Jamaica’s Poet Laureate, Kwame Dawes, has been inducted into the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, one of the crucial revered honorary societies on the planet. His election in 2025 acknowledges a long time of groundbreaking work in literature, poetry, and cultural scholarship — a milestone that celebrates each his private achievement and Jamaica’s wealthy literary custom.
A International Honor for a Jamaican Visionary
The American Academy of Arts and Sciences, based in 1780, honors people who’ve made important contributions to information, tradition, and society. Dawes joins an illustrious listing of members that features the likes of Benjamin Franklin, Martin Luther King Jr., and Margaret Mead.
This recognition locations Dawes among the many world’s main thinkers in arts and humanities — a becoming acknowledgment of his profound affect on Caribbean and African literature. His induction just isn’t solely a private triumph but in addition a mirrored image of the enduring world affect of Jamaican creativity.
From Jamaica Faculty to the International Stage
Kwame Dawes attended Jamaica Faculty, one of many island’s most revered excessive faculties, the place his ardour for writing started to take root. From these early days, he developed a deep connection to Jamaican tradition, language, and storytelling — influences that might later outline his voice as a poet.
His journey from Kingston to the worldwide literary stage has been marked by excellence, self-discipline, and an unwavering dedication to fact in artwork. Through the years, Dawes has balanced creativity with mentorship, utilizing his platform to nurture rising writers throughout the Caribbean and Africa.
A Profession Outlined by Excellence
A prolific author, Dawes has printed quite a few works, together with poetry, fiction, criticism, and essays. His collections akin to Wisteria: Poems From the Swamp Nation, Duppy Conqueror: New and Chosen Poems, and Metropolis of Bones: A Testomony have earned widespread acclaim for his or her emotional depth and cultural resonance.
His 2024 assortment, Sturge City, acquired essential reward and was longlisted for the Nationwide Guide Critics Circle Award. Past his writing, Dawes has additionally contributed considerably to the worldwide literary panorama by way of enhancing, instructing, and neighborhood engagement.
At Brown University, he serves as Professor of Literary Arts and continues to encourage new generations of writers. He beforehand taught on the College of Nebraska–Lincoln and stays the George W. Holmes Emeritus Professor of English.
Championing Caribbean and African Voices
Past his private achievements, Dawes has been a tireless advocate for different writers. He co-founded and directs the Calabash International Literary Festival in Jamaica, a landmark occasion that has turn into a cornerstone of Caribbean literary tradition.
He additionally leads the African Poetry Guide Fund, an initiative that helps the publication and promotion of African poets around the globe. His work has expanded the worldwide dialog on African and Caribbean literature, giving new writers visibility and alternative.
Dawes is a Chancellor of the Academy of American Poets and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature. His quite a few honors embrace the Windham-Campbell Prize for Poetry, the Musgrave Medal, and Jamaica’s Order of Distinction (Commander Class) in recognition of his cultural contributions.
A Milestone Second for Jamaica
Kwame Dawes’s induction into the American Academy of Arts and Sciences underscores the facility of Jamaican literature to transcend borders. It’s a second of satisfaction for the island’s cultural neighborhood and an inspiration for younger artists who see in his journey the proof that Jamaican expertise can shine on any stage.
His recognition reinforces the worldwide significance of Caribbean thought and storytelling — a reminder that the rhythms of Jamaica proceed to form the world’s understanding of artwork, id, and humanity.
Different 2025 Inductees from Brown College
Alongside Kwame Dawes, seven different distinguished school members from Brown College had been elected to the Academy in 2025:
- Kim Cobb, Professor of Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences
- John Diamond, Professor of Sociology and Training Coverage
- Karen Fischer, Professor of Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences
- Christine Janis, Professor Emerita of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
- Dr. Ashish Ok. Jha, Professor of Well being Companies, Coverage and Apply
- George Karniadakis, Professor of Engineering and Utilized Arithmetic
- Jennifer Nuzzo, Professor of Epidemiology
The official induction ceremony occurred on October 11, 2025, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, bringing collectively almost 250 new members throughout various fields, every acknowledged for his or her lasting contributions to scholarship and society.
Picture by Lorna Dawes
