Bocas Lit Fest gets award

NGC Bocas Lit Fest has been awarded Best Social Investment Project by the Energy Chamber’s Annual Award Programme. The announcement was made at the recently-concluded 2022 Trinidad and Tobago Energy Conference.

NGC has been a sponsor of Bocas Lit Fest since its inception in 2011 and a title sponsor since 2012. The award recognises the festival’s impact on the national and regional literary landscape. Bocas Lit Fest has managed to build a network of writers and readers from TT and the wider Caribbean through year-round calendar of events and programmes, said a media release.

The programme organisers continue to innovate, and managed to pivot to a virtual platform since 2020, when the covid19 pandemic eliminated the possibility of any face-to-face forum.

The Best Social Investment Project Award from TTEC represents a first for the Energy Chamber in its effort to bring a spotlight to arts and culture as part of the 2022 conference and beyond, the release said.

The chamber commissioned local artist Shalini Seereeram to create one-of-a-kind pieces that encompass the concept of Sankofa, which means retaining what is valuable even as one moves forward to the future. This concept aligned well with the conference theme of Leveraging the Industry’s Strengths for the Energy Transition and served as a fitting award design for one of NGC’s flagship partnerships that has done much for the development of local creative industries, the release said.

For NGC, the Best Social Investment Project award is a manifestation of the great pride and a deep sense of accomplishment for the work of NGC Bocas Lit Fest, the release said.

NGC’s senior manager, corporate sustainability, Lisa Burkett said in the release, “NGC is looking to deepen our impact beyond energy, supporting the UN Sustainable Development Goals through our green agenda and more future-focused CSR investments. NGC Bocas Lit Fest aligns with our purpose, as it supports UN targets in education, arts and culture, empowerment, and economic development, among others. This alignment strengthens our commitment to this festival, as well as our conviction that with the Bocas team, we stand in good company to build a better tomorrow for our country and the wider region.”