Sherdina Antoine, 22, of the Commonwealth of Dominica has won the 2026 CCCCC Youth Short Story Competition with the story “Weathering Us,” chosen from 173 entries submitted by young writers in 14 CARICOM Member States.
Launched on 27 July 2026 by the Caribbean Community Climate Change Centre (CCCCC), the competition invited CARICOM nationals and residents aged 18 to 25 to respond to one prompt: “Imagine a climate-secure future for the world. Inspired by the Caribbean.”
Through the project, the CCCCC sought to provide a platform for young Caribbean voices to contribute creatively to the regional conversation on climate change, resilience and the future they want to see.
The winners are:
First place: Sherdina Antoine, Dominica, for “Weathering Us” — wins a MacBook Neo.
Second place: Priya Ramdeo, Trinidad and Tobago, for “Mas For The Living Sea” — wins a tablet.
Third place: Kaitlyn Griffith, Barbados, for “The Coastline of Tomorrow” — wins a Kindle.
“We were encouraged by the response to this competition, with 173 young people from across 14 Member States sharing their perspectives on what a climate-resilient future could mean for our region. Beyond the number of submissions, what stood out was the thought, creativity, and awareness reflected in the stories. Young people are not only experiencing the realities of climate change; they also have important perspectives on the future we are working to build. Through this competition, we wanted to create a space for those perspectives to be expressed and amplified,” said Danelle De Coteau-Campbell, Head of Communications at the CCCCC.
The judges also named seven further finalists to complete the Top 10:
Rayn Cooper, Trinidad and Tobago, with A Road Trip of Change
Kijuana Charity Bruno, Dominica, with The Reef Keepers of Anse Chaudière
Priya Jaggernath, Trinidad and Tobago, with The Panyard that Saved the World
Aaliyah Bruce, Trinidad and Tobago, with What I Used To Be
Jadique Edwards, Barbados, with FEE FI FO FUM
Philecia Chambers, Jamaica, with A City Beneath The Heat
Venus Abass, Trinidad and Tobago, with The Weather in Her Hands
All ten finalists will receive a certificate, a CCCCC promotional package, and recognition on the CCCCC website and social media. The top five stories will be published on caribbeanclimate.org with professionally produced audio versions.
The entries were assessed by a distinguished regional judging panel comprising Ayesha Gibson-Gill, Barbadian writer, creative producer and literary development consultant; Cindy Allman, Jamaican book reviewer, content creator and founder of #ReadCaribbean Month; David Nicolas Ruiz, Belizean author, cultural activist and educator; Dike Noel, Manager, Communications at the CARICOM Secretariat; and Dr. Yvonne Weekes, Montserratian-Barbadian writer, arts educator and academic.
The competition attracted submissions from across the Caribbean, with entries received from Antigua and Barbuda, The Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, St. Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, and Trinidad and Tobago, reflecting broad regional interest in youth storytelling around climate change and resilience.
