News stories by Desmond Brown, page 5

CASTRIES, St Lucia, Aug 28 (IPS) - A Caribbean Community (CARICOM) prime minister has reiterated the call for developed countries to assist Small Island Developing States (SIDS) in their quest to combat the effects of climate change.

PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad, Aug 14 (IPS) - A Trinidadian scientist has developed a mechanism for determining the degree of climate-smart agriculture (CSA) compliance with respect to projects, processes and products.

PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad, Aug 14 (IPS) - Climate-smart agriculture seeks to achieve food security and broader development goals under a changing climate and increasing food demand. 

BARTICA, Guyana, Aug 03 (IPS) - At the head of Guyana's Essequibo River, 50 miles inland from the Atlantic Ocean, you will find the town of Bartica. Considered the gateway to Guyana's interior, the town has a population of about 15,000 and is the launching point for people who work in the forests mining gold and diamonds.

BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, Jul 27 (IPS) - With wind, solar and other renewable energy sources steadily increasing their share in energy consumption across the Caribbean, Barbados is taking steps to further reduce the need for CO2-emitting fossil fuel energy.

BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, Jul 20 (IPS) - The Caribbean accounts for seven of the world's top 36 water-stressed countries and Barbados is in the top ten. The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) defines countries like Barbados, Antigua and Barbuda, and St. Kitts and Nevis as water-scarce with less than 1000 m3 freshwater resources per capita.

KINGSTON, Jamaica, Jul 12 (IPS) - According to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), 31.1 percent or about 337,000 hectares of Jamaica is forested. Of this, 26.1 percent or 88,000 is classified as primary forest, the most biodiverse and carbon-dense form of forest.

BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, Jun 30 (IPS) - The tourism industry is the key economic driver and largest provider of jobs in the Caribbean after the public sector. Caribbean tourism broke new ground in 2016, surpassing 29 million arrivals for the first time and once again growing faster than the global average.

BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, Jun 26 (IPS) - A senior European Union (EU) official in the Caribbean said Europe is ready to continue the global leadership on the fight against climate change, including helping the poor and vulnerable countries in the region.

KINGSTON, Jamaica, Apr 30 (IPS) - Climate change remains inextricably linked to the challenges of disaster risk reduction (DRR). And according to the head of the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR), Robert Glasser, the reduction of greenhouse gases is "the single most urgent global disaster risk treatment".