An Introduction to CCORAL: Caribbean Climate Online Risk and Adaptation TooL

CCORAL (Caribbean Climate Online Risk and Adaptation TooL) is an open-access online system developed by the Caribbean Community Climate Change Centre (CCCCC) to help Caribbean government agencies, NGOs, and the private sector mainstream climate resilience into daily decision-making. The tool provides a screening exercise to prioritise climate-influenced activities, high-level guidance for both experts and non-experts, and a toolbox of over 70 climate risk management resources. It is specifically designed to fit into existing organisational processes such as national planning, budgeting, and legislation to avoid the high economic costs of climate inaction in the region.

• The Caribbean faces severe economic threats from climate variability, climate change, and sea level rise, with annual losses from wind, storm surge, and inland flooding estimated between 1% and 6% of national GDP.
• Projections indicate that the annual cost of inaction regarding climate change in the Caribbean could reach USD $10.7 billion by 2025, USD $22 billion by 2050, and USD $46 billion by 2100, which would be equivalent to a perpetual economic recession for CARICOM Member States.
• CCORAL is an open-access online system that enables users of all skill levels to apply a risk management approach to decision-making, specifically targeting government Ministries of Finance and Planning, CARICOM agencies, NGOs, universities, and the private sector.
• The tool consists of several components, including a screening exercise that takes less than 5 minutes to identify if an activity is climate-influenced, guidance for experts and non-experts, and a searchable toolbox containing over 70 climate risk management tools.
• CCORAL is designed to be integrated into standard government activities, including legislation, national planning, strategy/policy development, programme/project management, and budget preparation or evaluation.
• The development of CCORAL involved extensive consultation across the Caribbean, with specific pilot country involvement from Barbados, Belize, Jamaica, and Suriname.

APA

Palin, O., Adams, P., & Firth, J. (2013). An Introduction to CCORAL: Caribbean Climate Online Risk and Adaptation TooL. Climate and Development Knowledge Network. https://cdkn.org/sites/default/files/files/CCCCC-Knowledge-Brief_CCORAL.pdf

Chicago

Palin, Olivia, Peter Adams, and John Firth. An Introduction to CCORAL: Caribbean Climate Online Risk and Adaptation TooL. Climate and Development Knowledge Network, 2013. https://cdkn.org/sites/default/files/files/CCCCC-Knowledge-Brief_CCORAL.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Palin |first1=Olivia |last2=Adams |first2=Peter |last3=Firth |first3=John |title=An Introduction to CCORAL: Caribbean Climate Online Risk and Adaptation TooL |publisher=Climate and Development Knowledge Network |date=2013 |url=https://cdkn.org/sites/default/files/files/CCCCC-Knowledge-Brief_CCORAL.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{palin2013introduction, author = {Palin, Olivia and Adams, Peter and Firth, John}, title = {{An Introduction to CCORAL: Caribbean Climate Online Risk and Adaptation TooL}}, institution = {Climate and Development Knowledge Network}, year = {2013}, url = {https://cdkn.org/sites/default/files/files/CCCCC-Knowledge-Brief_CCORAL.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }