| Summary: | Ive always loved how my lifes twists and turns usually come back full circle. This story starts in 1990 when Harry Baglole, then Director of UPEIs Institute of Island Studies (IIS), hired international environmental consultant James Ramsay to produce a report: International Small Islands Research: The Global Context and Is There a Role for the Institute of Island Studies? (August 1990). Based on Jamies findings, the Institutes Advisory Board concluded that, yes, indeed, there WAS a role for the IIS and thus began ourforay into comparative island studies that explore our own island through the lens of other islands. The report led to such initiatives as the North Atlantic Islands Programme, out of which came the ongoing biennial North Atlantic Forum (this year held in Hlar, Iceland); the Canada Research Chair in Island Studies (held by Dr. Godfrey Baldacchino); the academic programs at UPEI, including a Minor and Master of Arts in Island Studies (MAIS); Island Studies Journal; numerous books and other publications; academic conferences, including hosting Islands of the World VII in 2002; and, of course, our longtime association with ISISA and the Small Island Cultures Research Initiative (SICRI). It also led to a life-long friendship with the Ramsay family, marked by many a corn roast on Keppoch Beach when theyd return to Jamies partner Janes PEI birthplace each summer.
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