Beautiful Virgin Islands

Tuesday, Jun 03, 2025

More partnership needed to develop local creatives

More partnership needed to develop local creatives

There is a strong call for greater partnership between the private sector and the Culture Department to curate a proper space in the territory for creatives to operate, develop and export their products.

Speaking at the opening ceremony for Culture and Tourism Month, Executive Director of the BVI Chamber of Commerce and Hotel Association (BVICCHA) Keiya Jackson-George said the creative industry is something she holds dear and she strives to encourage and increase partnership between the business community and the creative industry.

She said she aims to not limit creatives to only the Virgin Islands but to look towards exporting their crafts regionally and internationally.

“What we are doing in the Chamber of Commerce is partnering with different organisations such as the Department of Culture and Summer Sizzle for the sake of creatives. The idea is a partnership and to get what our creatives in the creative industry make off the island,” Jackson- George said.

The executive director noted on November 30, the culmination of Culture and Tourism Month, there will be a forum hosted by the BVICCHA where creatives can interact and build relations with people from the tourism and business sector to find out the needs of each other and how best to meet that need profitably.

“Partner with us, partner with them and grab a creative by the hand and push them forward,” she said.

The Director of Culture Katherine Smith said her department hopes to use Saturday’s event as a springboard for future collaboration.

“That will be a good end to the month and start looking towards the future … building our creative industry which in turn will promote cultural tourism. So, this time next year, what we are hoping from that programme is that this month will be the apex of what has happened through the year,” Smith said.

Meanwhile, Dr Richard Georges, the Virgin Islands Poet Laureate and President of the H. Lavity Stoutt Community College, said there should be more emphasis placed on the humanities within the territory.

He said that over the years, the focus has been largely given to Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) while the humanities have been largely ignored.

The human element


He said one cannot curate a thriving society when the human element of it has been removed.

“I must then beg the question, where are we going when we remove the human from the work? This is the immediate peril of the fashionable focus on STEM subjects leading to deliberate neglect of the arts and humanities which the creative industry and artist must spring. We must uphold the quality of the arts and humanities,” the poet laureate said.

The month of November is acknowledged as culture month in the BVI and this year will be its second anniversary. The theme for this year is “Our Heritage, our People, our Cultural Arts! When Culture meets Tourism, we Capture all Hearts”.

The month started with the opening ceremony on November 1 and will culminate with the Anegada Lobster Festival.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Harvard Urges US to Unfreeze Funds for Public Health Research
Businessman Mauled by Lion at Luxury Namibian Lodge
Researchers Consider New Destinations Beyond the U.S.
53-Year-Old Doctor Claims Biological Age of 23
Trump Struggles to Secure Trade Deals With China and Europe
Russia to Return 6,000 Corpses Under Ukraine Prisoner Swap Deal
Microsoft Lays Off Hundreds More Amid Restructuring
Harvey Weinstein’s Publicist Embraces Notoriety
Macron and Meloni Seek Unity Despite Tensions
Trump Administration Accused of Obstructing Deportation Cases
Newark Mayor Sues Over Arrest at Immigration Facility
Center-Left Candidate Projected to Win South Korean Presidency
Trump’s Tariffs Predicted to Stall Global Economic Growth
South Korea’s President-Elect Expected to Take Softer Line on Trump and North Korea
Trump’s China Strategy Remains a Geopolitical Puzzle
Ukraine Executes Long-Range Drone Strikes on Russian Airbases
Conservative Karol Nawrocki wins Poland’s presidential election
Study Identifies Potential Radicalization Risk Among Over One Million Muslims in Germany
Good news: Annalena Baerbock Elected President of the UN General Assembly
Apple Appeals EU Law Over User Data Sharing Requirements
South Africa: "First Black Bank" Collapses after Being Looted by Owners
Poland will now withdraw from the EU migration pact after pro-Trump nationalist wins Election
"That's Disgusting, Don’t Say It Again": The Trump Joke That Made the President Boil
Trump Cancels NASA Nominee Over Democratic Donations
Paris Saint-Germain's Greatest Triumph Is Football’s Lowest Point
OnlyFans for Sale: From Lockdown Lifeline to Eight-Billion-Dollar Empire
Mayor’s Security Officer Implicated | Shocking New Details Emerge in NYC Kidnapping Case
Hegseth Warns of Potential Chinese Military Action Against Taiwan
OPEC+ Agrees to Increase Oil Output for Third Consecutive Month
Jamie Dimon Warns U.S. Bond Market Faces Pressure from Rising Debt
Turkey Detains Istanbul Officials Amid Anti-Corruption Crackdown
Taylor Swift Gains Ownership of Her First Six Albums
Bangkok Ranked World's Top City for Remote Work in 2025
Satirical Sketch Sparks Political Spouse Feud in South Korea
Indonesia Quarry Collapse Leaves Multiple Dead and Missing
South Korean Election Video Pulled Amid Misogyny Outcry
Asian Economies Shift Away from US Dollar Amid Trade Tensions
Netflix Investigates Allegations of On-Set Mistreatment in K-Drama Production
US Defence Chief Reaffirms Strong Ties with Singapore Amid Regional Tensions
Vietnam Faces Strategic Dilemma Over China's Mekong River Projects
Malaysia's First AI Preacher Sparks Debate on Islamic Principles
White House Press Secretary Criticizes Harvard Funding, Advocates for Vocational Training
France to Implement Nationwide Smoking Ban in Outdoor Spaces Frequented by Children
Meta and Anduril Collaborate on AI-Driven Military Augmented Reality Systems
Russia's Fossil Fuel Revenues Approach €900 Billion Since Ukraine Invasion
U.S. Justice Department Reduces American Bar Association's Role in Judicial Nominations
U.S. Department of Energy Unveils 'Doudna' Supercomputer to Advance AI Research
U.S. SEC Dismisses Lawsuit Against Binance Amid Regulatory Shift
Alcohol Industry Faces Increased Scrutiny Amid Health Concerns
Italy Faces Population Decline Amid Youth Emigration
×