CANARI launches project to empower civil society and local communities to build resilience to hurricanes and climate extremes in the Eastern Caribbean

Port of Spain, October 13, 2019 –

For Immediate Release
CANARI launches project to empower civil society and local communities to build resilience to hurricanes and climate extremes in the Eastern Caribbean.

Port of Spain, October 13, 2019 – In recognition of the International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction 2019, the Caribbean Natural Resources Institute (CANARI) is pleased to announce a new 3-year project which will focus on improving local resilience to hurricanes and climate extremes in the Eastern Caribbean, specifically targeting Antigua and Barbuda, the Commonwealth of Dominica and Grenada.

The project entitled “Civil society-led solutions for community-based and ecosystem-based disaster risk reduction and resilience in the Eastern Caribbean” is funded by the Inter American Foundation (IAF) and will be implemented from 2019-2022.

Building resilience of local communities, associated livelihoods and local ecosystems is a critical priority to reduce impacts from hurricanes and climate extremes and speed up recovery. In the last few years,
the Caribbean has experienced a number of increasingly destructive hurricanes and tropical storms, with current research showing that storm intensity is strongly influenced by climate change. The target project countries have all experienced significant hurricane impacts – Grenada from Hurricane Ivan in 2004, and Antigua & Barbuda and Dominica from Hurricanes Irma and Maria in 2017. Ecosystem-based and community-based approaches to disaster risk reduction (Eco-DRR and CBDRR) which focus on conservation, sustainable management and restoration of natural ecosystems, and on engaging at-risk communities as part of the process to reduce disaster risk and help people and systems adapt, have become increasingly important.

CANARI will work closely with six partner civil society organisations (CSOs) and community stakeholders working on the ground in Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica and Grenada, to strengthen their organisational and technical capacity for delivering integrated Eco-DRR and CBDRR solutions. A regional dialogue will be held to gain common understanding on and best practices for building “resilience”, what this means for Caribbean SIDS and the role of CSOs. Partner CSOs will subsequently be supported with small grants and mentoring to undertake participatory vulnerability assessments and practical Eco-DRR and CBDRR actions in up to 6 high-risk communities, aimed at improving local capacities to respond to extreme weather events. A central aspect will be to ensure knowledge and lessons from this are effectively shared through development of communication products and creation of a community of practice via a regional Action Learning Group. Project beneficiaries will include around 4,000 persons living in six high-risk communities, half of them women, as well as national disaster offices and CSOs working in disaster risk management in the target countries.

CANARI, with the support of the IAF, looks forward to working with local partners in Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica and Grenada and other partners working in climate change and disaster risk management in the region, to build local resilience and safeguard communities, livelihoods and
ecosystems critical to development in the Caribbean. In particular, CANARI looks forward to supporting Caribbean CSOs and local communities who are at the front lines in terms of impacts and actions that could be taken and are well positioned to lead Eco-DRR and CBDRR actions that achieve real change on the ground.

About CANARI: The Caribbean Natural Resources Institute (CANARI) is a regional technical non-profit institute which has been working across the islands of the Caribbean for 30 years. Our mission is to promote and facilitate stakeholder participation in the stewardship of natural resources in the Caribbean. Our work focuses on Biodiversity and Ecosystems, Equity, Resilience and Participatory Governance. See here for more information on CANARI: http://www.canari.org/.