The CAIA Association Charter

The organization shall be known as the Caribbean AI Association, abbreviated CAIA. CAIA is a regional, non-partisan association of practitioners, researchers, policymakers, educators, entrepreneurs, students, and citizens with an interest in the responsible development and use of artificial intelligence across the Caribbean.

CAIA exists to unite, equip, and amplify the Caribbean AI community so that the region authors its own AI future. We do this by convening members across nations and disciplines, producing original Caribbean-centered research and analysis, advancing AI literacy and workforce readiness, and engaging governments and institutions on policy that protects and serves the Caribbean public.

The Association recognizes the full Caribbean as its constituency. This includes the independent states of the CARICOM bloc, the territories of the Dutch, French, British, and United States Caribbean, the Spanish-speaking Caribbean of Cuba, the Dominican Republic, and Puerto Rico, and the Caribbean diaspora wherever it resides.

Our work is guided by six principles: inclusion, sovereignty, excellence, accountability, collaboration, and courage. These principles are not aspirations to be referenced. They are commitments to be tested against every program, partnership, and public position the Association takes.

Membership is open to any person or organization that supports the purpose of the Association and agrees to abide by this Charter and the Member Guidelines. Membership categories, dues, and benefits are determined by the Board and published openly. No member shall be denied participation on the basis of nationality, language, gender, faith, disability, sexual orientation, political affiliation, or economic standing.

CAIA is governed by a Board of Directors drawn from across the region. The Board sets strategy, approves the annual budget, appoints the Executive, and is accountable to the membership through an annual general meeting. The Founder and Chair convenes the Board and represents the Association externally, but holds no veto over its decisions. Officers serve fixed terms, and a public register of directors is maintained.

The Association is operationally and intellectually independent. We accept funding from governments, foundations, corporations, and individuals, but no funder shall direct the conclusions of our research, the content of our public positions, or the composition of our membership. All material funding relationships are disclosed.

Members and officers shall conduct themselves with honesty, respect, and a duty of care toward the Caribbean public. Conflicts of interest shall be declared. Confidential information shall be protected. The Association shall not be used to advance the private commercial interests of any member at the expense of the membership as a whole.

CAIA commits to the responsible development and deployment of artificial intelligence in the Caribbean. We advocate for systems that are transparent in purpose, fair in outcome, secure by design, respectful of privacy, accountable to the communities they affect, and grounded in the languages, cultures, and lived realities of the region.

The Association may issue public statements, submit policy responses, and convene press where the public interest of the Caribbean is at stake. Public positions are adopted by the Board after consultation with the relevant membership working group, and are signed in the name of the Association rather than any individual member.

This Charter may be amended by a two-thirds vote of the Board, ratified by a simple majority of voting members at the annual general meeting. Amendments shall be published with at least thirty days of notice and accompanied by a written rationale.

This Charter is adopted by the Founder and the inaugural Board of the Caribbean AI Association and takes effect upon publication. It is a living document, written in service of the Caribbean people, and shall be reviewed every three years at minimum.