Display seize of diplomats and attendees pictured after the ARIN Diplomat discussion board on synthetic intelligence (AI), and digital disruption, on the Jamaica Consulate in New York Metropolis.
Caribbean diplomats gathered on Could 21 in a high-tech convention room on the Jamaican Consulate in Manhattan to face the pressing realities of diplomacy within the age of algorithms, synthetic intelligence (AI), and digital disruption.
In accordance with the discharge, the inaugural ARIN Diplomatic Discussion board introduced collectively consular leaders from throughout the CARICOM Consular Corps for an interactive alternate on the way forward for diplomacy within the digital period.
The Discussion board was organized by the Authorities Affairs Division of the American Registry for Web Numbers (ARIN) in collaboration with the CARICOM Consular Corps and supported by the Consulates of Trinidad and Tobago and Jamaica. It drew participation from a cross-section of Caribbean diplomatic missions primarily based in New York Metropolis.
Bevil Wooding, a Trinidad and Tobago nationwide, on whose initiative the Discussion board was held, led the exchanges. He’s the director of Caribbean Affairs on the American Registry for Web Numbers (ARIN), the place he leads diplomatic, governmental, and worldwide relations throughout the Caribbean. He engages with regional governments, regulators, and worldwide organizations on this position to advance Web governance, cybersecurity, and digital transformation initiatives.
He represents ARIN at key boards, such because the Caribbean Web Governance Discussion board and the Linked Caribbean Summit, fostering stakeholder collaboration. He focuses on advancing regional management capability by shaping coverage discourse and selling inclusion, facilitating regional and worldwide information sharing, and multi-stakeholder engagement to help improvement and governance throughout the Caribbean.
The presence of senior officers from two main web organizations, ARIN and ICANN, despatched a robust sign: the Caribbean will not be a peripheral participant in international digital affairs. With the area’s distinctive challenges and rising digital ambitions, the occasion highlights how Caribbean voices are more and more central to shaping Web governance, cybersecurity, AI, and information coverage on the world stage.
The Discussion board additionally featured skilled contributions from Leslie Nobile, ARIN’s Senior Director of Belief and Public Security, and two senior officers from the Web Company for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), Alexey Trepykhalin and Veni Markovski.
“Diplomatic communities should perceive how evolving threats to digital infrastructure can compromise nationwide pursuits,” mentioned Nobile. “Capability constructing in Web governance have to be a precedence, particularly for small states,” they suggested.
The shows strengthened the significance of representing Caribbean voices and views in international Web governance discussions. These international themes discovered highly effective resonance within the voices of regional leaders.
Consul Common of Jamaica, Alsion Wilson, emphasised digital competence in overseas service. “Digital literacy is now important to efficient illustration, each within the development of overseas coverage and in delivering responsive, trendy consular companies,” she famous.
Consul Common of Trinidad and Tobago, André Laveau, highlighted the significance of digital coaching.
“In a world formed by geopolitical shifts and fast-moving technological improvements, our diplomats have to be ready to guide, adapt, and advocate with confidence,” he famous,
Underscoring the regional influence, Consul Common of Saint Lucia Jeremiah Hyacinth famous.
“Classes like these are important for serving to our overseas service professionals navigate and lead by means of the complexity of the digital age.”
Within the phrases of Know-how Legal professional Rhonda Binda, Esq., who can be a CUNY Adjunct Professor of Good Cities and a former U.S. Diplomat, added, “The ARIN Diplomatic Discussion board was a robust reminder of the significance of worldwide cooperation in shaping the way forward for Web governance. The discussions underscored how important international stakeholders are to collaborate on points like digital sovereignty, entry, and infrastructure resilience. It was an honor to be a part of a dialogue that instantly influences how the web evolves for the general public good.”
“The characteristic deal with introduced readability to the urgency of rethinking how we interact as nations and as a area,” mentioned one diplomat.
“The idea of ‘platform diplomacy’ and the affect of non-state digital actors struck a chord,” one other attendee added. “We should now think about tech giants and algorithms when contemplating nationwide curiosity and international illustration.”
The subsequent ARIN Diplomatic Discussion board is scheduled for November 2025 in Washington D.C., alongside plans for a complementary digital session to develop entry to important discussions on cybersecurity, AI governance, and digital coverage coordination.
“This was greater than a symposium; it was a platform for shaping the way forward for Caribbean diplomacy in a digital world. We’re deeply appreciative of the work being finished by ARIN and stay up for constructing on this momentum.”
Because the digital period continues to redraw the diplomacy map, the Caribbean will not be standing on the sidelines. The area is asserting its voice and shaping its digital future with readability, confidence, and strategic function by means of platforms just like the ARIN Diplomatic Discussion board.
The ARIN Diplomatic Discussion board is a part of a broader initiative to help Caribbean missions in constructing capability and strengthening engagement on digital coverage, cyber diplomacy, and information governance. The gathering supplied an area for open, sensible dialogue. Members shared how they’re navigating the speedy evolution of digital instruments and expectations of their each day work. Many mirrored on the resonance of the keynote presentation.
CG Laveau additionally thanked the Linked Caribbean Media Crew for compiling content material for this launch.
