Caribbean countries have had to navigate multiple crises, which have tested their collective resolve through time. In this regard, the region’s landscape has been shaped by an interplay of vulnerability and resilience which has brought to the fore possibilities and contradictions. It is within this context that the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic must be considered. Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Covid-19 and the Caribbean, Volume 1: The State, Economy and Health provides a comprehensive, multi- and interdisciplinary assessment of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, using the Caribbean as the site of enquiry. The edited collection mobilises critical perspectives brought to bear on research produced within and beyond the boundaries and boundedness of conventional academic disciplinary divides, in response to the multi-dimensional crises of our time. The culmination of this collection offers a reimagining of our Caribbean contemporary futures in the hope of finding home-grown solutions, avenues and possibilities. This volume is divided into five (5) parts consisting of twenty-four (24) chapters and weaves together thematic strands that focus on governance, the macro and micro aspects of the economy, tourism and hospitality, business management and public health policy. Together, the chapters in this volume tell the story of the extent and effects of Caribbean governments’ response to the pandemic and the ways in which industries and organisations have had to pivot to survive and transform their management and operational practices.

Caribbean countries have had to navigate multiple crises, which have tested their collective resolve through time. In this regard, the region’s landscape has been shaped by an interplay of vulnerability and resilience which has brought to the fore possibilities and contradictions. It is within this context that the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic must be considered. Interdisciplinary Perspectives on COVID-19 and the Caribbean, Volume 2: Society, Education and Human Behaviour provides a comprehensive, multi- and interdisciplinary assessment of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, using the Caribbean as the site of enquiry. The edited collection mobilises critical perspectives brought to bear on research produced within and beyond the boundaries and boundedness of conventional academic disciplinary divides, in response to the multi-dimensional crises of our time. This volume is divided into four (4) parts consisting of twenty-three (23) chapters and weaves together four broad thematic strands: COVID-19 and Caribbean Society; COVID-19 Religion and Rights; Psycho-social Impacts of COVID-19; and Education, Innovation, and Technology. Authors working within and across the human, social, physical and life sciences consider the myriad effects of the health crisis in the region, interrogating these experiences from the granular to macro level, utilising inter and multidisciplinary lenses. Collectively, the chapters which constitute Volume II expose the fault lines in Caribbean societies, which are deeply rooted in the region’s history and delineate the precise ways in which the pandemic has transformed lives and livelihoods in the region. The culmination of this collection offers a reimagining of our Caribbean contemporary futures in the hope of finding home-grown solutions, avenues and possibilities.

This book provides the first wide-ranging account of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in two contrasting island regions - the Caribbean and the Pacific - and in several islands and island states. It traces the complexity of effects and responses, at different scales, through the first critical year. Written by a range of scholars and practitioners working in the region the book focuses on six key themes: public health; the economies (notably the collapse of tourism, the revival of local agriculture and fishing, and the rebirth of self-reliance, and even barter); the rescue by remittances; social tensions and responses; public policy; and future ‘bubbles’ and regional connections. Even with marine borders that excluded the virus all island states were affected by COVID-19 because of a considerable dependence on tourism – prompting urgent challenges for governance, economic management and development, as small states sought to balance lives against livelihoods in search of revitalisation or even a ‘new normal’.

This timely and innovative book explores the dynamics of inter-island/island-island tourism – also known as archipelago tourism – on the cusp of the post-pandemic epoch. Embellished with illustrative maps and diagrams, the volume examines what novel approaches have been developed, if at all, so as not to repeat past mistakes, and nurture a more sustainable, 'island tourism' business model. It looks at how the political-economic relationship between main and outer islands changed during the pandemic and, if so, whether this shift has had a bearing on current tourism policy. The book also explores how these and other changes are reflected in how: islands are branded; island destinations are marketed; and island transport logistics play out. An array of archipelagos of varying sizes and locations is explored, assuring a global perspective. The book furthers our understanding of core-periphery dynamics in archipelago tourism. The volume will be of interest to students, researchers, policy makers and academics in the fields of tourism policy and planning, sustainability, island studies and development studies.

Melissa Fuster thinks expansively about the multiple meanings of comida, food, from something as simple as a meal to something as complex as one's identity. She listens intently to the voices of New York City residents with Cuban, Dominican, or Puerto Rican backgrounds, as well as to those of the nutritionists and health professionals who serve them. She argues with sensitivity that the migrants' health depends not only on food culture but also on important structural factors that underlie their access to food, employment, and high-quality healthcare. People in Hispanic Caribbean communities in the United States present high rates of obesity, diabetes, and other diet-related diseases, conditions painfully highlighted during the COVID-19 pandemic. Both eaters and dietitians may blame these diseases on the shedding of traditional diets in favor of highly processed foods. Or, conversely, they may blame these on the traditional diets of fatty meat, starchy root vegetables, and rice. Applying a much needed intersectional approach, Fuster shows that nutritionists and eaters often misrepresent, and even racialize or pathologize, a cuisine's healthfulness or unhealthfulness if they overlook the kinds of economic and racial inequities that exist within the global migration experience.

This book depicts and reveals the socioeconomic dynamics of the COVID-19 crisis, and its global, regional, and local perspectives. Explicitly interdisciplinary, this volume embraces a wide spectrum of topics across economics, business, public management, psychology, and public health. Written by global experts, each chapter offers a snapshot of an emerging aspect of the COVID-19 crisis for the benefit of academics and students, as well as the institutional, economic, social, and developmental policymakers and health practitioners on the ground.