Recent international activities of the Faculty of Humanities (FdHum)

Dr. Cheryl White of the Faculty of Humanities (FdHum), with Joney Doekoe, Director of Saamaka Museum and Thanya Fonkel, former FdHum student and independent researcher, recently presented at the Coastal Carolina University (CCU), International Gullah Geechee and African Diaspora (IGGAD) conference in South Carolina, USA for the panel, Rice, Roots, Resilience, Suriname Maroons and USA Gullah Geechee: Fostering Information and Cultural Exchange. The panel also consisted of African rice researchers Dr. Tinde van Andel and Nicholaas Pinas, of Naturalis Biodiversity Center in the Netherlands. The panel was moderated by Dr. Judith Carney of UCLA, a pioneer researcher of African rice.

There was also a complementary panel of Gullah Geechee rice growers from South Carolina.

The US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) provided accommodations at Hasty Point Plantation, a former rice plantation, for all panel participants. The Saamaka Museum donated traditional rice processing tools, a mortar, pestles and winnowing tray, to the Hasty Point Plantation museum. They will be used for educational programmes.

The panel was organized by Dr. Cheryl White of AdeKUS and Dr. David Palmer of CCU.

The attendance of the Surinamese delegation was sponsored by the US Embassy Paramaribo Small Grants.