Introduction

Abstract

The confluence of multiple internal and external factors has created a number of possibilities and contradictions for the predominantly small island developing states (SIDS) in the Caribbean. It is against this background and that of intersecting challenges of pre-existing socio-economic precarity, the existential threat of the climate crisis, and the various shocks emanating from the global political economy that the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic must be considered. Indeed, these broader socio-economic realities were compounded as COVID-19 unmasked democratic deficits, disrupted access to education, exposed and deepened social inequalities, and brought to the fore psycho-social and mental health challenges for diverse demographic groups. Less documented were stories of resilience among Caribbean people where entrepreneurial opportunities have been explored and exploited. We therefore suggest that the contemporary moment is the most defining period in modern history, requiring incisive intellectual scrutiny. Interdisciplinary Perspectives on COVID-19 and the Caribbean Vol. I provides a comprehensive, multi-, and interdisciplinary assessment of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, using the Caribbean as the site of enquiry. The volume is divided into five parts which weave together broad thematic strands: governance, economic development, tourism, business responses to the pandemic, and public health and policy. Collectively, this edited collection seeks to unearth, explore, analyse, and document the varied experiences with, impacts of and responses to the COVID-19 pandemic within the Caribbean regional space, through the prisms of diverse writers and scholars within and across multiple disciplines and vocations.