By Jean-Taylor Sowders —
Latin American scholar Jorge Domínguez knows Cuba, and told a crowd Sept. 27 the island nation will weather its challenges.
“I was originally down here to take part in the school’s Grawemeyer World Order Awards, but after speaking with some of my friends in the Latino Studies program, I agreed to give a talk to the students at UofL,” he said shortly before the presentation. The author and scholar spoke at an event sponsored by UofL’s Latin American and Latino Studies program.
Domínguez began with reviewing the basic demographics of Cuba and how they’re changing. Being such an isolated country, it becomes especially hard to interpret what little data is out there and determine what it might imply.
He suggests through his research, however, that while Cuba has a long-life expectancy and highly-educated population, it’s still impoverished with a stagnating population. He said this means big change for Cuba in the near future.
“He really broke down a subject I didn’t know much about beforehand,” said UofL student Hannah Melvin. “There’s a lot of information involved in this sort of work and it was interesting seeing an expert interpret it all.”
While Cuba is struggling, Domínguez sees a bright future ahead for the Carribbean nation. He said emerging industries like the export of doctors and teachers along with a burgeoning tourism industry are stimulating the economy.
