Climate impacts on agriculture and tourism – the case for climate resilient investment in the Caribbean

This policy brief argues for urgent climate resilience investment in the Caribbean, specifically within the agriculture and tourism sectors, to protect economic growth and poverty alleviation efforts from increasing climate threats.

• Climate change is already causing significant damage in the Caribbean, with hurricanes affecting Jamaica, Grenada, and Cuba, flooding in Belize and Guyana, and droughts in the east of the region. In Saint Lucia, 27 natural disasters occurred between 1980 and 2008, resulting in estimated economic damages of US$2.5 billion.
• Climate impacts are undermining regional prosperity and reversing progress made in economic growth and poverty alleviation. The Climate and Development Knowledge Network (CDKN) has provided downscaled climate projections and visualization tools to help Caribbean nations, including Barbados, Belize, Cuba, Jamaica, and Saint Lucia, make informed subregional decisions.
• Urgent adaptation investment is required for two key sectors: agriculture, to address changes in growing seasons, rainfall, and droughts; and tourism, to combat rising seas, water scarcity, temperature increases, and bleached coral reefs. High up-front costs currently act as a barrier to local adaptation efforts, necessitating financial support.

APA

Climate and Development Knowledge Network (2017). Climate impacts on agriculture and tourism – the case for climate resilient investment in the Caribbean. https://cdkn.org/resource/policy-brief-climate-impacts-agriculture-tourism-case-climate-resilient-investment-caribbean

Chicago

Climate and Development Knowledge Network. Climate impacts on agriculture and tourism – the case for climate resilient investment in the Caribbean. 2017. https://cdkn.org/resource/policy-brief-climate-impacts-agriculture-tourism-case-climate-resilient-investment-caribbean.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Climate and Development Knowledge Network |title=Climate impacts on agriculture and tourism – the case for climate resilient investment in the Caribbean |date=20 February 2017 |url=https://cdkn.org/resource/policy-brief-climate-impacts-agriculture-tourism-case-climate-resilient-investment-caribbean |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{climateanddevelopmentknowledgenetwork2017climate, author = {{Climate and Development Knowledge Network}}, title = {{Climate impacts on agriculture and tourism – the case for climate resilient investment in the Caribbean}}, institution = {Climate and Development Knowledge Network}, year = {2017}, month = feb, url = {https://cdkn.org/resource/policy-brief-climate-impacts-agriculture-tourism-case-climate-resilient-investment-caribbean}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }