Chapter 23, US Caribbean

Hurricanes, increasingly powerful storms, and rising sea levels are already harming human health, ecosystems, water and food supplies, and critical infrastructure in the US Caribbean, with underserved communities suffering disproportionate impacts. Effective adaptation to support resilience in the region could be enhanced by decentralization, shared governance, and stronger partnerships across the Caribbean region and the US mainland.

- From NCA5 ch.23

This page is in draft form and is currently being reviewed by project partners. For more information about the creation and review process, please see the landing page for the NCA5 Educator's Guide.

Jump to:

  1. Information on using this guide
  2. Educational resources and guiding questions for this region
  3. CLEAN curated pathways to action for the region
  4. NCA5 non-regional chapter connections

Key Messages for the US Caribbean:

National Climate Assessment Art X Climate selections

Artist's statement:This piece illustrates the lived experiences of hurricanes, specifically Hurricane Maria. As the climate continues to change, catastrophic storms are expected to become more severe in the Caribbean region. Mirroring a local memorial, shoes follow the road to calmer places. The piece is a composite overlay of three linocuts depicting the storm itself, the infrastructural impacts, and the human impacts. It can be interpreted literally, as a hurricane and its numerous effects, or symbolically: watching ourselves twist in a storm system of inequities that caused Puerto Rico to be without power for as many as 328 days after Maria. The impacts are still being felt years later. As the eye of the storm, we witness all.


Artist's statement:This piece shows a worker catching or releasing water droplets, and I use emergency blankets to represent disaster relief. Climate change has increased the intensity of natural disasters, which destroy water infrastructure (for example Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico). Clean water has also been prioritized for affluent neighborhoods. The residents of Flint, MI, who are mostly low-income and African American, did not have clean water for years. It is a human necessity to have human water, to catch it, yet people are still being forced to release their right to clean water.


Educational resources and guiding questions aligned with the regional Key Messages:

Each Key Message features three guiding questions to help educators navigate these topics with students. Each guiding question includes example lessons and supporting videos. The lessons were taken from the Climate Literacy and Energy Awareness Network (CLEAN) educational resources database. The videos were selected from reputable sources to support the lessons.

Key Message One: Climate-Driven Extreme Events Exacerbate Inequities and Impact Human Health and Well-Being

Traditionally underserved and disadvantaged communities suffer disproportionate impacts from climate change because they have been systematically excluded from social services, secure livelihoods, quality education, and other social benefits that help sustain health and well-being. Hurricanes and other climate-related extreme events have been associated with higher rates of disease, mental illness, and overall mortality, as well as loss of cultural heritage that is central to community identity. As extreme weather events become more intense and more frequent, residents will continue experiencing increasing levels of noncommunicable diseases, excess mortality, behavioral health challenges, and loss of quality of life. The frequency of heat episodes and the severity of hurricanes are both expected to increase in the region due to human-induced climate change, which will affect public health unless adaptation measures are taken. For more information on this key message, follow thislink.

Guiding question one: How should cultural heritage play into the creation of resilience plans for post-disaster recovery in the Caribbean?

Guiding question two: Considering the projected health risks due to increases in heat episodes and hurricane severity, what measures can be implemented to mitigate the impacts on public health in traditionally underserved communities?

Guiding question three: How are colonialism and the impacts of climate change connected in the US Caribbean?

Key Message Two: Ecology and Biodiversity Are Unique and Vulnerable

Coastal and terrestrial ecosystems provide a large number of goods and services that are vital to the islands' economies and to the health and well-being of their residents. These essential systems are degraded by human actions and climate change, thereby reducing the benefits they provide to people, as well as their functionality as habitats for protecting biological diversity. Climate change is expected to exacerbate the degradation of ecosystems. The success of climate adaptation strategies will depend on reducing all sources of stress on ecological systems. For more information on this key message, please follow thislink.

Guiding question one: How are the well-being and livelihoods of people in the US Caribbean region intertwined with the health and stability of aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems?What might happen if these ecosystems are disturbed?

Guiding question two: In relation to the concept of tipping points, why is it important to restore ecosystems and protect them from further degradation in the context of climate hazards?

