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This special collection examines insurance as an increasingly central mechanism in shaping how the effects of climate change are transforming local economies and ways of life. The papers study a range of exemplary cases, ranging from agricultural micro-insurance in development policy and regional sovereign risk facilities in the Caribbean to public and private insurance in the United States. This framing essay situates these papers in a longer tradition of scholarship on the government of risk and security. It also describes three themes that run through the papers: the economization of climate change; the moral economy of risk and responsibility; and the plasticity of insurance as an abstract technology that may be taken up in various governmental assemblages, in the name of various political projects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effects of climate change on tropical ecosystems cannot be interpreted based on physical variables alone. Severe water shortages and deterioration of ecosystems are most acute in places where historical inequalities occur, such as unequal access to land and other goods and rights necessary for the livelihood of marginalized populations. This paper explores environmental transformations and their repercussions on water resources based on spatial analysis and fieldwork carried out in the Colombian Caribbean. We have engaged with peasant and Afro-descendant populations who have been excluded from water use and now face problems in sustaining their way of life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper unpacks the emergence of pro-poor insurance-based climate change adaptation initiatives within development and disaster management agencies. It details how the equation between insurance and ethical climate change adaptation emerged through development economists' moral and technical critique of ex post disaster relief, which positioned insurers' unique styles of thought and practice as ethical and technical solutions to the problem of how to manage the state's financial capacity. However, an example of Dominican disaster budgeting demonstrates how insurantialized disaster governance both compliments and contrasts with alternative disaster financing strategies based in Caribbean states' efforts to create autonomy from plantation dependencies. In the contemporary Caribbean, the moral imperative to become economically self-sufficient reconfigures state-donor-market-society relations in ways that further hollow out Caribbean states' political independence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Caribbean small island developing states (SIDS) are highly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. Food security is a key issue in the region, and is related to vulnerability in the natural and human system. This short research paper, which reports on a systematic search of the academic literature and is part of a larger research project on climate change adaptation in Caribbean coastal communities, investigates two central questions: (1) what challenges to food security are Caribbean SIDS facing due to climate change? and (2) what strategies, if any, are being used to adapt to these challenges? We review peer-reviewed articles published after the release of Working Group II's contribution to the Fifth Assessment Report (AR5) of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change in 2014, which included a chapter on vulnerability and impacts in small islands (Chapter 29). We find that post AR5 articles confirm that climate change will have a significant effect on agriculture and fisheries in the Caribbean, mainly through changing patterns of weather, air and sea surface temperatures, and water availability. These studies highlight the importance of considering the social dimensions of food security in the region when identifying and implementing adaptation strategies, particularly in the context of achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. These social dimensions include the Caribbean's historical and social context as well as its demographics, which feature varying population densities and poverty rates. They serve to increase vulnerability but are imperative considerations for understanding and minimizing the threat climate change poses to food security in the region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Weather-related natural disasters such as hurricanes are becoming more severe and more frequent due to human-induced climate change. Small Island Developing States are particularly vulnerable to such events. These extreme events have economic impacts on people's lives but are also associated with non-economic losses (NELs) that are not easily quantifiable. The United Nations Convention Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) has tasked the Warsaw International Mechanism for Loss and Damage to find ways to 'address' these losses. While the UNFCCC and literature identify NELs, these remain broad and high-level examples, potentially not applicable in local contexts. Therefore, international climate change policies that are developed to address NELs are at risk of being inadequate and might not address the needs of people affected. This paper addresses this research gap based on interviews with residents from the Caribbean islands Dominica and Barbuda who survived hurricanes Maria and Irma in 2017. Responses show that the categorization of NELs under the UNFCCC only partially aligns with those NELs identified by interviewees. Firstly, interviewees do not make a distinction between economic and non-economic losses and secondly the term 'non-economic loss' is best expressed as 'non-economic impact' in order to encapsulate the full breadth of NELs. Both terms should jointly be considered as fulfilling 'life-functions'. HIGHLIGHTS The UNFCCC categories are not reflective enough of the broad range of non-economic losses (NEL) that exist. 