Proud of my Guyanese heritage – proud of President Jagdeo
As the 2011 celebration of Mashramani commences, the population is celebrating the 41st year of the birth of the Guyanese republic. As a first generation American with Guyanese parents, I cannot help but feel proud of just how far Guyana has come in only four decades! Such an idea may seem farfetched, but let me first introduce myself. My name is Kimberley Charles, and I am seventeen years old. I currently reside in Oakland, New Jersey, and I am a junior at Indian Hills High School. At my high school, I am a part of an advanced programme geared toward preparation for university that focuses on business and international studies. My father, Leonard Charles, and my mother, Karen Charles were born and raised in Soesdyke, EBD. My mother immigrated to the United States in 1982 and my father immigrated in 1986. I also have one brother, named Elton Charles who is currently studying music at Berklee College of Music in Boston, Massachusetts. My uncle, Mike Charles, is the creator and producer of the popular DVD, Guyana: Yours to Discover.
From a young age, I have always been proud of my Guyanese heritage. My parents have always instilled in me the necessity of preserving our culture through food, music, and even just reminiscing about my parents’ childhoods – playing cricket, or running to catch the wooden school bus, and a plethora of other childhood memories that have kept their hearts grounded in Guyana. Their nostalgia has activated a patriotism for Guyana in my psyche and I have visited Guyana about ten times during my life. I am a huge believer that Guyana’s beauty and natural resources are incomparable to any other nation in the world.
Although Guyana is home to an extremely vibrant culture, I must say that many people either overlook Guyana’s facets or are ignorant about Guyana’s existence. On many occasions, I have introduced myself as a Guyanese-American and the first response to my divulgence is related to Jonestown. At home, it seems as though the only television specials on Guyana are related to Jim Jones and the mass suicide of his followers. I must say that the old, ‘drinking the Kool-aid’ saying is extremely unnecessary when related to Guyanese people, considering Jones brought Americans into the Guyanese jungle.
Before traveling to Guyana last week, I told a few of my friends where I was spending my vacation. They believed I was traveling to the African nation of Ghana, because many of them had never heard of the Guyana. From an American’s perspective, I believe that Guyana is an extremely misunderstood nation that is often ignored from a global perspective. Guyana has always been close to my heart, but due to these setbacks, it has always been difficult finding my identity as a Guyanese-American.
My view of Guyana changed dramatically after seeing President Jagdeo speak about the REDD+ and Low Carbon Development Strategy at Columbia University in New York City on September 25, 2009. On an international level, climate change is an extremely contentious issue between nations. At the current date, the Kyoto Protocol, adopted in 1997, has acted as a step toward emission reduction, and as a foundation to a future international agreement on climate change.
As a developing nation, Guyana has taken a great leap forward in stimulating innovation concerning global warming. Guyana is extremely unique in that 80% of the country is covered in forests, while the country has very low rates of deforestation, ranging from 0.1%-0.3%.      Rainforests in general are rich in biodiversity and filled with natural resources and ecosystems that are priceless. The REDD+ initiative gives a financial value to carbon stores in forests, while also giving incentives to developing countries to reduce emissions and to invest in sustainable development. Therefore, Guyana has the potential to benefit from simply keeping forests intact.
The LCDS is then Guyana’s approach to addressing REDD+ by specifically combating climate change and promoting economic growth. Using a framework for the use of payments, Guyana has the potential to directly benefit the population and foster economic growth. Guyana’s Memorandum of Understanding with Norway is a definite example of how the LCDS can work in consideration of REDD+ and the Kyoto Protocol. Norway provides Guyana with performance-based payments for avoided deforestation. By 2014, the payments could add up to $250 million USD. The Guyanese example of low carbon development is being hailed worldwide as an innovative way to combat an especially significant critical global issue. No matter the politics involved with the LCDS and REDD+, the fact is that Guyana, the little nation that is seemingly only remembered for negative events, such as Jonestown, has effectively exercised a strategy addressing climate change and carbon emissions. In coming years, I expect that a number of countries will follow the Guyanese example of combating global warming, as nations come to a definitive agreement on climate change.
On Monday, February 21, 2011, I visited Convent Garden Secondary School on EBD, and I taught a short lesson on REDD+, LCDS, and global partnership. I believe that the most important part of any legislation passed by the Guyanese government is allowing the public to fully understand the government’s undertakings. While many voting-aged adults may understand the LCDS, I have found that the youth – both locally and internationally, are a bit less informed about Guyana as a country on the world stage. In coming years, climate change legislation will bring developing nations with rainforests and high susceptibility to the effects of global warming to the forefront. The younger generation, especially, must understand where Guyana fits into the puzzle of countries and organizations such as the United Nations on a world-scale. If temperatures keep rising, the future generations will suffer. Therefore, it is of the utmost important that school-aged children and young adults are informed of world events and Guyana’s ever-changing international role.
After seeing President Jagdeo speak in 2009, I went back to my classes and heartily used Guyana as a model of how developing and developed nations can come to a consensus considering climate change and its potential effects. In November of 2010, I traveled to Washington, D.C. and spoke to members of the Atlantic Council and European Union about potential climate legislation in the coming future, citing Guyana as an example. To those who were unaware of the LCDS and Guyana-Norway Memorandum of Understanding, I introduced them to new information. From those who were educated about Guyana’s role, their comments were never critical of President Jagdeo’s plans or Guyana, but rather encouraging. Now, I identify Guyana as the nation spear-heading a workable campaign to combat climate change. Jonestown and the Ghana mix up are all things of the past, thanks to President Jagdeo.
In the end, the Guyanese people must realize just how far Guyana has come in only forty-one years. As a Guyanese-American, I am extremely proud to say that my roots are right here in Guyana’s soil. Guyana’s role on the international stage will grow exponentially in coming years and I hope that the LCDS and REDD+ will benefit Guyana to the highest extent possible. To all, Happy Mash!