The Priority is the Planet

The Priority is the Planet

Gary has been with the Jamaican Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries for over 30 years, and during this time, in parallel, he has had the opportunity to earn a Bachelor's degree and later a Master's degree in Animal Science. And recently he obtained his Ph.D. from Atlantic International University.

With 4 publications to his credit, Gary has a clear mission to help reduce the impact of climate change through knowledge. In fact, one of the most important publications of his in his career has been: “The Impact of Climate Change on the performance of small ruminants in the Caribbean Communities”.

For him, the problem of climate change is not a fad, and it needs special attention. His intention is to educate readers, from a scientific point of view, about the way forward in the industry.

Gary's most impactful post to date has been on “Pre-gain castration and slaughter age and performance of Dorper sheep lambs”. And if he had to choose the second, it would be “The effect of the season of the year on the birth of lambs and the rectal temperature of these ruminants”. Gary explains that really with the increase in climate change there is an impact on the behavior of our animals. These publications have been very relevant to the day-to-day life of our region.

Thanks to the publication on climate change in small ruminants, farmers are taking action to ensure their microclimate is conducive to growth and are planting more trees. They make sure the animals have more water. They are even thinking about the possibility of raising the wool which would cause thermal stress.

Gary notes that since the implementation of the 17 United Nations Sustainable Goals for 2030, we could say that we have made positive progress on each of the silver goals. But, if we are not vigilant, we can quickly regress.

He believes that this agenda should be actively supported, and his proposal is that the most developed countries contribute 5% of their budget for weapons to promote this agenda. This would help make sustainability a reality in our world. And it would certainly be a great victory for humanity in the long run.

Gary believes that the uniqueness of each person, regardless of their gender, is a gift from God and can be expressed as a right and a privilege. “Our uniqueness can be leveraged for a higher calling and all of this will be a catalyst for sustainability,” he says.

With his publications, Gary helps Caribbean communities take action to lessen climate change's huge impact.