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Antiguan Researcher Among Winners at UWI Postgraduate Student Conference
Antiguan student Shamika Spencer was among twelve winners recognised for outstanding oral presentations at the 2nd Annual One-UWI Postgraduate Student Conference, hosted online by The University of the West Indies (UWI) from November 20–22, 2024.
Spencer, a student in the Faculty of Science and Technology at the Cave Hill Campus, earned top honours in the session titled ‘Waste Not Want Not’: Creating Renewable Opportunities For The Next Decade, with her presentation “Biomethane Production from Sargassum Seaweed and Rum Distillery Waste: A Sustainable Fuel Solution.”
Her research proposes an innovative approach to converting Caribbean environmental and industrial waste into clean energy—highlighting sustainable solutions with global relevance.
The conference, held under the theme “Collaborative Horizons: Interdisciplinary Visions for Caribbean and Global Progress,” brought together postgraduate students across all five UWI campuses.
Winners from each of the 12 sessions were selected for their academic rigour, clarity, and relevance to pressing regional and global challenges.
The awards were presented on March 28, 2025.
Each winner received an electronic gift voucher, and select attendees also received prizes for participation.
Professor Aldrie Henry-Lee, Pro Vice-Chancellor for Graduate Studies and Research, commended the high standard of research presented. “Thank you to all members of The UWI’s postgraduate community for this collaborative initiative,” she said.
“We were honoured to highlight these remarkable presentations and acknowledge the profound impact of our students’ research.”
Other winning presentations included topics on inclusive education in Grenada, the impact of transportation on diabetic healthcare outcomes, food security in disaster-prone areas, and financial equity in the Caribbean.
The third edition of the postgraduate conference is scheduled for November 12–15, 2025.
For more on the winning projects, visit https://uwi.edu/gsr/pgcon or follow @sgsruwi on Instagram, Facebook, and X.
The winners are as follows:
| Sessions | Name/Faculty/Campus | Title of Presentation |
| Day 1 – Session 1: ‘Waste Not Want Not’: Creating Renewable Opportunities For The Next Decade. | Shamika Spencer | Science and Technology, Cave Hill Campus | Biomethane Production from Sargassum Seaweed and Rum Distillery Waste: A Sustainable Fuel Solution. |
| Day 1 – Session 2: Unpacking Quality Education Within The Context Of Caribbean Societies. | Judy-Ann Auld | Humanities and Education, Cave Hill Campus | Exploring Inclusive Education Practices in Grenada: An Ethnographic Case Study of District Supervision and School Management Teams |
| Day 1 – Session 3: Prioritising Health And Well Being In The Caribbean. | Aaron Haralsingh | Medical Sciences, St. Augustine Campus | The Impact of Transportation on Healthcare Access and Outcomes Among Patients with Diabetic Foot Infections |
| Day 1 – Session 4: Perspectives On Gender And Identity. | Arti Ramsaroop | Humanities and Education, St. Augustine Campus | Positioning British West Indian Intellectuals in Harlem, N.Y., 1900-1964 |
| Day 2 – Session 1: Red Alert!!: Addressing Critical Health Issues Among Caribbean Populations. | Raphica Scott | Medical Sciences, Cave Hill Campus | Comparison of the gut microbiome in active versus quiescent Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE): A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis |
| Day 2 – Session 2: We Are What We Eat: Investigating Food Consumption Patterns | Tynessa Gay | Food and Agriculture, St. Augustine Campus | Evaluating the Significance of Food Security and Agri-food Systems Within Existing Disaster Resilience Frameworks: A Systematic Review |
| Day 2 – Session 2: We Are What We Eat: Investigating Food Consumption Patterns | Augustus Thomas | Food and Agriculture, St. Augustine Campus | Balancing the Scales: Mitigating the Harmful Impacts of Pesticides with Biological Alternatives in Food Production |
| Day 2 – Session 3: Caribbean Perspectives On Delivering Quality Education. | Ta’Neil James | Humanities and Education, Cave Hill Campus | ICT as an Instructional Tool for Social Studies Teachers |
| Day 2 – Session 4: Stakeholders ‘We In This Together’: Securing Peace And Justice For All Citizens | Samantha Allahar | Social Sciences, St. Augustine Campus | The Grenada Revolution: Elevating the Subaltern in the Decolonisation Process |
| Day 3 – Session 1: Interrogating Progress Towards Inter & Intra Generational Financial Equity. | Justin Carter | Social Sciences, Cave Hill Campus | Is Fiscal Consolidation the Caribbean’s Saviour? |
| Day 3 – Session 2: Interrogating Legal And Educational Systems | Alicia Hospedales | Social Sciences, St. Augustine Campus | A Quantitative Study of School Professionals’ Knowledge, Beliefs, Responses and Attitudes to Reporting |
| Day 3 – Session 3: Building Sustainable Caribbean Communities | Dr. Candice Sant | Medical Sciences, St. Augustine Campus | Leishmaniasis and African trypanosomiasis in domestic animals in Trinidad and Tobago – a One Health approach. |
For more information about the One-UWI Postgraduate Student Conference and the awarded presentations, please visit https://uwi.edu/gsr/pgcon as well as our social media pages (Instagram, Facebook and X) @sgsruwi.
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About The University of the West Indies
The UWI has been and continues to be a pivotal force in every aspect of Caribbean development, residing at the centre of all efforts to improve the well-being of people across the region for over 75 years.
From a university college of London in Jamaica with 33 medical students in 1948, The UWI is today an internationally respected, global university with nearly 50,000 students and five campuses: Mona in Jamaica, St. Augustine in Trinidad and Tobago, Cave Hill in Barbados, Five Islands in Antigua and Barbuda and its Global Campus, and global centres in partnership with universities in North America, Latin America, Asia, Africa, and Europe.
The UWI offers over 1000 certificate, diploma, undergraduate and postgraduate degree options in Culture, Creative and Performing Arts, Food and Agriculture, Engineering, Humanities and Education, Law, Medical Sciences, Science and Technology, Social Sciences, and Sport.
As the Caribbean’s leading university, it possesses the largest pool of Caribbean intellect and expertise committed to confronting the critical issues of our region and the wider world.
The UWI has been consistently ranked among the best in the world by the most reputable ranking agency, Times Higher Education (THE). Since The UWI’s 2018 debut in THE’s rankings, it has performed well in multiple schemes—among them including World University Rankings, Golden Age University Rankings (between 50 and 80 years old), Latin America Rankings, and the Impact Rankings for its response to the world’s biggest concerns, outlined in the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including Good Health and Well-being; Gender Equality and Climate Action.
Learn more at www.uwi.edu
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Wonderful news! Congratulations Shamika!