Earth Today | Inaugural Caribbean Environment Week moves to support sustainable future

SEVERAL OF the Caribbean’s most pressing issues related to sustainable economies and eco-friendly solutions will be addressed in a series of daily discussions from November 9 to 13, free and open to the public online.

The series, presented by Live ECCO and Environmental Solutions Limited (ESL), forms a part of celebrations for the inaugural Caribbean Environment Week, which is being observed under the theme ‘Bold Steps Towards a Sustainable Future’.

The conversations with a range of exciting regional and international speakers will be live-streamed on the Zoom platform and on YouTube at @LiveECCO from the offices of the Branson Centre for Entreprenership and from the Jamaica Business Development Corporation (JBDC) in Kingston, Jamaica.

The full week’s agenda and registration details for the Zoom event are available at www.LiveECCO.com/CEW20. For updates throughout the week, check the Live ECCO and ESL social media channels.

Caribbean Environment Week 2020 represents a concentrated effort to tackle a range of environmental challenges impacting the region, and to point to workable ‘green’ solutions. Tight, focused but free-flowing discussions with guest speakers from Jamaica, Trinidad, the UK, and the Cayman Islands will examine issues such as solid waste management, financing for sustainability, youth activism, and urban planning for resilience. The overarching, ever-present phenomenon of climate change, which is affecting every aspect of our economy and livelihoods, will also be factored into the discussions.

“In the Caribbean, we face a range of environmental challenges. We are looking for, and proposing pointers to, the way forward,” Shelly-Ann Dunkley, CEO of Live ECCO and whose idea it was to begin Caribbean Environment Week.

“We have identified many of the problems and established many goals. Now is the time to move to the planning and implementation of ideas – large and small. At the end of the week, we aim to come up with a list of clear pointers, which we will present to our expert panellists, stakeholders, and followers on social media. The idea is to create an increased level of awareness and activism from people across the region and take a step forward. We are delighted at the overwhelming support we have received for the event!”

Eleanor Jones, ESL chairman and CEO, shared her enthusiasm.

“We are excited to partner with Live ECCO on this inaugural series. At ESL, we are committed to facilitating harmony between development and the environment, as climate change continues to impact our economy and society,” she said.

“Setting aside this week for analysis and reflection should offer us a space to examine some fundamental issues that we hope will inform stakeholders and policymakers. We have a tremendous line-up of expert speakers, and we are looking forward to hearing their perspectives and identifying possible future actions from their determinations. We believe this platform will enable a clear-headed, fresh approach, putting nature at the heart of our planning as we work through the current global challenges,” Jones added.