The United States Forest Service (USFS) has brought to a close, the Natural Infrastructure for Caribbean Resilience (NICaR) Program. The closing ceremony held last week, at the US Embassy in Bridgetown, Barbados, highlighted NICaR’s achievements and regional collaborations to improve long-term climate adaptation and ecosystem resilience in vulnerable communities.
The Dominica Red Cross (DRC) was recognized for their work in the Tarreau community as part of their post-hurricane [Maria] disaster forest restoration efforts. Over the past three years, the DRC conducted resilience building activities including reforestation of watersheds, combating invasive species to reduce prevalence of bush fires as well as strengthening community action through training and awareness efforts. To date, more than 600 trees have been planted and a hazard map developed as part of a Disaster Management Plan under the initiative.
The closing event featured testimonials from grantees and program participants and facilitated panel discussions on the ongoing need for regional collaboration in ecosystem protection and climate adaptation.
During the panel discussion, Director General of the Dominica Red Cross, Sandra Charter-Rolle made a strong call for more regional collaboration in achieving shared resilience goals. “We are impacted by the same hazards, no one country has all the resources to mitigate against some of these hazards. There is value in learning from each other as we have different resources and capacities in the different islands. We can collaborate and learn some of the techniques and mechanisms we can put in place to become resilient. This is very critical as we can’t work in silos, we really need the greater collaboration as Caribbean people, so we can be more resilient as a region”.
The US Ambassador to Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean, Roger Nyhus highlighted the importance of NICaR in addressing regional climate impacts. “The Caribbean is known for its breathtaking natural beauty, but it is also a region that is particularly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. Rising sea levels, increasingly severe hurricanes, and other extreme weather events pose significant threats to the livelihoods of millions. In this context, the restoration and preservation of natural infrastructure—such as mangroves and forests—are not just environmental imperatives but also critical to the resilience and sustainability of Caribbean communities.”
The Caribbean is facing escalating challenges from climate change, with ecosystems, communities, and economies at increasing risk. Launched in 2020, the NICaR Program implemented 12 projects across nine Caribbean countries. Through collaboration with 14 grantee organizations and other partners, the program has advanced the protection and restoration of about 235 hectares or 580 acres of vital mangrove and upland forest ecosystems. NICaR has worked with 38 environment-focused institutions, including community-based organizations and universities in the Caribbean and partner institutions in the United States. Program activities included sharing approaches and solutions in protecting forest ecosystems, preserving biodiversity, advancing restoration efforts and enhancing disaster risk reduction initiatives.
The program has trained over 1200 individuals, including over 700 men and more than 500 women, equipping them with vital skills in areas such as mangrove and riparian restoration, wildland fire management, community engagement and climate change adaptation. The program conducted the first wildland (bush) fire academy, providing targeted training to bolster wildland fire management capacity for national fire services across 12 countries.
The NICaR grantees are Antigua and Barbuda, Wallings Nature Reserve Inc; The Bahamas – University of the Bahamas/ University of Wyoming, Perry Institute for Marine Science; Dominica – Dominica Red Cross; Dominican Republic – Asociacion para el Desarrollo and Grupo Jarauga; Jamaica – American Bird Conservancy/Jamaica Conservation Development Trust, Central Jamaica Social Development Initiative; St. Kitts & Nevis, Nevis Historical & Conservation Society; St. Vincent & The Grenadines, Richmond Vale Academy; Trinidad and Tobago, Caribbean Natural Resource Institute (CANARI) and sub-grantees in (Dominica, Antigua & Barbuda and Grenada), Fondes Amandes Community Restoration Project.
The Anse Kouanari Tourism Association (AKTA) also from Dominica is a sub-grantee of the Caribbean Natural Resources Institute(CANARI). Under CANARI’s Ecosystem restoration to build Caribbean resilience to climate change, the community-based organization from Castle Bruce conducted upland forest and post disaster landscape restoration to reduce landslides in Good Hope. As a result of NICaR’s intervention and other vulnerability projects, AKTA has replanted approximately 2 acres of bare land with 2700 plants/trees.
The NICaR program is implemented by the USDA Forest Service International Programs Office with support from the U.S. Department of State Bureau of Oceans and International Environment and Scientific Affairs. The NICaR program increases the capacity of partner countries to plan, implement, and monitor forest, mangrove, and other land restoration initiatives for improved carbon sequestration and strengthened resilience to climate change and natural disasters through enhanced natural infrastructure.