'Non-economic loss' should be re-framed to 'non-economic impact' as a loss does not encapsulate the full breadth of losses identified by interviewees Another category for NELs is required as people do not always distinguish between economic and non-economic losses when economic items fulfil a life function The findings are detrimental for effective international and national policymaking [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The merits of polycentric climate governance have attracted considerable discussion. On the one hand, polycentric governance offers an alternative to top-down state-centric forms that have so far proven elusive. On the other, highly networked systems increase coordination challenges. Less attention has been paid to the varying capacities required to achieve coordination. In this article we explore the coordination of polycentric governance via a case study of sargassum influx management in the Caribbean. Since 2011, large quantities of sargassum seaweed have been washing up on Caribbean beaches with adverse socio-economic impacts. Our analysis of sargassum management policies reveals that a nascent polycentric system has generated significant cooperation in policy development and application across the region. However, there remain national capacity deficits to engage in this form of governance and to implement agreed actions. We conclude that advocates of a polycentric climate governance regime need to consider how capacity shapes participation, to the advantage of the largest and strongest. Polycentric governance can be useful for solving disparate cross-border environmental problems, but it also imposes a cost on the smallest that has thus far been unacknowledged and undertheorized. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Capacity building is defined as a process by which stakeholders increase their knowledge, skills and resources in order to improve their ability to adapt in a fast-changing world. Universities play a key role in the promotion of sustainability and implementation of the 2030 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) through capacity building. However, universities in developing countries face significant challenges in the implementation of capacity building programmes for sustainability given the lack of procedures that facilitate the systematic integration of multiple stakeholderś epistemologies, methodologies and objectives. In this paper, we present a capacity building approach as a problem-focused process that follows a multi-domain/multi-stakeholder scheme, and provides alignment with the functions and responsibilities of different sectors of society. The approach involves the use of a decision-support tool for sustainability that enables stakeholders to actively participate in decision-making processes. We illustrate the implementation of the capacity building approach through two case studies and show how general and specific capacities tailored to the different stakeholders can be developed. Our approach to capacity building accentuates the role of universities in Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean as research and innovation hubs that could help design and implement flexible, transparent and robust strategies towards achievement of sustainability in the region. Key policy insights Capacity building to address the sustainable development goals should aim to develop sets of interlinked capacities for sustainability across stakeholder groups. Capacity building should take into account the regional institutional contexts in which universities in Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean are embedded. Effective implementation of capacity building must be tailored to the different roles and functions of the actors involved. Thematic, technical, evaluative and procedural domains provide a comprehensive framework to build capacities, which can be continuously adapted according to the functions and responsibilities of the actors. Capacity building approaches to address climate change vulnerability require decision-support tools to inform policy-making. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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As the international community debates long-term strategies to address global warming, the issue is one of increasing concern for small island developing states. Collectively, these countries account for less than 1% of greenhouse gas emissions, yet their vulnerabilities are particularly high. This paper reviews international efforts including a regional effort on the part of 12 Caribbean countries to address this issue. For many countries and especially countries of the Caribbean and other small island developing states, vulnerabilities already exist and will only be exacerbated by accelerated global warming. Dealing with global environmental change will require good, reliable information to monitor change and assess the physical and economic impact of that change. It also will require an institutional and managerial framework that incorporates dynamic change into individual and collective decision-making processes. Small island developing states must be active players affecting long-term solutions to climate change. In the interim, targeted investments to address high priority vulnerabilities are likely to lead to no-regrets outcomes with high environmental and economic benefits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Education for sustainable development (ESD) is a significant field for the Caribbean region and one that has been steadily developing from the 1980s onwards. The current ESD for 2030 