A landmark community-led heritage documentary centered on the Grenadian village of Waltham has earned the region’s top tourism industry recognition, taking home the Best Video Production prize at the Caribbean Tourism Organisation (CTO) Media Awards.
*Echoes of Waltham*, which captures the personal memories, intergenerational stories and distinct cultural landscape of Waltham in Grenada’s St Mark parish, emerged from the Island Echoes cross-cultural co-production initiative. The project is led by the Caribbean Institute for EcoLiberation (CIEL) in strategic partnership with Paxton House’s Caribbean Connections programme, an effort designed to unpack the little-known historical ties between the 18th-century Scottish Borders stately home and Caribbean communities shaped by the plantation economy.
The transatlantic collaboration traces its origins to journalist Zoe Smith, who uncovered the hidden history of Waltham Estate while investigating the region’s plantation-era past. After discovering the estate was once owned by Ninian Home, a former colonial governor of Grenada who also owned Paxton House, Smith reached out to Home’s descendants to launch a community-focused heritage project that would center local voices rather than elite historical narratives. Over the course of the project, the partnership brought together a diverse coalition of Waltham residents, community organizers, academic researchers, creative artists, young participants and heritage institutions across Grenada, Scotland and England.
For Smith, the project’s lead, the award is far more than an industry honor—it is a validation of the community trust that made the work possible. “This award is a beautiful recognition of Waltham’s story, but more than that, it is a recognition of the elders, residents and neighbours who trusted us with their memories,” Smith explained. “*Echoes of Waltham* was never simply about making a film. It was about honouring a village, preserving living memory, and creating a bridge between Grenada’s past, present and future. I’m especially proud that this work has connected Grenada, Paxton House and the wider Caribbean diaspora.”
Unlike traditional historical documentaries that rely heavily on archival text and external expert narration, *Echoes of Waltham* centers the unrecorded voices of Waltham’s long-term residents and elders, preserving their oral histories that might otherwise have been lost to time. Through these personal stories, the film opens critical, accessible conversations about plantation history, the value of intergenerational storytelling, and the urgent need to safeguard Grenada’s vulnerable intangible cultural heritage. The production was shaped by collective input: historian and archivist Dr. Angus Martin provided deep contextual historical expertise, Scottish Paxton House curator Dr. Fiona Salvesen Murrell contributed guidance on transatlantic archival records, and Waltham residents Laslynn Andall and Anthony Patrick brought on-the-ground community perspective that anchored the entire project.
Dr. Salvesen Murrell emphasized that the documentary aligns with the core mission of Caribbean Connections, which seeks to re-examine Paxton House’s colonial ties through a community-centered lens rather than a traditional institutional framework. “We are delighted that *Echoes of Waltham* has received this recognition from the Caribbean Tourism Organisation,” she said. “This highly meaningful film forms part of Paxton House’s wider Caribbean Connections work, which seeks to explore our historic links with the Caribbean in a thoughtful, creative and resident-centred way. We are deeply grateful to the people of Waltham and to all the partners who helped bring this story to life.”
The award-winning documentary is just one component of the broader Caribbean Connections programme, which also includes *Palimpsest*, a major exhibition by Grenadian-born artist Billy Gérard Frank. Frank’s work served as a central creative anchor for the partnership, illuminating the layered cultural, historical and emotional connections that bind Grenada, the wider Caribbean, and the Scottish Borders to this day. For Frank, the documentary’s award win highlights the transformative power of centering marginalized voices in shared heritage work. “This film demonstrates the power of storytelling to connect generations, preserve local histories, and deepen our understanding of the enduring ties between Grenada, Scotland, and England,” Frank said. “At its heart, *Echoes of Waltham* is a celebration of memory, place, and the voices that shape our shared heritage.”
Beyond the recognition from the CTO, the project has already sparked new academic and community engagement. It has catalyzed expanded research into the historical links between St Mark parish and Scotland, with a team of researchers from the University of Edinburgh already conducting an on-site visit to Waltham to advance their work. The film has also been screened locally for staff, students and residents at St Mark’s Bonaire Government School, bringing the story of Waltham back to the community that inspired it.
Looking ahead, the Island Echoes initiative is set to expand its work in Waltham, with new funding secured from the Grenada Office of Creative Affairs. The next phase of the project will deepen the team’s oral history documentation work with Waltham residents, capturing more untold personal stories, and launch an interactive digital mapping project that preserves the village’s stories, historic sites and cultural landmarks for future generations. The project’s model of cross-border, community-led heritage work has already emerged as a groundbreaking example of how to confront shared colonial history while centering the voices of those most affected by that past.
