Long Island, Bahamas – Credit: Shane Gross for The Nature Conservancy
Nassau, THE BAHAMAS: The Caribbean Challenge Initiative (CCI) and the Caribbean Biodiversity Fund (CBF) Secretariats will be holding their 5th CCI-CBF Week from July 13th – 16th, 2020.
Originally meant to be hosted by the Government of the Bahamas, the largest small-island archipelago in the tropical Atlantic and an inaugural and active CCI member country, in light of COVID19 disruptions in the region, this milestone convening will take place virtually. The meeting, guided by the theme “Nature-Based Solutions for our Caribbean Future”, is supported by the German Government through its development Bank – KFW, The Nature Conservancy, Metzler-Payden, The Bahamas Protected Areas Fund, Island Innovation and Ocean Unite.
This year is a landmark year for the CCI, as its goals were to challenge each of its member countries to protect and effectively manage at least 20% of their coastal and marine resources by 2020 and create sustainable finance mechanisms to support this effort. The week of meetings will bring together CCI and CBF members, National Conservation Trust Funds from the Caribbean, partners, donors, and observers to:
- Celebrate CCI’s achievements since its launch in 2008.
- Recognize the accomplishments and challenges in the region in the areas of effective management, sustainable financing, climate adaptation, and implementation of a nature-based economy, and identify necessary actions to ensure healthy ecosystems.
- Identify partners and opportunities for developing the way forward for biodiversity, protected area management and nature-based economic development in the Caribbean.
The host organizations are honoured to invite all stakeholders with an interest in protecting the region’s natural resources to participate and contribute to the discussions. The event is completely virtual, open for participation and registration is free. All interested participants can register at www.ccicbfweek.org.
Background:
The CCI was established as an innovative platform uniting governments, the private sector and partners to take collaborative action to conserve and sustainably manage the Caribbean’s marine and coastal environment. From its launch in 2008, the CCI aimed to support and incentivize Caribbean governments to meet their sustainable development commitments, to catalyze new funding and accelerated action, and to help ensure more prosperous and sustainable economies.
In 2013, the CCI Summit of Caribbean Political and Business Leaders, held at Necker island in the British Virgin islands (BVI) and co-hosted by the Governments of the BVI and Grenada together with Sir Richard Branson, Virgin Unite and The Nature Conservancy launched a second phase of the CCI, with a new type of partnership to safeguard the Caribbean’s marine and coastal environment. Three important “constituency groups”—governments, the private sector, and partners— all joined forces and voluntarily committed to ambitiously achieving the two major goals under the CCI. New marine conservation commitments were made, primarily in the form of a Leaders Declaration signed by nine governments and a Corporate Compact signed by 15 companies. Over US $75M of funding for activities to support CCI Goals were also announced, generating significant momentum towards the shared vision of a healthy marine and coastal environment.
The Caribbean Biodiversity Fund (CBF) was established in 2012 as a direct outcome of the CCI. It is the realization of a bold vision to create reliable, long-term funding for conservation and sustainable development for the Caribbean region. The CBF currently operates as an umbrella fund utilizing a flexible structure to implement innovative solutions for resource mobilization at the regional level through a range of financial instruments. As of 2020, the CBF manages approximately US$125 million through its Conservation Finance and the Climate Change: Ecosystem-based Adaptation Programs.
REGISTER FOR CCI-CBF WEEK