framework offers an opportune moment for reflection on progress to-date, current challenges and future prospects for the field. With this in mind, this article shares perspectives gathered from qualitative interviews with those working in the foreground of the field across four Caribbean countries. Thoughts shared include the need to redefine and recontextualise development and education in the region, incorporate indigenous and traditional knowledge in ESD, and ensure more coherence amongst efforts within countries. The insights offered highlight significant areas for researchers and practitioners to capitalise on as ESD and the wider education systems within which it is framed are re-envisioned towards more resilient and sustainable societies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A case study is presented on impact of climatic changes on fishers and other marginalized groups in Caribbean region. Topics discussed include environmental psychology, climate change awareness and adaptation to climate change. Other topics which includes climate mitigation and Pedro Cays fishing community are also discussed.

Concerns about the socio-economic impacts of observed and projected climate change have been high on the research agendas of scientists for the last several decades. According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the recent observed warming is largely human induced, and the trend will continue well into the next century owing to ‘thermal inertia’, related to the concentration of greenhouse gases already emitted to the atmosphere. While there is a dearth of research on the effects of climate change on commercial and artisanal fisheries in the Caribbean, valuable insights can be gleaned from observations in other jurisdictions. This paper concludes that the consequences of climate change on Caribbean fisheries are likely to be mostly negative. Adverse impacts are expected to manifest themselves through habitat alteration and loss, reduced abundance and diversity, and shifts in distribution induced by changes in ocean currents. Stakeholders in the regional fishing industry might therefore wish to give greater credence to the challenges posed by climate change and climate variability than currently appears to be the case. Appropriate response strategies may not require radical changes in current approaches to management, but rather more effective implementation of existing and proposed arrangements. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Climate litigation is increasingly a feature of international climate policy. However, loss and damage cases have mostly been unsuccessful due to tensions around uncertainty, attribution, and the relationship between climate change and extreme weather events. While there is consensus that Annex I Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) have contributed more to historical greenhouse gas emissions than non-Annex I Parties have, there is great reluctance on their part to take responsibility for loss and damage. Considering the shortcomings of climate litigation and the impasse in the UNFCCC, we propose an alternative, non-judicial approach to addressing loss and damage – restorative justice. Applying a four-stage framework, we draw on the experience of non-Annex I Parties in the Caribbean with Hurricanes Irma and Maria in 2017 to (1) argue that existing attribution models can help identify restorative justice cases; (2) scope a role for the Warsaw International Mechanism in process design and preparation; (3) make a case for truth and reconciliation conferences, and restitution, as part of the restorative dialogue; and (4) call for the integration of restorative justice norms into global climate governance as a pathway for progressing negotiations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The development, quality and impact of environmental and sustainability education (ESE) in the Caribbean have received increased attention from a growing body of education researchers over the past few decades. This is not surprising given that the region has been grappling with various environmental, social, and economic sustainability issues, and education remains widely regarded as a key mode of response by a range of stakeholders, networks and commentators. Drawing on local to wider perspectives and initiatives, formal and non-formal ESE activities have been undertaken, to enhance knowledge and awareness, develop values, hone skills, and promote behaviours consistent with sustainable development. Whilst this increased engagement is significant and heartening, I argue that there is still scope for a renewal of focus in ESE in the Caribbean, honing in on four main areas: climate change education, the environment and violence nexus, teacher education, and universities as models of and for sustainability. These areas are consistent with regional sustainability imperatives and the global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), as well as ripe for deeper research-practice interlinkages. An overview of existing fields of educational inquiry in the Caribbean is offered, along with the four foci for further and future research, with the hope that new, emerging and established academics (as well as practitioners) work productively together to engage these crucial issues and critical imperatives for ESE. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Treating the threat of climate change in the Caribbean as a case study instructive for responses globally, this article examines the social and political relations of climate change. It argues for an analysis taking into account the ways in which the histories of imperialism and colonialism have shaped contemporary global ‘development’ pathways. The article charts how Caribbean vulnerability to temperature rises of more than 1.5°C of warming comprise an existential threat structured by contemporary social relations that are imperialist in character. Hope can be taken from a politics of climate justice which acknowledges the climate debts owed to the region. