Climate variability and change are expected to have negative impacts on the Caribbean. Rising temperature and humidity will have severe impacts on the fruiting and flowering of food crops and trees and introduce new pests and diseases such as Chikungunya that can affect the productivity of the workforce. Rural communities that are heavily dependent on the natural resources for the livelihoods will therefore be heavily impacted by climate variability and change. Brasso Seco is one such community located in north in Trinidad.
The Caribbean Natural Resources Institute (CANARI) will pilot a project in Brasso Seco to assist the Brasso Seco Tourism Action Committee (BS TAC) and the Brasso Seco Morne LaCroix Farmers? Association (BSMLCFA) to build resilience to climate variability, climate change and natural hazards in their enterprises. CANARI has been helping both organisations to develop enterprises based on the sustainable use of natural resources for the past five years as part of a project funded by the JB Fernandes Memorial Trust I. BS TAC grows organic cocoa and coffee and sells products made from them. The group also has agrotourism and ecotourism enterprises. BSMLCFA grows general produce, including cocoa and coffee plants, to sell.
The goal of the project is to pilot a methodology to increase the resilience of natural resource based livelihoods in rural communities in Trinidad and Tobago to the impacts of climate variability and change and natural hazards in the Brasso Seco community. The project will increase awareness of climate variability, climate change, natural hazards and their impacts on community livelihoods. It will help the groups to identify the areas of vulnerability in their enterprises and determine strategies to build resilience. Each group will have an opportunity to use a small grant to implement at least one of the strategies. The results of their strategies will be evaluated along with the process to assist the groups. Results of the pilot will be documented in a communication product targeting policy-makers in Trinidad and Tobago and the region that have interests in and responsibilities for building resilience to climate change in local communities.
The outputs of the project are: (i) a case study documenting the process, results and lessons from the pilot; and (iii) a communication product documenting lessons learnt and recommendations for building resilience to climate change in local community livelihoods.
The outcomes of the project are: (i) increased understanding of the impact of climate variability, climate change and natural hazards on livelihoods based on natural resources among members of two community groups in Brasso Seco; (ii) increased perceptions of resilience of two community enterprises to climate variability, climate change and natural hazards; and, (iii) increased knowledge in one rural community and at least 10 key support organisations on how to enhance resilience of rural community livelihoods to climate variability, climate change and natural hazards.
In the long-term, the project is expected to contribute to increased resilience of the two community enterprises. Lessons learnt will be used by CANARI in its programme of work to build resilience of local community livelihoods across the Caribbean islands. In the long term, the project is also expected to contribute to improved policies governing small and micro enterprises that include measures to build resilience to climate variability, climate change and natural hazards and improved resilience of rural community livelihoods to climate variability, climate change and natural hazards in Trinidad and Tobago and the wider Caribbean.