Commonwealth Secretariat and Stimson Center extend groundbreaking climate assessment to Dominica and Mauritius

Photo Credit: Impacts of coastal erosion and drought in Tarawa, Kiribati. Government of Kiribati: Retrieved from thecommonwealth.org

The Commonwealth Secretariat and the US-based Stimson Center have embarked on a new phase of their groundbreaking project, which aims to identify climate vulnerability and risks in coastal communities through the use of a new rapid assessment protocol.

Initially piloted in Sri Lanka, Barbados and Kiribati, this is now being extended to two additional Commonwealth countries, Dominica and Mauritius, reflecting commitments made by all 56 member nations under the Commonwealth Blue Charter.

Building upon the success of the previous phase, this project is supported by the Ocean Risk and Resilience Action Alliance (ORRAA), of which the Commonwealth Secretariat is an Institutional Partner, and is undertaken with financial support of the Government of Canada through the federal Department of Environment and Climate Change. This renewed backing underscores ORRAA’s global commitment to address ocean-related risks and enhance resilience in vulnerable coastal regions.

The primary objective of the revised Phase 2 is to enhance decision-making processes and promote climate-smart investments by providing an integrated understanding of the financial, political, and ecological risks associated with climate change in small island countries and coastal cities.