Building a climate resilient power sector in the context of the Caribbean small island developing States’ energy transition. Policy Brief

In Caribbean small island developing States (SIDS), electrical power outages are frequent in the aftermath of major weather events. While local service disruptions often last a few days after these events, nationwide power grid failures lasting several weeks, or months have resulted in enormous social and economic impacts. In 2017, Hurricane Maria left 90 per cent of the population of Dominica without access to electricity for over four months (Commonwealth of Dominica, 2020) and caused a systemwide collapse of Puerto Rico's power grid that took 11 months to be entirely restored (Campbell…

Secretaria Ejecutiva de la CEPAL destaca importancia de la inversión y el cambio estructural para enfrentar desaceleración económica

(23 de enero, 2015) La Secretaria Ejecutiva de la Comisión Económica para América Latina y el Caribe (CEPAL), Alicia Bárcena, participó en la Reunión Anual 2015 del Foro Económico Mundial (WEF, según sus siglas en inglés) realizada en Davos, Suiza, en donde moderó una sesión de alto nivel sobre el contexto económico de América Latina y sostuvo un encuentro con autoridades y empresarios mineros de todo el mundo, entre otras actividades. Al presidir la sesión sobre el contexto de América Latina, Bárcena resaltó que tras varios años de bonanza, los países de la región se encuentran hoy en una enc…

CEPAL: se requiere nueva gobernanza de los recursos naturales para el cumplimiento de la Agenda 2030

”Una mayor y mejor gobernanza de los recursos naturales es necesaria para cumplir los objetivos de desarrollo sostenible. Esto precisa avanzar hacia una mayor eficiencia en el uso de los recursos materiales particularmente los recursos naturales no renovables”, señaló hoy en Nueva York la Secretaria Ejecutiva de la CEPAL, Alicia Bárcena, durante un evento paralelo del Foro Político de Alto Nivel sobre el Desarrollo Sostenible, que se realiza en esa ciudad. La alta funcionaria de las Naciones Unidas encabezó la reunión titulada “Cómo no dejar a nadie atrás: el manejo sostenible de los recursos …

Synthesis of policy interventions responding to integrated water resources management challenges in the Caribbean SIDS

In the Caribbean, high water demand, changes in land use, climate variabilities impacts, deforestation, soil erosion, pollution, inadequate wastewater treatment, and the overexploitation of water sources1, impact on the quantity and quality of available freshwater resources. The management of freshwater resources through an integrated approach is internationally recognised as a best practice for supporting the sustainability of this finite resource. The recent United Nations - 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development report noted the low to medium-low levels of implementation of the integrated …

Conceptualizing a circular economy in the Caribbean: perspectives and possibilities. Policy Brief

Although the notion of a circular economy (CE) has been conceived and debated for more than half a century (Henrysson and Nuur, 2021), it has gained considerable popularity in the lexicon of economists, ecologists and other development thinkers over the past two decades. The increasing evidence of the existential threat of human-induced climate change and the related imperatives of decarbonizing the global economy, have led to greater focus on strategies for a more sustainable use of the natural and environmental resource base.…

Adecuada gestión de recursos mineros puede generar un gran impulso al desarrollo sostenible

Los encadenamientos productivos en el sector minero, así como la adecuada gestión de los pasivos ambientales y cierre de faenas en la minería, pueden generar un gran impulso al desarrollo sostenible, destacaron autoridades y expertos reunidos en la Comisión Económica para América Latina y el Caribe (CEPAL) en Santiago, Chile, en un taller sobre la materia. La Gira técnica: “Encadenamientos productivos y Desarrollo Sostenible” comenzó este lunes 22 de julio en la sede del organismo regional de las Naciones Unidas, y se prolongará hasta el viernes 26 con una serie de visitas a empresas del congl…

Science, technology and innovation for sustainable development: Lessons from the Caribbean’s energy transition

Science, Technology and Innovation (STI) is important in advancing sustainable development across the globe. One approach available to countries to promote their sustainable development agendas is the advancement of STI to support the adoption of renewable energy technologies. The continued reliance on fossil fuels in the Caribbean is one of the factors hindering the rate at which countries within the subregion are developing. Taking this into account, this study assesses whether the advancement of STI is driving the energy transition in the Caribbean subregion and draws lessons on how STI can…

Caribbean in Brief: an information document for Caribbean Small Island Developing States

This brief is intended to provide general information on the upcoming United Nations Ocean Conference on scaling up ocean actions based on science and innovation for the implementation of Agenda 2030 - Sustainable Development Goal 14 (SDG 14), with a view to stimulating more active, engaged participation of the Caribbean in the discussions. The United Nations Ocean Conference will be co-chaired by Kenya and Portugal, and hosted by the Government of Portugal in Lisbon, during 2021. The objective of this conference is consistent with the 2017 UN General Assembly proclamation on the Decade of Oce…

A Blue Path for the Caribbean: Ocean Sustainability for Prosperity and Resilience