IN CONVERSATION / Health and Climate Change – Island Space @ COP26

I was born in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and my family moved to Barbados when I was about 4 years old. From an early age, I loved the nature and exploring, and became an aspiring environmental activist, when such a thing was quite unheard of in Barbados! After I completed my Cambridge A-Level studies at Queen’s College, I became an exchange student with the organization American Field Service (AFS) and moved to Denmark. I have to say that being as exchange student was one of the best decisions I made in my life! I gained lifelong friends, learned a new language, and came to appreciate an entirely different culture. I also became more resilient and adaptable, and learned to truly appreciate the fact that, despite the perceived barriers of culture and language, people all over the world share the same desire to connect at an authentic level, and forge meaningful relationships.

In Denmark I indulged my interest in Scandinavian mythology, studying Nordic literature at The University of Odense, before returning to Barbados to complete an undergraduate degree in Literatures in English at the University of the West Indies Cave Hill Campus. Here, I also completed an undergraduate degree in Law.

in my capacity as an educational consultant, I possess over two decades of experience in teaching students with learning disabilities such as dyslexia, auditory processing disorder, Asperger’s syndrome, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, as well as emotional/physiological challenges such as Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME) and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. I strive to be an effective advocate for children, and those who are more marginalised in the both educationally and societally.

My passion for the environment has led to two other significant career achievements: I am currently contracted with the University of Strathclyde Centre for Environmental Law and Governance as an educational consultant with the Ocean Explorers Programme, and I am also an Environmental Education Expert with Omnis Education. Recently, I was appointed as Technical Secretary of the Bureau of Standards Jamaica Correctional Services Technical Committee.

I am the mother of an amazing son, CJ, who makes my life a wonderful adventure, and I live with my family and my five awesome cats, Lovington, Leo, Luna, Luscious and Moxie.

I love writing,and I have written articles on climate change and social issues for a number of publications, including Global Voices and The Elephant Journal. My hobbies include surfing, weight training, running, reading, writing, equestrian sports, and hiking.

A lover of nature, an accomplished public heath physician, a person of faith, a father, grandfather, and woodworker, Dr Hospedales founded EarthMedic and EarthNurse to mobilise health professionals and others to address the climate and health crisis. He chairs the Defeat-NCD partnership executive committee, addressing NCDs in low-resource countries. He was inaugural Executive Director of the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA), and coordinator chronic disease prevention and control in PAHO/WHO. A graduate of UWI and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, Fellow of the UK Faculty of Public Health, Dr H has published more than 100 papers and reports.