Bahamas United

My experiences working around the world in disaster management led me to return home to Eleuthera, Bahamas to provide innovative solutions to address issues that improve livelihoods and empower people. I worked to establish a holistic model for socioeconomic development that could be replicated nationally, regionally, and in other SIDS. This led me to co-found One Eleuthera Foundation (OEF), where I currently serve as Chief Executive Officer.

In Eleuthera, OEF has established the only postsecondary institution with a training hotel, restaurant, and farm; led the establishment of the only credit union; and most recently, helped to improve the livelihoods of people affected by Hurricane Dorian and COVID-19 by providing food and other necessities.

Under my leadership, individuals and organizations from the local community and around the globe have invested millions into the OEF model. Demand for and interest in this community-led development model continues increasing nationally and throughout the Caribbean.

I am committed to addressing issues that negatively impact the development and livelihoods of people including but not limited to unemployment, poverty, crime, poor health, and access to essential resources.

I propose the expansion of OEF to other islands in The Bahamas as Bahamas United. OEF offers a replicable, multi-sector model where communities take the lead identifying their needs. OEF then utilizes public-private partnerships to help direct the development communities want.

Humanity would be elevated by providing essential resources needed for people to flourish, including but not limited to: strategic growth of economies by helping incubate businesses that develop entrepreneurs and create employment; training and workforce development to ensure people are equipped for entrepreneurial and employment opportunities; and increasing food security and encouraging healthy eating habits by promoting local food production. I believe these actions will contribute to increasing humanity’s resilience.

I am addressing issues that negatively impact the development and livelihoods of people including but not limited to unemployment, poverty, and poor health that require resource sharing.

Unemployment in The Bahamas has averaged 14.42% over the past 10 years. In comparison, The Bahamas’ unemployment rate is almost twice that of Latin American and other Caribbean countries, and four times higher than the United States.

About 12.5% of Bahamians and 20.3% of Eleutherans live below the poverty line. This means that one in eight residents are living on less than $11.64 per day to purchase food and non-food necessities.

The World Health Organization (WHO) reported 40.5 of 56.9 million global deaths were due to noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) and that they accounted for 74% of deaths in The Bahamas and rising.

The Bahamas is heavily dependent on Tourism which accounts for between 31 and 43% of its GDP and 33 and 52% of overall employment. With the affects of COVID-19 this shows a greater need in the coming months.

These sectors are connected and in many ways the absence of one negatively contributes to the other. A holistic, community-led approach that crosscuts sectors must be implemented to effectively solve these global challenges.

I seek to facilitate the implementation the replication of a proven holistic, community-led model for socio-economic development on a national scale through Bahamas United.

First, the model will facilitate the engagement of the community to identify its challenges in economic development, education, health, environment, and culture/heritage sectors. For example, Eleutherans identified their needs in “A Shared Vision for South Eleuthera”. Second, it will facilitate the connection of local, national, and international talents and resources to develop and implement solutions that crosscut sectors and address root causes of problems to alleviate and eliminate them. 

Bahamas United will: 

• Be a community-driven cooperative model that empowers local communities with the infrastructure, training and tools to own and direct their future.
• Be a public-private partnership to coordinate government, the private sector and civil society.
• Be a non-partisan, multi-sector, broad-based, Sustainable Development Goals focused organization.
• Utilize strong governance, accountability and transparency.
• Act as a fiscal agent to attract funding where needed.
• take a regional community development model national for broader impact.

One of its first initiatives will be to develop a national reconstruction an resiliency plan for The Bahamas one island at a time beginning with Abaco.

My project currently serves the island of Eleuthera which has a population of over 12,000 people. Specifically, individuals and community organizations in need of resources such as expertise and funding to effectively work in their respective areas. Many of its programs target low-income populations who are have limited access to quality education, healthcare and healthy food, and are impoverished, unemployed, underemployed, and or considered unemployable. Generally, it seeks to improve the livelihoods of all people of Eleuthera and The Bahamas. With national expansion the project will directly or indirectly serve nearly 400,000 inhabitants.

Initially, “A Shared Vision for South Eleuthera” engaged Eleutherans to determine their needs and expectations for the progression of the island. Since then, OEF has utilized surveys, town meetings, one-on-one meetings, promotions, and product testing opportunities to engage its stakeholders.