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Remote island communities in the Caribbean are known to be disproportionately vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. As a result, there is a need to better understand the factors that contribute to increasing local-scale adaptive capacity through large-scale adaptation projects. While it has been argued that strong institutional networks are highly influential in a community’s ability to leverage funds and to implement tailored adaptation projects, limited empirical research has been undertaken. Social Network Analysis was used to retrospectively evaluate the importance of institutional integration for enhancing adaptive capacity in the small island community of Paget Farm in St. Vincent and the Grenadines. Paget Farm successfully adapted to a lack of fresh water through the implementation of a funded solar-powered desalination plant – and as a result the community represents an ideal case study for analysis. Results reveal that while the level of vertical integration varied throughout the temporal phases of the adaptation project, horizontal integration was consistently low. These findings suggest that high integration between institutions may not be required during all project phases in order to ensure success and that more consistent rather than high levels of integration between sectors may be more meaningful for enhancing adaptive capacity. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Climate change is rapidly becoming the defining feature of the Caribbean developmental landscape. Yet theoretical and practical responses to the issue have been somewhat limited, particularly in terms of the socio-economic and political dimensions. This article begins by tracing the dramatic impact that climate change presages for Caribbean development. It then moves on to an analysis of how the region is attempting to respond at the global, regional and national levels. We then question the significance of this for Pan-Caribbean development, before pointing the way to a nascent research agenda with the political economy of climate change at its heart. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Sea level rise (SLR) is considered a growing, certain and prominent consequence of anthropogenic climate change. Despite the high value of tourism properties and economic activity in the coastal zone, the tourism sector is largely absent from the SLR literature. This study created a geo-referenced database of 906 major coastal resort properties in 19 Caribbean Community (CARICOM) countries to assess their potential risk to a scenario of one-metre SLR. An estimated 266 (29%) resort properties would be partially or fully inundated by one-metre SLR; between 440 (49%) and 546 (60%) of resort properties would be at risk of beach erosion damage associated with the same SLR scenario. In addition, many resorts would experience significant losses of beach area prior to resort property loss. The vulnerability and the adaptive capacity of individual coastal tourism properties and destination communities is argued to differ substantially. Losses of over 50% of coastal properties are likely in five countries, three of which are highly dependent on tourism. These differentials would transform the competitive position and sustainability of coastal tourism destinations in the region, with important implications for property values, potential tourism revenues, insurance costs, destination marketing, as well as local and national economies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate change can either positively or negatively impact on the attractiveness of a destination. To evaluate the potential effects of these changes for Caribbean destinations, a cross-country tourism demand model is augmented with relative tourism climatic indices to examine the importance of an island's climatic features. The model is estimated using a dynamic panel approach and monthly observations over the period 1977-2006. Combining the scenarios for future climatic conditions as well as the coefficient estimates obtained, anticipated scenarios of the direct effects of climate change on tourist arrivals to the region are provided. In addition, merging this data with estimates of average visitor expenditure gives a dollar estimate of the impact on the tourism industry and the overall economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Global climate change will increase outdoor and indoor heat loads, and may impair health and productivity for millions of working people. This study applies physiological evidence about effects of heat, climate guidelines for safe work environments, climate modeling, and global distributions of working populations to estimate the impact of 2 climate scenarios on future labor productivity. In most regions, climate change will decrease labor productivity, under the simple assumption of no specific adaptation. By the 2080s, the greatest absolute losses of population-based labor work capacity (in the range 11% to 27%) are seen under the A2 scenario in Southeast Asia, Andean and Central America, and the Caribbean. Increased occupational heat exposure due to climate change may significantly impact on labor productivity and costs unless preventive measures are implemented. Workers may need to work longer hours, or more workers may be required, to achieve the same output and there will be economic costs of lost production and/or occupational health interventions against heat exposures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]