This project aims to increase the climate resilience of people and communities in Belize, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, Saint Lucia, St Vincent and the Grenadines and Suriname through improved marine and coastal ecosystem management. The project will achieve this by transforming the management of coral reefs and coastal ecosystems to ensure that their biodiversity is protected and that the vital ecosystem services they provide, including protection of coastal communities and shorelines from erosion and impacts of tropical storms—are sustained. Project activities include: (1) developing and implementing country-specific frameworks and action plans through participatory methods. Also supporting the development and application of policies for coral reef and coastal ecosystem protection and management; (2) undertaking scientific data collection and mapping of coral reef zones and coastal ecosystems for the development of platforms that will support decision-making for their conservation and protection; (3) supporting the implementation of sub-projects focused on the restoration, repopulation, rehabilitation and management of coral reefs and coastal ecosystems in Belize, Jamaica, Saint Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and Suriname; (4) providing training, capacity-building, and technical assistance for restoration, repopulation, rehabilitation and management of coral reefs and coastal ecosystems; and (5) collaborating, cooperating, and building partnerships with other regional and global initiatives, and research and learning institutions, to support better ecosystem protection and management regionally and globally. This project will be implemented in Belize, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, Saint Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and Suriname. It will involve the participation of national governments, the private sector, civil society and society at large. The targeted beneficiaries are coastal and fishing communities in the Caribbean, includes marine protection and management agencies, universities, government ministries responsible for fisheries, fisherfolk organizations, and civil society organizations involved in coastal and marine protection.
