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Image: TIME Magazine
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Barbados Prime Minister Mia Mottley has been chosen by TIME Magazine as one of The Most Influential People of 2022. Mottley’s fierce leadership and determined advocacy for the Caribbean at COP 26 made her far more than a champion to the region, as it has enhanced her place in the global consciousness as a forward-thinking leader and change maker.
Mottley has been lauded for her efforts in the fights against climate change and stewardship of the environment. As the Prime Minister of Barbados, Mottley usually referred to climate change as “climate crisis”. As most of the Small Island Developing States (SIDS) are in the frontline of climate change impacts, the Caribbean has been facing the severe effects of global warming in the form of destructive hurricanes, coastal erosion and coral bleaching, which are getting worse from year to year.
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Image: Mike McCoy
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Structural development challenges like heavy debt burdens, overreliance of the economy on few sectors, and dependency on imported fossil fuels, hinder the ability of SIDS to realize their full Blue Economy ambitions. And while the blue economy transformation requires the provision of certain public services, such as data collection, policy formulation, regulatory activities, and maritime security — all of which come with associated financial costs, the socioeconomic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has intensified the vulnerabilities listed above. A recent opinion piece written by a fellow at the School of Oriental and African Studies at the University of London highlights the need for SIDS to unlock capital to safeguard their blue economy through innovative financing mechanisms. The debt-for-nature swaps and parametric insurance for coral reef restoration are examples of blue finance instruments that could help SIDS build climate resilience, unlock large-scale investments in natural assets, and safeguard their blue economy.
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Image: Water Adaptation Community
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As SIDS face a pressing need to reduce the risk and adapt to the current and future climate impacts that are essential for their survival, they must seize the opportunity to implement nature-based solutions (NBS) for their climate adaptation. Especially because the SIDS communities are directly dependent on their natural resources for their blue economy and therefore, must leverage NBS for their climate action. NBS are approaches that reverse ecosystem degradation and address societal challenges while at the same time benefiting human well-being and biodiversity. An example of NBS for SIDS are the restoration and preservation of their forests, which could protect them against short-term hazards, such as flooding, and against long-term threats, such as desertification. Another important NBS that SIDS can scale up are the restoration of their mangrove forests that can serve as physical buffers from storm surges and strong winds, protecting coastal lives and property.
Aside from the benefits of NBS for providing climate resilience in SIDS, they are also 2 to 5 times more cost-effective than business-as-usual interventions, like “gray” infrastructure and result in greater savings, social benefits and avoided losses. As part of SIDS’ climate action, there is a need for a political momentum to move from intentions to actions, and end forest loss and land degradation by 2030, referenced in their Nationally Determined Contribution. By taking action now, SIDS can realize the enormous potential of NBS for adaptation.
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Image: World Ocean Initiative - The Economist
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As global economies and populations grow, human activity is continuously harming the ocean and causing it to rise, warm, and be more acidic. Also, the increased growth in demand has been accompanied by trajectories of inequality and degradation in access to benefits from the ocean.
The Ocean 100 study has urged scientists to call on global ocean leaders and businesses to collaborate and act collectively and immediately for ocean health. The Ocean 100 Dialogues initiative is assembling leaders and stakeholders across the blue economy to come up with a science-business platform in order to protect the ocean and foster voluntary projects that would assist in solving the major challenges hindering an equitable and sustainable blue economy.
Moreover, leaders and partners are exploring potential cross-industry commitments and action areas to protect biodiversity through enhanced and synchronized data platform for strong area-based management measures.
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Image: James Morgan/Panos
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In light of the accelerating impacts of climate change and its devastating effects on our environment and planet, the High Level Panel (HLP) for a Sustainable Ocean Economy issues a report that provides a timely pivot from ‘problem’ to a significant missing piece of the ‘solution’. Climate mitigation policy has concentrated intensively on land-based mitigation activities. The HLP report offers an exclusive comprehensive, integrated assessment of the mitigation potential of a suite of ocean-based activities: renewable energy, transport, food production, and ecosystems, and the potential future contribution from carbon storage if current concerns can be resolved. Each of these five areas is assessed for its potential to close the emissions gap in 2030 and 2050 relative to a 1.5°C degree and 2°C degree pathway. Moreover, each activity is also evaluated for its broader benefits to society (beyond mitigation). Finally, the report highlights the enabling policy measures and research required for success.
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A new framework for rapidly assessing national adaptation policies: an application to small island developing states in the Atlantic and Indian Oceans
National-level adaptation policies are especially important in SIDS because of their disproportionate vulnerability. This paper develops an Adaptation Policy Assessment Framework that facilitates a rapid qualitative assessment of countries’ national adaptation policies. It applies the framework to seven representative policies across six of the nine SIDS in the AIMS region—Comoros, Guinea-Bissau, Maldives, São Tomé and Príncipe, Seychelles and Singapore. It finds that countries are mostly successful in identifying climate and climate-related vulnerabilities and linking associated risks to other national development priorities such as poverty reduction.
