Shayron Tower (born 26 June 1998, on Corn Island) is an intercultural communicator, radio host, and photographer from the Caribbean of Nicaragua.
Throughout his lifetime, Shayron has consistently demonstrated a profound dedication to community service and the promotion of the cultural richness of the Caribbean of Nicaragua. His efforts have played an important role in the empowerment of young people, driving positive social change, and fomenting environmental awareness.
Since the age of 11, he has been actively involved in numerous community and social organizations, assuming leadership roles and actively participating in volunteer initiatives. These activities have been from organizing clean-up campaigns in swamps and on beaches to providing workshops to young people on topics encompassing sexual and reproductive health, life skills, and environmental conservation.
In June 2009, he joined the Caribbean Coast Association Against AIDS as a Life Skills Promoter. That same year, he achieved recognition by winning the Corn Island Flag Contest, representing the Rigoberto Cabezas Primary School at that time.
Between 2010 and 2014, he studied music at Corn Island’s Culture House. During that time, he played the piano in the Island Stars musical band, entertaining people with a wide variety of Caribbean genres and songs like reggae, socca, and calypso, and performing in places like Great Corn Island, Little Corn Island, Bluefields, and León.
In 2010, he became part of the Corn Island Municipal House for Adolescents and Young People, taking on the role of Coordinator for the Communication and Art Network. The next year, in 2011, he started his secondary education at the Ebenezer Baptist School. In March of the following year, he was elected President of the Student Government.
On the 12 of May 2012, he founded STS Initiative, a community project dedicated to taking action and partnering with organizations working to support the environment, empower young people, promote education, and conserve the cultures of indigenous and Afro-descendant communities.
In July 2013, he became a member of the Murales RAAS Art Movement and took on the role of Coordinator for its regional Board from September 2013 to December 2014. In Corn Island, he also served as the first local Coordinator of Murales RAAS from July 2013 to December 2015. During this time, he coordinated the first artistic projects on Great Corn Island.
In August 2013, he co-founded the Corn Island Municipal Council of Adolescents and Young People (CoMAJ Corn Island) and served as President of its Board from March 2014 till December 2015. Through CoMAJ Corn Island, he launched in February 2015 Juventud al Aire, Corn Island's first television program.
His journey into radio broadcasting commenced in December 2013 when he began working with La Isleña radio station. In January of the following year, he introduced the Corn Island People Hour cultural programme, which aired every Saturday until January 2016. From February 2017 to August 2023, he co-hosted The Voice of the Caribbean, a national radio programme broadcasted from Nicaragua's capital, Managua.
He commenced his undergraduate studies in Social Communication at the National Autonomous University of Nicaragua (UNAN León) in February 2016. From September 2017 to April 2021, he held the position of Student Representative for the Southern Caribbean Region at UNAN León, actively promoting activities that showcased the various cultures of Caribbean Nicaragua societies. From this position, he also advocated for the inclusion of indigenous and Afro-descendant students in various university spaces.
In 2017, he led the first live broadcast of the Corn Islands Emancipation Day celebration through Facebook. This initiative gained strength in 2020 and 2021 with the first cultural programme aired on national television commemorating the emancipation of slaves on the islands as a preventive measure against COVID-19.
In 2019, he started studying at the University of Hradec Králové in the Czech Republic, where he received training in the fields of social sciences. During his time there, he also studied the Czech language and engaged in various volunteer activities at different secondary schools in the city of Hradec Králové.
With his photographic project titled "The Creoles of the Nicaribbean", he achieved recognition as one of the seven winners of the national competition ExpoPhoto Nicaragua in October 2020. Through his work, he captured the unique characteristics of both adult and young Afro-descendant Creole people from Corn Island and Pearl Lagoon. The project's primary goal was to dispel prevalent stereotypes associated with this ethnic group and to promote a powerful anti-racism message.
Through STS Initiative, he founded The Corn Islands Virtual Library in August 2021, with its official launch taking place in May 2023. This community project serves as a repository for historical archives from Great Corn Island and Little Corn Island, with a dual purpose: to support academic endeavours and the preservation of ancestral knowledge of the islands.
In June 2023, Shayron was awarded the Chevening Scholarship by the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office of the British Government to pursue a master's degree in International Relations at the University of Sussex. He relocated to the United Kingdom in September of the same year to commence his studies.
Shayron is committed to the development of his country, with a particular focus on the multi-ethnic society of the Caribbean Coast. He intends to continue contributing to intercultural education, youth empowerment, cultural preservation, environmental protection, and promoting art as a means of social development.
To learn more about Shayron's professional trajectory, check out his resume by clicking here.