February 1st 2024

The National Trust for the Cayman Islands is honoured and privileged to have a permanent seat on
the National Conservation Council and be part of the protection that the National Conservation Act
provides to the people of Cayman. As a non-governmental organisation, the National Trust’s
mandate is to serve the interests of the people of Cayman by protecting the natural and cultural
heritage of the Cayman Islands in perpetuity.

The National Conservation Act (NCA) established processes to ensure decisions made today do not
have a negative impact on our future. As can be seen in other countries and in Cayman’s past,
decisions made without careful consideration of the environment can have unintended, unforeseen
and irreversible consequences.

While development and change are a necessary part of life, Cayman must take a long-term view to
ensure that short-term benefits are not outweighed by enduring costs to people’s health and quality
of life.

It is difficult, if not impossible to see how the NCA is seriously impeding development, as some might
claim, when we see a skyline filled with cranes and rising buildings, once green spaces cleared to
the ground, mangrove forests razed and filled, poorly planned seawalls leading to the disappearance
of the peoples’ beaches, and historic structures torn down. Currently, the pace of development far
outstrips the pace of protection on our islands.

The NCA exists to promote and secure the biological diversity of the Cayman Islands, ensure the
sustainable use of Cayman’s natural resources and protect and conserve endangered, threatened and endemic wildlife and their habitats. The National Trust believes that the mandate of the NCA is
more important now than ever.

Alongside the protections provided by the NCA, the National Trust will continue its efforts to acquire
and preserve land which is environmentally valuable to current and future generations of
Caymanians. Any such land declared inalienable by the National Trust is protected from
development in perpetuity.

You can support the National Trust in our efforts to protect each of our three islands’ special places
by volunteering, becoming a member, partnering with us to protect your own land, and/or by
donating to the cause. You can also voice your support of the National Conservation Act and the
protections it provides to the Caymanian people and our natural heritage by contacting your Member
of Parliament.

For more information about the National Conservation Act, visit conservation.ky.