The project is addressing their needs by implementing programs that alleviate or solve the problems they identify. For example, the expressed need to employment exposed the need for workforce training and business growth. This sparked the development of CTI which is providing workforce training and most recently the Social Enterprise Accelerator which is strengthening existing and launching new nonprofits and small businesses to increase employment opportunities.

The threat of a potential out-of-scale development at Lighthouse Point on Eleuthera, Bahamas’ southern tip raised concerns among the island’s residents and second homeowners. Their concerns were due to the size of the development and the potential negative impact it would have on Eleuthera’s social, cultural, environmental, and infrastructural resources. From this, Friends of Lighthouse Point (FLHP) was formed. FLHP enlisted the help of the Eleuthera community and Michael Singer and Associates to develop “A Shared Vision for South Eleuthera” focuses on sustainable economic, environmental, and social development as an alternative to the out-of-scale plan being proposed. A couple of years later, One Eleuthera Foundation, a community-led development nonprofit, was birthed to execute this plan, embodying the principles and ideals outlined in “A Shared Vision for South Eleuthera”. Ten years later, it continues to guide the work of OEF.

In my experience working in disaster management in countries around the world I noticed a disconnect between local populations and the people supplying aid. Outsiders came in without fully understanding the need on the ground. It was here that my passion was sparked to help build the capacity of local groups who already knew the culture, climate and needs of local communities. I knew this would help expedite disaster response, help aid reach communities swiftly, and leave the communities I worked in more sustainable that I met it. 

An adage I live by is "Give a person a fish, feed them for a day. Teach a person to fish and feed them for a life time". With this adage in mind and what I observed globally, I returned home to Eleuthera Bahamas to create the One Eleuthera Foundation, a community-led nonprofit that seeks to build the capacity of local and national organizations so that they could be more effective in their work. The desire is for local people to be a part of and own the social and economic development of their communities to help achieve ultimate success and sustainability.

My firsthand experiences working in countries around the world have helped me identify unique solutions that work well in solving socio-economic challenges. Interconnecting local communities and intentionally developing solutions that crosscut multiple sectors is my strength. I have been addressing challenges like joblessness and poverty on a local level through community-led development and innovative solutions that can be modeled and executed on a global scale. Additionally, I am an innovator and lifelong learner, and risk taker. I believe that attempting to solve these challenges is most important. 

The OEF model, has been tested and proven. Our partnerships and network of resources have enabled us to positively impact the lives of people locally, nationally, and regionally. People who believe in and support the model and believe in what OEF is doing started a US foundation and we have an international audience.

We have already established OEF as a leading nonprofit and achieved several “firsts” including launching the first postsecondary institution, the first credit union, and the first recycling depot on Eleuthera. Other islands in The Bahamas, and countries including the United States, Barbados and Jamaica have engage OEF to present its community-led model. In some cases, I have established something similar. With the help of OEF, Cat Island, Bahamas has established a nonprofit to work toward achieving a similar model and Abaco, Bahamas is working on establishing One Abaco Foundation. OEF is now recognized at a regional level by the Inter-American Development Bank as a viable model for socioeconomic development.

Eleuthera, Bahamas is a rural, low-income, Small Island Developing State, vulnerable to climate change and economic down turns. COVID-19 is a prime example of how I have overcome adversity. 

COVID-19 has threatened the survival of OEF and the work we do that contributes the growth and development of people and organizations. In this case, with the OEF team, we brainstormed the best course of action to ensure the sustainability of the organization and our ability to continue to help people in the short and longterm.

The way I solve problems is by re-contextualizing the work OEF does and focusing on the longterm development needs. My response to this obstacle has resulted OEF continuing to thrive and grow in a big way.

COVID-19 has challenged OEF, Eleuthera, and the world. I immediately sprung into action and formed an emergency team with my senior management to brainstorm ways to continue helping people while maintaining organizational stability.

Our goals are to keep all stakeholders informed through consistent communication, adhere to and promote all safety protocols and standards, and consider and utilize all possible options to assist our staff and our communities through this difficult period. 

Through partnerships, we were able to:

• increase food security.
• provide resources needed to continue building the capacity of existing and new nonprofits and businesses.
• focus on further development and capacity development of OEF.

Difficult decisions were made, however, these strategic decisions and actions have enabled us to continue supporting our communities in the short and longterm and ensure the sustainability of OEF.