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The search for a new economy in the Caribbean: Regional Dialogue as part of the Green Economy Coalition National Dialogues (October 2010 – November 2011)

Countries: Caribbean  Dates / Term: October 2010 – November 2011  Funders:  Partners: Project amount: US $ 40,000 Goal and objectives:
  • To identify and raise awareness about imperatives of a green economy.
  • To formulate innovative, effective and realistic strategy options to create a green economy, as well as transition roadmaps of how to move forward.
  • To build a grassroots position, endorsed by key stakeholders, on the creation of a green economy for use at the Rio 2012 Conference and other high profile events.
 Activities The Caribbean Dialogue was organised in five phases: a.   A preparatory phase: The preparatory phase focused on identification of key stakeholders and the dissemination of information on the Dialogue. A list of over 100 stakeholders to target was developed, and a short list of key stakeholders to engage in interviews and at the regional workshop was identified. b.  Preliminary research and analysis: The research included a literature review and interviews with key stakeholders from the region that led to the preparation of a paper for discussion at the regional workshop. c.  Facilitation of a regional workshop: The regional workshop was held in Trinidad and Tobago in February 2011. This targeted key persons and organisations within the region that were involved in development and environment, including key sectors such as tourism, labour and trade. The 25 participants represented regional government agencies, academia, civil society and private sector organisations throughout the region. International agencies such as the Organisation of American States (OAS), Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (UNECLAC), United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), IIED and Phillips Electronics (GEC member) also participated in the two-day workshop.  The workshop was broadcast live via a webcast.  The introductory session provided a background to international work being done on green economy, including the United Nations Environment Programme’s Green Economy Report. This was followed by a presentation of the discussion paper. Two panel discussions followed, one on issues, challenges and contexts and the second on Caribbean responses. The afternoon was spent on small group work. The second day focused on distilling principles, recommendations, and next steps. The full report of the workshop is available here and video interviews with participants at the workshop are available here. d.   Development of a draft Caribbean position paper on green economy: A draft Caribbean position paper on green economy was developed out of the process see here. This presented the context, challenges, key principles, and opportunities for moving towards a green economy in the Caribbean now. e.   Communication of the position paper: Communication was done widely in the region via CANARI’s website, emails targeting stakeholders involved in the process,  several Caribbean listservs, a Facebook discussion facilitated by CANARI (which was subsequently removed by the Facebook administration due to a change in policy regarding all discussion boards), and presentations by CANARI at national, regional and international meetings, especially as part of the Rio+20 process.[su_expand more_text=”Click here for more activities” less_text=”See less” height=”0″ link_color=”#A06B90″] Meetings where the position paper was presented and discussed (including some that took place outside of the support from these grants) included:
  • Rio+20 PrepCom GEC side event, New York, United States (4th – 5th March, 2011)
  • Meeting of the Technical Advisory Committee of the Regional Coordinating Mechanism for the Implementation of the Mauritius Strategy for the Further Implementation of the Barbados Programme of Action for the Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing States, Third Meeting, Port-of-Spain , Trinidad and Tobago (13th April 2011). Ms Keisha Sandy of CANARI presented on the Caribbean dialogue process and the draft position paper.
  • Saint Lucia National Development Forum “Walking the path towards a green economy”, Rodney Bay, Saint Lucia (9th June, 2011). Nicole Leotaud of CANARI participated in a panel discussion and presented on the Caribbean dialogue process and the draft position paper.
  • Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Caribbean Rio +20 Sub Regional Preparatory Committee Meeting, Georgetown, Guyana (20th – 24th June, 2011). Dr David Smith, participant in the regional workshop and partner, attended the meeting.
  • CARICOM Fourth Joint Meeting of the Council for Trade and Economic Development (COTED) and the Council for Human and Social Development (COHSOD), Georgetown, Guyana (29th – 20th August, 1st-2nd September, 2011). Ms Nicole Leotaud of CANARI presented on the Caribbean dialogue process and the draft position paper, and this initiative was formally recognised by the meeting as a useful contribution to CARICOM efforts.
  • 5th meeting of the Green Economy Coalition, London, England (14th – 16th November, 2011). Ms Nicole Leotaud of CANARI presented on the Caribbean dialogue process and the draft position paper.
  • Trinidad and Tobago Rio + 20 National Consultation, Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago (14th November, 2011). Ms Anna Cadiz of CANARI presented on the Caribbean dialogue process and the draft position paper.
 [/su_expand] Results:
  • Increased understanding by Caribbean stakeholders of the importance of green economy principles in the region. The wide-ranging discussions allowed the participants to deepen their understanding of green economy and its importance to the development of Caribbean economies.
  • Shared lessons on national strategies towards a green economy in the Caribbean. Participants learnt of strategies being implemented and adapted in several of the Caribbean countries and were able to distil best practices.
[su_expand more_text=”Click here for more results” less_text=”See less” height=”0″ link_color=”#A06B90″]
  • New and strengthened networks among key stakeholders in the Caribbean. The wide range of persons attending the regional workshop and involved in follow-up activities promoted the creation and strengthening of cross-sectoral, cross-country and cross-language networks for the Caribbean Green Economy Dialogue.  The continued dialogue via discussion boards and emails allowed for further strengthening of the network.
  • Influencing the regional discussion on the green economy at the policy level. Several participants and other key stakeholders invited CANARI and the coordinating team to attend discussions within their organisations and countries on the green economy.  Presentations were made at several key national, regional and international meetings to encourage consideration of ideas from the draft position paper in national and regional policy making in preparation for Rio+20.
  • Built commitment of Caribbean participants. There was an increased interest of Caribbean stakeholders in moving towards a green economy in the region and a drive to include the ideas developed in national and regional discussions and positions being developed for Rio+20.
 [/su_expand]  Lessons learned:
  • CANARI is well placed to continue coordinating a broad multi-stakeholder regional dialogue that explores what green economy means in the Caribbean context, communicates this to raise awareness and influence policy, and promotes and facilitates testing of green economy approaches on the ground.
 Key documents:  Key news items: YouTube:
  • Interviews with Caribbean stakeholders at the regional workshop on what they think about “green economy”
For more information contact: Related programmes:
CANARI