GEORGE TOWN – The Caribbean Catastrophic Risk Insurance Facility (CCRIF SPC) says it has launched a pioneering postdoctoral fellowship at the University of the West Indies (UWI) Climate Studies Group Mona (CSGM), supporting cutting-edge research in tropical cyclone modelling and climate change attribution.
Dr. Jhordanne JonesCCRIF SPC said that the initiative, valued at US$50,000, marks its first direct grant to support a postdoctoral research fellowship, designed to strengthen regional expertise in tropical cyclone modelling and detection and attribution science.
The fellowship will deliver high-resolution hurricane simulations and loss and damage statistics and will provide public engagement opportunities, positioning the Caribbean as a global thought leader in climate attribution science.
“This fellowship reflects CCRIF’s commitment to strengthening the region’s scientific capacity. The early analyses of Hurricane Beryl and the collaborative study on Hurricane Melissa being undertaken demonstrate how advanced detection and attribution methods can help us better understand the changing nature of storms and hurricanes in the Caribbean,” said CCRIF-SPC chief executive officer, Isaac Anthony,
“By working closely with The UWI, we are building the evidence base needed to improve risk modelling, support resilience planning, and ensure our communities are better prepared for the future,” he added.
Dean at the Faculty of Science and Technology, and CSGM co-director, Professor Michael Taylor, said that CCRIF’s investment in detection and attribution science is truly visionary.
“By supporting research that directly links extreme weather to climate change, CCRIF is helping to place Caribbean science at the centre of global climate justice efforts. At the Climate Studies Group Mona, we are proud to support Dr. Jhordanne Jones and this critically important work for the region,” he added.
The CCRIF SPC said that the first fellowship has been awarded to Dr. Jhordanne Jones, a UWI graduate and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Climate and Global Change Fellow, who was recently appointed lead author for Working Group I of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).
The incoming Assistant Professor to Penn State University’ work focuses on detection and attribution (D&A) science, which provides the evidence needed to connect extreme weather events directly to human-driven climate change, supporting Caribbean advocacy for fair access to global climate finance, including the Loss and Damage Fund.
The CCRIF SPC said that it collaboration with the UWI builds on both organizations’ longstanding partnership to expand regional capacity in comprehensive disaster risk management, financial protection and climate analytics.
It noted that over the period 2010 to 2025, CCRIF has provided 169 scholarships to students at region’s premier tertiary institution valued at US$1.3 million and internships for Caribbean university graduates to work in 14 departments and centres throughout the University with an investment of US$400,000.
It said that the D&A fellowship will deliver high-resolution hurricane simulations and loss and damage statistics and will provide public engagement opportunities, positioning the Caribbean as a global thought leader in climate attribution science.
Principal of The UWI Mona Campus, Professor Densil A. Williams hailed the CCRIF/The UWI partnership as fundamental for capacity building to recover stronger and better from Hurricane Melissa, which slammed into Jamaica in late October killing at least 45 people and leaving damage estimated at nine billion US dollars.
“The fellowship is an important investment that will help The UWI to produce the relevant human capital that will help to guide policy decisions informed by rigorous and relevant scientific work to build back better for the future”.
