Bloodline Balance Sheets: A Guide to Intergenerational Wealth Through Family Land Trusts in the Caribbean

Synopsis

“Bloodline Balance Sheets: A Guide to Intergenerational Wealth Through Family Land Trusts in the Caribbean,” by Irvin Pascal, addresses the critical issue of fragmented and underutilized family land across the Caribbean, particularly in Dominica. The book transforms this crisis into an opportunity for intergenerational resilience, economic empowerment, and cultural continuity by providing practical, culturally grounded tools for families to legally and collectively manage inherited land. It guides readers on how to prevent land loss through clear governance, formalize informal ownership with tailored trust models honoring tradition, unlock economic potential through sustainable ventures like agro-enterprise and eco-tourism, and engage younger generations as active stewards. Pascal reframes ancestral land not as a static relic, but as living capital—a ‘Bloodline Balance Sheet’ reflecting soil, memory, and shared responsibility—to ensure dignity, opportunity, and sovereignty for generations. Motivated by the silent erosion of Caribbean family land due to legal ambiguity and generational disconnect, Pascal draws on his finance expertise and personal experience to offer a solution. The book moves beyond good intentions, providing a framework that blends legal validity, financial logic, and ancestral respect. It analyzes successful models from Dominica, Jamaica, and Ghana, offering step-by-step guidance on designing culturally intelligent trust deeds, navigating legal and administrative pathways, and activating idle land for productivity without compromising heritage. By empowering families to transform inherited plots into cohesive, legally protected, and economically active assets, the book aims to foster regional shifts in land stewardship norms, positioning the family land trust as a vital tool for Caribbean sovereignty and self-determined futures.