Officially born in 1985, the Institute of Island Studies celebrated its 40th anniversary in 2025. To celebrate how we came to be one of the leading international centres of collaborative transdisciplinary research about Islands, we started a Substack account that featured podcasts with the people who moved mountains around on Prince Edward Island and internationally, so that we could do what we do today. While we’re not currently active on Substack, you can check out the archives here.

Initial Proposal for Institute of Island Studies

The early days

Before we became the Institute of Island Studies, we were the Island Studies Committee. This is a cover image of the recordings from the Island Folk Festival, that the Committee sponsored in partnership with the West Prince Arts Council. Held at the Westisle Theatre, in the Westisle Composite High School, Elmsdale, Prince Edward Island, this 1982 event is symbolic of our connection to Prince Edward Island and our recognition that islands across the world enrich our understanding of what it means to be part of unique and distinct communities that have so much in common because they are not just small, not just geographically places unto themselves, but because they are islands.