Caribbean Mobilising to Eliminate Industrially Produced Trans Fats

Friday 17 May

10am to 12pm AST 

Building Awareness and Support for the Elimination of Industrially Produced Trans fatty acids (iTFA) in CARICOM. 

Download the flyer.

Dorial Quintyne, Project Assistant at the Healthy Caribbean Coalition and member of Healthy Caribbean Youth

Dorial Quintyne, Project Assistant at the Healthy Caribbean Coalition and member of Healthy Caribbean Youth, took part in the Youth Ambassador Summit hosted by Campaign For Tobacco Free Kids (CTFK) and CREA Red in Lima, Peru from April 29 to May 3, 2024. This leadership program, which brought together participants from 17 countries in Latin America, had a primary focus on tobacco control. It aimed to establish a shared knowledge base on critical aspects of tobacco control, including advocacy skills and the planning and execution of successful policy campaigns.

Amidst this diverse gathering, Dorial, as the lone representative from the English-speaking Caribbean, shared youth tobacco and e-cigarette use within CARICOM, spotlighting HCC’s Youth Tobacco Advocacy Portal and publication: Vaping Among Adolescents And Youth In The Caribbean: Situation, Policy Responses, And Recommended Actions.

During this poster session, she highlighted the numerous tactics used by the tobacco industry to increase their consumer base and interfere with public health policymaking. During the summit, former President of the Congress of Peru, Lady Mercedes Camones Soriano, extended an invitation to visit the Congress of the Republic of Peru. This forum aimed to champion the tobacco and nicotine control law in Peru, garnering support for Bill 3438/2022 from Congressmen and engaging with key stakeholders, including representatives from the Ministry of Health, CTFK, La Comisión Nacional de Lucha Antitabáquica (COLAT), and the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO). 

Motivated by the strong network of passionate youth advocates in Latin America, Dorial remarked, “This summit has reinforced my belief in the power of youth advocacy. Seeing the passion and commitment of my peers in Latin America has been incredibly inspiring. I am more determined than ever to bring this energy back to the Caribbean and work towards a healthier future for our youth.”

The HCC is seeking to expand our database of consultants with expertise in the area of NCD prevention and control. The HCC relies on consultants to support the implementation of our projects in the short, medium and long-term. To this end we are inviting individual consultants and consulting firms to submit CVs to the HCC. Submitted CVs will be reviewed to ensure they meet the selection criteria and if successful they will be placed in our consultant database. Please note that consultants do not need to be based in the Caribbean but must meet the selection criteria outlined. The database will be the first resource we turn to when consultancy opportunities arise.

SAVE THE DATE

HCC 9th Annual General Assembly

Tuesday 16th July 2024 

10am - 12pm AST

The virtual launch of a comprehensive set of resources aimed at improving the mental health and well-being of children and young people across the Eastern Caribbean took place on Wednesday, 8 May, 2024. 

This initiative is the culmination of collaborative efforts between UNICEF, USAID, The University of the West Indies, The Healthy Caribbean Coalition, Let's Unpack It, and governments from 12 Caribbean nations. Through research and discussions, these entities have identified some of the most pressing needs and developed resources to address them.

These resources, created by and for children and young people, will empower, build resilience, and foster a supportive environment for mental well-being. Join us for the launch of this milestone and learn how you can contribute to creating a brighter future for young people in the Caribbean.

Caribbean Association of Nutritionists and Dietitians: Caribbean Nutrition Day is celebrated every year on June 1st. The observance of this day originated under the former Caribbean Food and Nutrition Institute (CFNI), a specialized centre of the Pan American Health Organization/World Health Organization (PAHO/WHO). Following the decommissioning of CFNI, this initiative was adopted and expanded into Caribbean Nutrition Awareness Month by the Caribbean Association of Nutritionists and Dietitians (CANDi).

Photo: WHO

WHO: World No Tobacco Day 2024 will give a platform to young people across the world, who are urging governments to shield them from predatory tobacco marketing tactics. The industry targets youth for a lifetime of profits, creating a new wave of addiction. Children are using e-cigarettes at rates higher than adults in all regions and globally an estimated 37 million youth aged 13–15 years use tobacco.

PAHO: Tuesday, June 4, 2024, at 10:00 a.m. (Washington DC, or EDT) PAHO have a launch event for the self-learning virtual course on Regulatory Policies to Prevent Obesity and Diet-related Noncommunicable Diseases. In this course, participants will gain access to strategies for designing and advancing regulatory policies that reduce the demand and offer of ultra-processed and processed products and can halt the rise of obesity and diet-related non-communicable diseases (NCDs).

UNICEF: Children, who are twelve years old today, will transition into adulthood in 2030, by the time the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are to be attained. Since children and young people1 are the ones who will inherit this world, it is essential for them to have a say and be heard by adults in important conversations concerning their future. Children and young people need to have the room to safely voice their perspectives and concerns and be meaningfully engaged in decision-making processes. They are the leaders of tomorrow and the outcomes of our decisions today will shape the trajectory of their lives.

PAHO: A total of 30 mental health professionals from 18 Caribbean countries and territories are participating from 7 to 10 May on the first Caribbean-focused QualityRights workshop, aiming to catalyze positive changes in mental health services across the Caribbean. QualityRights is World Health Organization (WHO) global initiative to improve the quality of care provided by mental health and social services and promote the human rights of people with mental health conditions and psychosocial, intellectual, or cognitive disabilities. It offers a new approach to mental health care which is rights-based and recovery-oriented.