department of Culture - RDU Email: stkittsculture@gmaill.com