The UWI Regional Headquarters, Jamaica, W.I., Thursday, December 18, 2025—The University of the West Indies (The UWI), through its Climate Studies Group Mona (CSGM), has partnered with CCRIF SPC to establish a pioneering postdoctoral fellowship in detection and attribution (D&A) science. Valued at US$50,000, this is CCRIF’s first direct grant to support postdoctoral research, advancing regional expertise in tropical cyclone modelling and climate change attribution.  

The fellowship has been awarded to Dr Jhordanne Jones, a UWI graduate, NOAA Climate and Global Change Fellow, and Lead Author for the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). Her work will deliver high‑resolution hurricane simulations, loss and damage statistics, and public engagement opportunities—positioning The UWI and the Caribbean as global leaders in climate attribution science.  

Principal of The UWI Mona Campus, Professor Densil A. Williams, stated, “This fellowship is an important investment that will help The UWI produce the human capital needed to guide policy decisions informed by rigorous science, ensuring our societies build back better.”

Professor Michael Taylor, Dean of the Faculty of Science and Technology and Co‑Director of CSGM, added, “CCRIF’s investment in detection and attribution science is visionary. By supporting research that directly links extreme weather to climate change, CCRIF is helping to place Caribbean science at the centre of global climate justice efforts.”  

Early results underscore the fellowship’s impact:  

• Hurricane Beryl (2024): Attribution analysis showed wind intensity exceeding historical analogues, ranking among the top 5% of storms under future warming scenarios.  
• Hurricane Melissa (2025): A World Weather Attribution study, led by UWI scientists, found climate change increased wind speeds by ~7%, rainfall by ~16%, and made rapid intensification six times more likely—revealing the limits of adaptation for small island states.  

This initiative builds on The UWI’s longstanding partnership with CCRIF, which has provided over US$1.8 million in scholarships, internships, and project funding since 2010. Together, The UWI and CCRIF are advancing Caribbean leadership in climate science, resilience financing, and global climate justice.