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Financial independence of women – the impact of social factors on women empowerment in SIDS
This study aims to understand and analyse the financial independence of women in SIDS, with a focus on Mauritius. Factors such as employer choice, domestic violence, sociological factors, lack of opportunities and empowerment and the legal framework have been identified as potential influencers of the financial independence of women. A total of 12 hypotheses were proposed, 2 of which were confirmed in the findings. The sociological factors, lack of opportunities, domestic violence and employer choice appeared not to have a significant influence on the financial independence of women. The legal system had a significant influence on the financial independence of women.
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Small Island Developing States in a post-pandemic world: Challenges and opportunities for climate action
To identify pathways to climate resilience, this paper explores how SIDS have responded to COVID-19 and considers the potential for coping mechanisms enacted for the pandemic to support long-term climate resilience. SIDS ‘responses to the pandemic highlight new directions, like tourist schemes that capitalize on the rise of remote working in Barbados and Mauritius, as well as reliance on proven coping mechanisms, like bartering in Fiji. Each proposed climate action measure has important climate resilience and equity dimensions that must be unpacked if their potential to contribute to more sustainable island futures is to be realized. Solutions emerge through innovation and experiment and knowledge-sharing across the wider SIDS community.
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Small Island Developing States (SIDS) COVID-19 post-pandemic tourism recovery: A system dynamics approach
Possible recovery strategies in SIDS are tested in this paper through exploring the concept of risk perception as an important factor to influence the behaviour intention under the framework of theory of planned behaviour (TPB). A behavioural simulation is built to help evaluate tourism policies, with Maldives used as the case study. Four strategies are tested in the model: social distancing, tax reduction strategy, travel bubble strategy and joint strategy. The results show that the most effective way to change tourist behavioural intentions is the travel bubble strategy, and that the reduction in tourism arrivals may bring opportunities for local ecosystem recovery.
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Upcoming Opportunities and Events
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Ireland Fellows Programme
The Government of Ireland is offering scholarships for early to mid-career professionals from Small Island Developing States (SIDS) to undertake a one year fully funded master’s level academic programme in Ireland. The eligible programmes for SIDS Fellowships are in the areas of: Sustainable development, Climate change, Environmental science, Sustainable technology, and Engineering.
More information here.
When: Applications for the 2023-2024 academic year will be open starting 04 June 2022.
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UNDP Digital X -CO Tech Needs Assessment Deadline Extended
Digital X is a Partnerships for Scale Programme designed to connect UNDP and Governments with proven, ready-to-scale solutions to meet urgent digital needs. Until June 8 UNDP Country Offices can apply to share information about their digital needs and related plans and programmes, which will be used to help in matching the needs from the Country Offices/Government level with the vetted digital solutions featured in the Digital X Solutions Catalogue, for up to $100,000 per solution.
When: Apply by 08 June 2022
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14th International Economic Forum on Latin American and the Caribbean
The 14th edition of the International Economic Forum on Latin America and the Caribbean will bring together civil society, leaders of the public and private sectors, and high-level representatives of international organizations to explore the role of the region in shaping a new global order.
The Forum is one of the most prominent events in Europe devoted to Latin America. The 2022 edition will take place in the framework of the Semaine de l’Amérique Latine et des Caraïbes.
When: 08 June 2022
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Virtual Launch of GSMA Mobile Gender Gap Report 2022
This hour-long session will present the latest insights on the mobile gender gap across low- and middle-income countries, presented by the lead author of the report, with responses and discussion from UN Women, ITU and Jio who will share their reactions to the findings and speak about what can be done to accelerate digital inclusion for women. After years of progress towards women’s equal digital inclusion, we are now seeing a slowdown and, in some cases, a reversal. Significant and coordinated efforts are urgently needed to ensure that women do not continue to be disproportionately impacted by the ongoing pandemic and left behind in an increasingly digitised society.
When: 15 June at 8:00 - 9:00 AM EST
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N-POC 2022 PhD SCHOLARSHIPS: CALL FOR APPLICATIONS
The Norway-Pacific Ocean-Climate Scholarship Programme (N-POC) is now open for applications for admission into the Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) programme at the University of the South Pacific (USP) for the academic year 2022 under the bi-institutional PhD degree agreement between USP and the University of Bergen (UiB), Norway. The scholarship at USP is administered at the USP Research Office. Qualified candidates are invited to submit their applications by 15 July 2022.
When: Apply by 15 July 2022
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The Ultimate Fintech Experience
Barbados will play host to Fintech Islands – the most promising global event in the fintech sector. Fintech Islands will be a place where ideas are born, and serendipitous encounters turn into industry-changing partnerships. The Fintech Experience connects the financial services and technology ecosystem through discussions, collaboration, networking, and deal-making.
When: 05-07 October 2022
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