Desiree Croes
Bonaire-based writer and founder of Isla Collective.
Her work moves across journalism, cultural reflection, governance, island society, tourism, language, history and emerging technological questions.
Through analytical storytelling and reflective essays, she explores how human systems, identity, power and collective behavior shape both local communities and broader global developments.
Rather than writing from academic institutions or traditional centers of power, her perspective is rooted in observation, lived experience and the realities of small island societies.
Her thinking is strongly holistic by nature, often connecting themes that are usually treated separately, from culture and tourism to governance, ecology, technology and human psychology.
From Bonaire, she examines how global transformations influence everyday life, while also exploring broader philosophical questions surrounding morality, acceleration, identity and the evolving relationship between humanity and artificial intelligence.
Through Isla Collective, she aims to create space for deeper dialogue, reflection and understanding beyond conventional news cycles .
While she serves as the platform’s founder and principal writer, Isla Collective is not limited to a single voice. Writers, thinkers, community members and contributors are welcome to share essays, reflections and original pieces for consideration.
Submissions can be sent through the website or by email at:
Building Bridges
A Chapter in Cultural Heritage
Before founding Isla Collective and before making Bonaire my home
I spent several years working in cultural heritage as curator of the Aruba Numismatic Museum. Beginning in 2002, I had the privilege of helping preserve and present one of the Caribbean’s most remarkable numismatic collections, continuing the legacy of my grandfather, Juan Mario Odor, founder of the museum.
The museum housed more than 50,000 coins and related artifacts from around the world and presented history through the lens of money, trade, culture, and human development. Through carefully developed exhibitions and educational displays, visitors could explore both Aruba’s history and the broader story of civilizations across time.
During this period, I developed exhibitions, educational materials, museum promotions, guided tours, and commemorative souvenirs. One of the museum’s signature exhibitions, Timeline 1499–Present, explored Aruba’s history through the currencies that circulated on the island across centuries.
The experience taught me that every object tells a story and that history becomes meaningful when it is connected to people. Those lessons continue to shape my work today as a writer, interviewer, and founder of Isla Collective, where I explore the stories, systems, and histories that continue to shape our communities.
A Journey Through Heritage
One of the projects I am particularly proud of was the development of the Aruba Monetary Timeline, an educational exhibition that connected more than five centuries of Aruban history to the currencies that circulated on the island. The project combined historical research, numismatic collections, graphic design, and public education into a single visual narrative, allowing visitors to explore Aruba’s social, political, and economic development through money.
From curator of the Aruba Numismatic Museum to founder of Isla Collective.
