Virology expert Professor Christine Carrington has won the UWI St Augustine Principal’s Award for Best Researcher.

The University says Professor Carrington’s leadership drove the COVID-19 IMPACT project.

The project established local genome sequencing capacity and conducted genomic surveillance for variants across 17 Caribbean countries until regional public health bodies established their own capabilities, a year later.

Professor Carrington and her team also won an award – Best Team Research – for work on COVID-19 IMPACT project.

The Principal’s Research Awards returned after a decade-long hiatus on November 22nd, 2023 and recognized the contributions of the UWI scientists and researchers between 2018 and 2023.

Most Outstanding Faculty Researcher

Faculty of Engineering – Professor Kit Fai Pun

Faculty of Food and Agriculture – Prof Mark Wuddivira

Faculty of Humanities and Education – Dr Freddy James

Faculty of Law – Dr Emma Perot

Faculty of Medical Sciences – Prof Chris Oura

Faculty of Science and Technology – Dr Sreedhara Rao Gunakala

Faculty of Social Sciences – Dr Talia Esnard

 

Most Outstanding Researcher of the Centre/Institute/Unit

Institute of International Relations – Professor Michelle Scobie

 

Most Outstanding Graduate Researcher Award & Mentorship Award

Graduate Researcher – Dr. Stephanie Mohammed 

Mentors – Dr. Nikolay Zyuzikov and Dr. Venkatesan Sundaram

 

Best Team Research

Prof Christine Carrington & Team

For the team work on “COVID-19: Infectious disease Molecular epidemiology for Pathogen Control & Tracking (COVID-19 IMPACT)”

 

Most Outstanding Regional/International Research Project           

Prof Christine Carrington & Team

For the regional project on “COVID-19: Infectious disease Molecular epidemiology for Pathogen Control & Tracking (COVID-19 IMPACT)”

Team: Dr. Nikita Sahadeo and Dr. Arianne Brown-Jordan; lab technicians Messrs. Vernie Ramkissoon and Nicholas Mohamed; and research assistants Anushka Ramjag and Soren Nicholls.

 

Most Productive Research Department

Mechanical & Manufacturing Engineering – Head of the Department – Dr. Jacqueline Bridge

 

Most Productive Research Institute, Centre or Unit

Cocoa Research Centre – Director- Prof. Pathmanathan Umaharan

Team: Dr. Lambert Motilal, Geneticist and Dr. Naailah Ali, Food Technologist

 

Principal’s Award for Most Impactful Community Research

Dr. Angelique Nixon – Institute for Gender and Development Studies

Lead Researcher for the project “A Sexual Culture of Justice: Strengthening LGBTQI and GBV Partnerships, Capacity and Efficacy to Promote and Protect Rights in Trinidad and Tobago”

Receiving the award with her were

Team:  Jeremy Stephan Edwards, Executive Director, The Silver Lining Foundation and Rae Alibey, Director, Transgender Coalition.

 

Principal’s Special Innovation Award

Mr. Nizamudeen Mohammed &Dr. Lebert Grierson for the development of asphalt-based sealants, coatings and lubricants

 

Principal’s Award for Best ResearcherProf. Christine Carrington – Faculty of Medical Sciences