Lysanne Charles
2022

An ethnographic exploration of the interaction between local knowledges and practices and the water, food, shelter, energy nexus on policy preparation and execution during and the hurricane season. An ethnographic exploration of the interaction between local knowledges and practices and the water, food, shelter, energy nexus on policy preparation and execution during and the hurricane season.Lysanne Charles’s PhD research will employ a transdisciplinary approach to analyze and bring together stakeholders from government and the community in order to create a dynamic, viable policy and strategy roadmap for the islands of St. Maarten, Saba and St. Eustatius.

She has eagerly begun with the research of this project and looks forward to working with a broad network of stakeholders across the SSS islands.

Lysanne Charles is a second year PhD candidate with the Island(er)s at the Helm Project and has a background in Sociology, Cultural Anthropology, Political Science and Mass Communications. She is an educator, activist, and artist. Her work and interests have focused primarily on the empowerment of marginalized groups. In the past she also worked as a civil servant in the areas of policy development and implementation. Her interest in climate change and climate justice intensified after the passing of Hurricanes Irma and Maria and during the Covid-19 lockdown on the SSS islands, when it became apparent that the development of sustainable food and shelter strategies were necessary in order to not make marginalized groups even more vulnerable.