Guiding question three: What are ecosystem services and what makes them unique and vulnerable to the impacts of climate change in the US Caribbean?

Key Message Three: Climate Change Threatens Water and Food Security

US Caribbean food and water systems are becoming increasingly vulnerable to the escalation of climate change, including stronger hurricanes, more severe drought, warmer air temperatures, and other extreme weather. Because the territories are heavily reliant on imported foods, they are affected by climate changes occurring both within and outside of the region. Reductions in average annual rainfall, increasing air temperatures, and rising sea levels will adversely affect freshwater availability in the future. Improved adaptation efforts would benefit from a better understanding of the ways food and water systems interrelate and of the cascading impacts generated by climate change. For more information on this key message, please follow this link.

Guiding question one: What is needed to create food and water security in the US Caribbean?

Guiding question two: In what ways is water essential to economies and health in the US Caribbean and what impacts might result from a change in water availability?

Guiding question three: What are the vulnerabilities associated with the US Caribbean's dependence on imported food and how might these vulnerabilities be exacerbated by climate stressors?

Key Message Four: Infrastructure and Energy Are Vulnerable, but Decentralization Could Improve Resilience

Climate change has created profound risks for the US Caribbean's critical infrastructure, already weakened from years of disinvestment and deferred maintenance. Increasingly powerful storms, along with rising sea levels, are severely impairing infrastructure systems, with increasing damage projected in future years. Dependence on fossil fuel imports increases energy insecurity. Infrastructure improvements, coupled with a new paradigm focused on decentralization, adoption of distributed solar, and shared governance, could help limit residents' vulnerability to health and other risks associated with loss of essential services. For more information on this key message, please follow this link.

Guiding question one: How do natural hazards impact energy, water, healthcare, transportation, telecommunication, wastewater, stormwater, and solid waste infrastructure in the US Caribbean?

Guiding question two: What is needed to decentralize infrastructure in the US Caribbean to make it less vulnerable to climate change?

Guiding question three: How might the adoption of new infrastructure systems impact existing inequities?

Key Message Five: Adaptation Effectiveness Increases When Coupled with Strategic Governance and Planning

Climate adaptation in the US Caribbean is challenging because of multiple interacting factors, including high-risk exposure, limited or misaligned funding, insufficient institutional and organizational capacity, and siloed approaches to risk reduction and resilience. Effective adaptation to support resilience in the US Caribbean could be enhanced through co-development and integration of robust global, regional, and local climate science and risk-based knowledge into planning and implementation, as well as improved governance arrangements. US Caribbean capabilities in planning and adaptation could be enhanced by strengthening partnerships across the wider Caribbean region and the US mainland. For more information on this key message, please follow this link.

Guiding question one: How are community and government organizations working to advance climate adaptation and sustainable development in the US Caribbean?

Guiding question two:  What are the key challenges in creating and implementing successful adaptation plans in the US Caribbean? How can financial resources and policies be leveraged to address these challenges?

Guiding question three: In which cases is it beneficial for communities to work independently and cooperatively on climate change in the US Caribbean?

Pathways to action for the US Caribbean*

*These selections were curated by CLEAN

The following actions and case studies highlight ideas for climate change adaptation and mitigation at multiple scales and are meant to support and inspire students and educators to take steps that address the challenges outlined in this chapter.

Action 1: Coastal Wetland Restoration

Action 2: Coastal Wetland Protection

Action 3: Adapting to disturbance from climate-change-related hazards

Action 4: Extreme Heat Prevention

Looking for more ideas for climate change actions? Explore the National Climate Assessment chapters on adaptation (chapter 31) and mitigation (chapter 32).

National Climate Assessment US Caribbean Chapter Connections:

The national climate assessment includes multiple chapters on climate change-specific topics. The chapters and key messages offer ways to further engage with the NCA and find out more information related to the region.

 

 

Disclaimer: The National Climate Assessment regional resources for educators is written, edited, and moderated by each regional team of contributors. Posts reflect the views of the regional team themselves and not necessarily Climate.gov, NOAA and USGCRP.