The UWI Regional Headquarters, Jamaica, W.I., Friday, April 17, 2026—A delegation from the SubOptic Foundation, including industry leaders and researchers from the Global Digital Infrastructure (GDI) team at the University of California, Berkeley, is visiting The University of the West Indies (The UWI) as part of a regional recruitment effort for the Resilient Global Digital Infrastructure (GDI) Fellowship. Through this engagement, the delegation is seeking to identify and recruit more than 40 promising students and emerging professionals from across the Caribbean to join the Fellowship, a new initiative focused on strengthening regional capacity, leadership, and long-term resilience in digital infrastructure.
The visit marks an important step in a growing academic-industry partnership dedicated to strengthening knowledge, leadership, and practical capacity around the systems that underpin the internet, including subsea telecommunications cables, terrestrial networks, Internet Exchange Points (IXPs), data centres, and the policy and governance frameworks that shape them. In partnership with UWI campuses across the region, engagement with students from a wide range of programmes forms part of a broader regional effort that will continue through outreach, partnership-building, and educational programming over the course of the year. This collaboration is also one of the key ways of reaching outstanding talent from across the Caribbean and from a broad spectrum of disciplines, including law, engineering, management, and beyond.
A central focus of these engagements is the Resilient Global Digital Infrastructure (GDI) Fellowship — the programme is made possible by a grant from the Internet Society Foundation.
Presented in collaboration with key regional stakeholders—including CANTO, the Caribbean Telecommunications Union (CTU), local ISOC Chapters, academia, and the private sector—the Fellowship will bring together a cohort of 40 students and professionals from across the Caribbean for a multi-stage learning experience focused on the physical foundations of the internet and their critical role in regional resilience. Participants will also engage with senior industry leaders through guest lectures and mentorship, and later convene in person to develop collaborative approaches to resilient infrastructure in Caribbean contexts.
Pro Vice-Chancellor of Global Affairs at The UWI, Ms. Sandrea Maynard, noted, “This collaboration with the SubOptic Foundation underscores the UWI’s commitment to strengthening Caribbean capacity in digital infrastructure—an area that is fundamental to resilience, development, and regional competitiveness. The Global Digital Infrastructure Fellowship creates valuable pathways for UWI talent to engage globally while ensuring that Caribbean perspectives help shape the systems that underpin our digital future.”
“The Caribbean has a vital role to play in shaping the present and future of digital infrastructure,” said Professor Nicole Starosielski, Director of the Global Digital Infrastructure Programme at UC Berkeley. “In this visit, we hope to build lasting relationships across the region, support education grounded in Caribbean realities, and cultivate leadership among young talent. Infrastructure is not simply a technical system delivered from above, but something socially shaped through local knowledge and education. Because strategic network resilience is regionally specific, the unique realities of the Caribbean offer essential lessons for managing shared risks and building more equitable systems.”
This initiative extends Phase 1 of the project, which produced the forthcoming Report on Strategic Network Resilience in the Caribbean. Building on a year of interdisciplinary research, data from several islands, and interviews with more than 70 stakeholders from across the region, the report proposes a new framework for strengthening subsea cable and digital infrastructure resilience in the Caribbean. It advocates for a holistic, regional approach that integrates telecommunications, energy, regulatory, and market systems, moving beyond isolated technical fixes. The report also stresses the human elements of resilience—trust, collaboration, education, and public awareness. This next phase translates these findings into direct regional engagement, training, and capacity-building to support the future of Caribbean connectivity.
“At the SubOptic Foundation, we see this work as an investment in both the present and the future of Caribbean connectivity,” said Erick Contag, President of the SubOptic Foundation. “This visit marks the beginning of a wider series of engagements across the region designed to bring together universities, industry leaders, policymakers, students, and professionals around a shared goal: strengthening the knowledge base, partnerships, and leadership needed to support resilient digital infrastructure for years to come. By creating opportunities for dialogue, learning, and collaboration, we hope to help foster a regional ecosystem that is better equipped to respond to challenges, seize new opportunities, and shape the future of Caribbean connectivity on its own terms.”
Across Trinidad and Tobago, Barbados, the delegation has met with a broad cross-section of regional stakeholders—including university leadership, faculty and students, career development and recruitment offices, telecommunications regulators and other public-sector representatives, internet ecosystem organisations and industry associations, as well as private-sector operators, consultants, and digital infrastructure companies. In parallel, the delegation is participating in campus and public-facing engagements at The UWI and other institutions, including The UWI St. Augustine’s World of Work Recruitment Fair, Fellowship presentations and stakeholder sessions across campuses (including hybrid events), regional convenings and conferences, media outreach (including a radio interview), and meetings with the UWI Global Campus.
An information session is scheduled to take place at the Global Campus in Dominica on Tuesday April 21 at 5pm EC. Together, these engagements are designed to strengthen regional partnerships, raise awareness about resilient digital infrastructure, and support the next generation of Caribbean leaders in the field.
Applications are now open for the Resilient Caribbean Fellowship until May 1, 2026. The programme welcomes both university students and working professionals, and no previous technical training is required. Applicants from a broad range of disciplines—including engineering, business, communication, law, policy, and related fields—are encouraged to apply.
Interested persons are asked to apply by May 1, 2026 at https://lnkd.in/e3sHbJE6.
About The University of the West Indies
The University of the West Indies (The UWI) has played a crucial role in Caribbean development for over 75 years, consistently contributing to the improvement of the well-being of people across the region.
Established in 1948 as a university college of London in Jamaica, with just 33 medical students, UWI has grown into an internationally respected, global university with nearly 50,000 students. Today, it boasts 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, along with international centres in partnership with universities across 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 leading university in the Caribbean, it is home to the largest pool of intellect and expertise in the region, dedicated to addressing the critical issues facing both the Caribbean and the wider world.
Validated by its inclusion in the Times Higher Education (THE) annual rankings since 2018, The UWI has affirmed its position as one of the top universities globally. It stands out as the only English-speaking institution in the Caribbean featured in four of THE's prestigious ranking lists. The World University Rankings evaluate over 2,000 research-focused universities worldwide, while the Golden Age University Rankings highlight institutions established between 50 and 80 years ago. The Latin America Rankings focus specifically on universities within Latin America and the Caribbean. Additionally, the Impact Rankings assess universities based on their contributions to the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
This recognition has also springboarded the establishment of The UWI’s International School for Development Justice (ISD), a global online graduate business school aimed at preparing future leaders for sustainable development.
The UWI is an SDG-engaged university consistently recognised among the best in the world. Discover more at www.uwi.edu.
L to R: Iago Bojczuk, Research Associate at the UC Berkeley Center for New Media; Erick Contag, President of the Board of Trustees at the SubOptic Foundation; and Federica Tortorella, Program Manager for the Certificate in Global Digital Infrastructure, come together to discuss the Resilient Global Digital Infrastructure Fellowship.
R – Dr. Leroy Hill, Director The UWI Centre for Excellence in Teaching and Learning
4th from R – Dr. Akash Pooransingh, Deputy Dean Outreach, Faculty of Engineering, The UWI St Augustine
6th from R – Ms. Lois St. Brice, Programme Officer, Office of Global Affairs, The UWI
Behind Lois - Federica Tortorella, Program Manager Certificate in Global Digital Infrastructure
7th from R - Erick Contag, President, Board of Trustees SubOptic Foundation
Behind Erick - Iago Bojczuk, Research Associate at the UC Berkeley Center for New Media
Surrounded by students, faculty, staff, and alumni from various faculties at The UWI St Augustine Campus
