Identifying and lifting climate adaptation barriers in Jamaica using a participatory approach

This research paper describes a participatory methodology used to identify and address climate adaptation barriers in Jamaica, focusing on the agriculture, fisheries, and tourism sectors. Through stakeholder mapping and workshops, the study highlights a disconnect between national-level planning and local-level implementation, identifying specific policy and funding barriers and proposing practical, consensus-based solutions to build climate resilience.

• The participatory methodology revealed that climate adaptation in Jamaica is dominated by national government and agencies, with local actors remaining limited in their inclusion in adaptation processes.
• In the agriculture sector, the primary barrier to implementing adaptation actions at the local level is a lack of funding for planning and responses. This is attributed to factors such as short political cycles, short-term planning, and a lack of a strategic, coordinated approach to funding.
• The fisheries sector identified a lack of political leadership as the most significant barrier to local adaptation. This is driven by political timeframes and agendas that do not align with planning timeframes, as well as a reluctance to make long-term decisions.
• For the tourism sector, the main barrier is the poor integration of adaptation across different levels of government. Contributing factors include outdated legislation, resource constraints, and poor communication of climate change science.
• Funding for climate adaptation in Jamaica is primarily sourced from international donors and the Ministry of Finance, but it tends to remain at the national level, becoming scarcer as it reaches local actors.
• The study proposes several practical actions to overcome identified barriers, including improving evidence for investment decisions (monetary value of adaptation), developing formal mechanisms to integrate climate change into local policies, and creating an integrated climate change action plan.

APA

STANTON, M. B., & DOWNING, T. E. (2014). Identifying and lifting climate adaptation barriers in Jamaica using a participatory approach. Climate and Development Knowledge Network. http://cdkn.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/Working-Paper-Identifying-and-lifting-climate-adaptation-barriers-in-Jamaica-using-a-participatory-approach.pdf

Chicago

STANTON, Muriel BONJEAN, and Thomas E. DOWNING. Identifying and lifting climate adaptation barriers in Jamaica using a participatory approach. Climate and Development Knowledge Network, 2014. http://cdkn.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/Working-Paper-Identifying-and-lifting-climate-adaptation-barriers-in-Jamaica-using-a-participatory-approach.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=STANTON |first1=Muriel BONJEAN |last2=DOWNING |first2=Thomas E. |title=Identifying and lifting climate adaptation barriers in Jamaica using a participatory approach |publisher=Climate and Development Knowledge Network |date=2014 |url=http://cdkn.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/Working-Paper-Identifying-and-lifting-climate-adaptation-barriers-in-Jamaica-using-a-participatory-approach.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{stanton2014identifying, author = {STANTON, Muriel BONJEAN and DOWNING, Thomas E.}, title = {{Identifying and lifting climate adaptation barriers in Jamaica using a participatory approach}}, institution = {Climate and Development Knowledge Network}, year = {2014}, url = {http://cdkn.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/Working-Paper-Identifying-and-lifting-climate-adaptation-barriers-in-Jamaica-using-a-participatory-approach.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }