Across four Eastern Caribbean island nations, a groundbreaking regional health initiative is rolling out a new series of free public webinars designed to center adolescent well-being and bridge critical knowledge gaps for families and communities. The Reproductive Education and Adolescent Community Health (REACH) Project, a four-year effort funded by Global Affairs Canada, has launched the interactive educational series to advance its core mission: ensuring no young person is left behind in accessing trusted health guidance in Dominica, Grenada, Saint Lucia, and St. Vincent and the Grenadines.
As outlined in an official press release from the initiative, the webinar series forms a key pillar of REACH’s broader public education mandate. The program targets three core priorities: raising public awareness of adolescent sexual and reproductive health needs, deepening meaningful engagement from parents and local communities, and expanding access to fact-based, medically accurate health information that young people can rely on.
The curated series covers a wide range of timely topics that directly impact adolescent development, from mental wellness and nutrition to the unique developmental changes of the teenage brain. It also addresses practical themes including effective communication between parents and teens, and work to reduce harmful stigma that often prevents young people from seeking support. Each session is led by credentialed experts in public health, psychology, and education, who share evidence-based strategies and actionable guidance to help adolescents make informed, healthy choices for their futures. Every webinar also includes a dedicated interactive question-and-answer segment, allowing attendees to get personalized answers to their specific concerns.
The August 2025 launch schedule kicks off on August 11 with a session titled *Breaking the Stigma Around Mental Health*, led by Maxine Blake-Hylton, a licensed psychologist, certified play therapist, and specialist in grief, loss, and trauma treatment. On August 18, Danielle Walwyn, head of Healthy Caribbean Youth, and counselling psychologist Alaina Gomes will co-present *Adolescents and Healthy Lifestyles – Nutrition and Mental Health*. Closing out the month’s programming on August 20, Shirlan Edward, a health educator with Saint Lucia’s Ministry of Health, Wellness and Nutrition, will lead a deep dive into *Adolescents and Healthy Lifestyles – Healthy Eating*.
All August sessions are scheduled to begin at 6:30 PM Atlantic Standard Time, and entry is completely free for all attendees. Organizers have urged interested participants to register early to reserve their spots, as demand for the accessible educational programming is expected to be high. For those unable to attend live sessions, recordings of all completed webinars are already hosted on a dedicated REACH Project YouTube playlist, with new recordings added after each live event.
The REACH Project is implemented on the ground by Alinea International in partnership with regional development organization C-TECH and the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) Commission, bringing together cross-sector expertise to address unmet adolescent health needs across the region.