The UWI Pelican
The Coat of Arms of The University of the West Indies is the single image that represents the entire institution.
The crest or top is a brown Pelican which fishes along the coasts of all Caribbean countries. It is a symbol of care for the young because of the belief that it is very nurturing .. as The University of the West Indies University cares for and nutures the young minds and youth of the Caribbean.
It is also used as a crest by both the prestigious Corpus Chrisiti Colleges of Oxford and Cambridge.
The UWI Mascot: The Pelican
UWI students and alumni identify with and are proud of the Coat of Arms, and therefore proudly associate with the symbol of the Pelican.
Show your “Pelican Pride”!
"The University of the West Indies has to be critical for ensuring that the economic as well as the non-economic benefits of the Treaty of Chaguaramas are made real and patent. The harvest from Chaguaramas will result in large measure from the work and toil of the products of the Pelican.
That brand and what it stands for is one of the more powerful symbols of the capacity we as a people have of making the dream of Chaguaramas a reality.
I am sure every one of you knows that the Caribbean Brown Pelican has the characteristics that males and females share the responsibility for hatching the eggs and nurturing the young.I hope that lesson is not lost on UWI graduates, whom I have often called the sons and daughters of the Pelican"
Extract from " Chaguaramas and the Pelican" Sir George Alleyne UWI Chancellor