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Wednesday 6 March 2019

Dutch Embassy launches Platform to Create

SANTO DOMINGO — The Dutch ambassador for the
Dominican Republic and Haiti, Annemieke A. Ver-
rijp sees connection as a necessity to achieve goals.
From this point of view, the Dutch ambassador to-
gether with her team, recently launched the platform
CoCreaRD. Influencers, stock brokers, innovators,
young professionals, non-governmental organiza-
tions (NGO’s), universities and those interested can
find each other on this platform to share ideas and
start to create. “The Caribbean has big potential in
all imaginative forms, why not learn from each other
and share experiences, ideas, innovations. To create
and to solve.” minican Republic, Aruba, Curacao, St.
Maarten and the Netherlands face the
The Caribbean Islands is a massive archipelago lo- same challenges when it comes to climate
cated in the Caribbean Sea, that can be subdivided change. The Netherlands is a country be-
into a few different regions: the Lucayan Archipela- low sea level and islands are surrounded
go, the Greater Antilles, the Lesser Antilles which in- by water. With the raising sea level we
cludes the ABC Islands. There are 13 sovereign states need to unite to build resilience”, says the
and 17 dependent territories in the Caribbean, and ambassador. Sustainability is a must and
the languages are English, Spanish, French, Dutch that inhabits this part of the world. The am- needs attention, some Caribbean desti-
and Antillean creole. The Caribbean sprawls across bassador: “We have mutual challenges in nations progress more than others, making
more than 1.06 million square miles and is located be- climate changes, we share the same rich it a possibility to connect and work togeth-
tween North America and South America. With these culture and then again each island has er. Many ties unite the Caribbean; sports,
facts in mind, we can imagine the richness in culture its own unique character, we have strong culture and music are just some to men-
leaders, we carry many social problems tion. There is room here to celebrate and
with regards to women emancipation and fortify these estates. The objective of Co-
youth participation. We can make use of CreaRD is to facilitate cultural exchanges
each other’s solutions to problems and and exalt the diversity. Leadership is as di-
share innovations. We can create new verse as the countries of the Dutch King-
projects and team up to face our chal- dom and the Dominican Republic. “Why
lenges.” not identify these emerging leaders and
know their ideas to confront the countries
Exalt Diversity challenges. We need to look for them in
The inspiration for the platform comes from the universities up to the ‘barrios’.”
a likewise platform in South Africa, where
the concept already works well. “The Do- Continued on Page 14