SANTO DOMINGO. – Rosaura Pimentel, coordinator of the Climate Change and Resilience Observatory of the Technological Institute of Santo Domingo (OCCR-INTEC), presented the latest progress of the “Caribbean EbA” project, focused on strengthening regional climate resilience and supporting green economic recovery through ecosystem-based adaptation (EbA) and sustainable livelihoods in the Dominican Republic, Antigua and Barbuda, and Jamaica.
The activity, organized by the German Cooperationthrough the International Climate Initiative (IKI), was an update meeting on projects financed by the Caribbean Biodiversity Fund (CBF), channeled through the Development Bank (KfW), and was held in the Julio Ravelo Room of the Emilio Rodríguez Demorizi Library at INTEC.
The CBF project presentation began with opening remarks from Carlos Sanlley, Director of Research at INTEC, who expressed concern about the risks to Caribbean biodiversity posed by climate change and the lack of attention it receives from government agencies. “Biodiversity in the Caribbean is not a priority for governments and government institutions,” he said.
Ilsa Schmidt, Economic, Political and Cooperation Attaché at the CBF, emphasized the importance of the Fund in the region, which exceeds $127 million. “These programs concretely demonstrate how global commitments can translate into real and sustainable benefits for Caribbean ecosystems,” she stated.
According to Pimentel's presentation, the coastal ecosystems of the project countries are experiencing stress factors due to climate change, including increased sea surface temperature and sea level rise, more frequent and severe hurricanes, storms and droughts; as well as ocean acidification.
Project
The Caribbean Ecosystem-based project, implemented by the Dominican Environmental Consortium (CAD) and INTEC's OCCR, aims to restore and conserve the marine and coastal ecosystems of Azua, reducing people's exposure to the hazards of climate change. In turn, the project promotes the diversification and strengthening of sustainable and climate-resilient livelihoods, fostering local development and community well-being.
With a closing date of June 2026, the progress presented included the identification of socio-ecological climate risks, integrating local knowledge to guide and strengthen sustainable livelihood interventions. Validation workshops were held with local communities and stakeholders, while strategic alliances were established with key institutions in Azua to facilitate the achievement of the objectives.
The course tasks included establishing and reviewing site-level governance and natural resource management structures and processes based on equity and effectiveness. Participants also drafted theories of change for the project's interventions and prepared a brief summary of the findings from the review of existing monitoring schemes.
The overall implementation of the project is led by Carolina Chambi, from the World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC) together with partner institutions: Oracabessa Marine Trust (UNWTO) in Jamaica, Integrated Health Outreach Inc. (IHO) in Antigua and Barbuda, and the Dominican Environmental Consortium, Inc. (CAD) and INTEC in the Dominican Republic.
