St. Georges, September 19, 2018 – Practitioners, policy makers and civil society groups participated in the second national workshop to complete the updating of the National Forest Policy and Strategic Plan, and Protected Area, Forest and Wildlife Act for Grenada.
The Caribbean Natural Resources Institute (CANARI) facilitated this second national workshop along with the Ministry for Climate Resilience, the Environment, Forestry, Fisheries, Disaster Management and Information.
At the workshop opening segment, acting Chief Forestry Officer Anthony Jeremiah, noted the importance of the participatory approach utilised thus far. CANARI, defines participation in the context of natural resource management as a process that:
facilitates dialogue among all actors;
mobilises and validates popular knowledge and skills;
encourages communities and their institutions to manage and control resources;
seeks to achieve sustainability, economic equity and social justice; and
maintains cultural integrity[1].

The year- long process to update the environmental frameworks, was supported by the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) Global Climate Change Alliance Project on Climate Change Adaptation and Sustainable Land Management in the Eastern Caribbean (iLAND Resilience – Promoting a Climate for Change), funded by the European Union (EU). It was also supported by a CANARI / EU grant funded project, on Powering Innovations in Civil Society and Enterprises for Sustainability in the Caribbean (PISCES). Specifically, the PISCES financial contribution supported the engagement of civil society in policy development.

The refreshed Forest Policy and Strategy focuses heavily on climate change resilience, and also addresses related issues such as fires, invasive species and watershed management. Effective watershed management including forest conservation and restoration is critical to protect Grenada’s water supply. This, in turn, is important considering the reduced rainfall levels predicted for the Caribbean region under current climate change scenarios. Key issues for Carriacou and Petit were also considered, such as animal grazing in forested areas.
The policy and strategy also focus on overarching concerns such as the need to improve human resource capacity for the effective – management of forested areas. Legislative revisions include the updating of protected trees and wildlife species for Grenada.

About iLAND Resilience – Promoting a Climate of Change: iLAND Resilience – Promoting a Climate of Change is the brand for the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) Global Climate Change Alliance project on Climate Change Adaptation and Sustainable Land Management in the Eastern Caribbean. This project is funded by the European Union (EU). One component of this project focuses on Technical Assistance for the Development of Frameworks aimed at Enhancing Environmental Management. This technical assistance component seeks to develop institutional frameworks towards improved environmental management and resilience to climate change in four OECS Member States, Grenada, Montserrat, St. Kitts and Nevis and Saint Lucia. CANARI is implementing this component on behalf of the OECS and providing co-financing through its EU funded project, Powering Innovations in Civil Society and Enterprises for Sustainability in the Caribbean (PISCES). See here for more information on the iLand Resilience project: http://iland.oecs.org/.

About CANARI: The Caribbean Natural Resources Institute (CANARI) is a regional technical non-profit organisation which has been working in the islands of the Caribbean for more than 25 years. Our mission is to promote equitable participation and effective collaboration in managing natural resources critical to development. Our programmes focus on capacity building, policy planning and development, research, sharing and dissemination of lessons learned, and fostering regional partnerships. See here for more information on CANARI: http://www.canari.org/.