Georgetown: Guyanese academics Dr Paloma Mohamed and Professor Suresh Narine have been named as two of the four awardees of Anthony N Sabga Caribbean Awards for Excellence.
Dr Mohamed and Professor Narine were named laureates in the areas of Arts and Letters, and Science and Technology respectively.
The Anthony N Sabga Caribbean Awards is the only programme in the Caribbean which seeks and rewards outstanding nominees in Arts and Letters, Public and Civic Contributions, and Sci-ence and Technology, and as of 2015, Entrepreneurship.
The programme has been in existence since 2005 and was a biennial award until 2010 when it became annual. The prizes are worth TT$500,000 each and all of the laureates will receive a medal and citation at a ceremony in April.
The Guyanese professionals will be this year’s recipients alongside Herbert Samuel, an energy consultant and entrepreneur from St Vincent and the Grenadines, and Professor Patrick Hosein, a computer scientist from Trinidad. Samuel was awarded in the area of Entrepreneurship while Professor Hosein was also recognised in the field of Science and Technology.
This year’s award ceremony is the tenth and saw the introduction of a new category, Entrepreneurship. The selection panel for the Awards (The Eminent Persons Panel) did not find any nominees they felt appropriate to be given the award in Public and Civic Contributions for 2015, although a joint award was made in Science and Technology.
Professor Narine is a bio-technologist and Director of the Institute of Applied Sciences and Technology (IAST) in Guyana and a Professor at Trent University in Canada. With the increase in scientific knowledge globally, the Caribbean still finds itself in the role of technology importer. Professor Narine is actively changing this with reference to the physical and chemical sciences. His work in Guyana and in Canada has created the rare bridge between scientific research and commercial application, and in many cases, lessened environmental impact.
Narine also holds the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) Industrial Research Chair in Lipid Derived Biomaterials and the Ontario Research Chair in Green Chemistry and Engineering. His work as a researcher has led to an enviable 138 peer-reviewed publications, two books, 22 patents, and the creation of environmentally friendly economic activity in Guyana, Canada and beyond.
Though he lives and was educated in Canada, Professor Narine returns to Guyana on a monthly basis for his participation in its technological and scientific development.
He is credited for single-handedly reviving the IAST through persistent lobbying and attracting research funds, and turning it into a premier institution of its kind in the region in the field of research chemistry, materials science, environmental monitoring, and physical properties analysis.
On the other hand, Dr. Mohamed, Dean of the University of Guyana’s Faculty of Social Sciences (UG), is one of the most prolific academics in communication, behavioural studies and creative writers (playwright, script-writer and poet) in the region. A key figure in Guyana’s culture and academe, she has been producing creative work since the age of 13, and has won the Guyana Prize on three occasions 1998, 2000 and 2008. She is recognized as one of the most influential figures in the Guyanese and Caribbean cultural landscape.
Dr Mohamed has written and had performed more than 30 plays, and published two collections of poetry with a third expected this year. She has also branched into film, and has been executive producer on 32 films.
She has published nine books of creative work and has been involved in 14 major arts projects, including Healing Arts, one which teaches children to write for other children. In 2010, she developed KIDSTAGE, the first and only televised children’s talent series in Guyana. She is the founder of Healing Arts Guyana Inc., a founding director of Moray House Trust and is chair of the Theatre Guild of Guyana.
In addition to contributing to the writing of the drama syllabus for the Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examinations (CAPE), her creative works have been placed on both the syllabi of the Caribbean Secondary Examination Certificate (CSEC) and CAPE, as well being used as test pieces for students at the Department of Creative and Festival Arts at the University of the West Indies and the University of Maryland. She has been active in adjudicating drama competitions throughout the region, from the secondary school to the international levels.
As an arts advocate she has developed policy in conjunction with national and international agencies, like the Caribbean Community, the United Nations, and several national bodies such as the Ministry of Culture.
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