CHEC is excited to announce the publication of the latest edition of our journal, Human Ecology. This issue focuses on the Commonwealth’s small island developing states, which face escalating threats from hotter oceans and rising sea levels in a year when ocean temperatures have reached the highest levels ever recorded. Although these nations contribute least to global greenhouse gas emissions, their coastal communities, infrastructure and livelihoods are among the most exposed to more intense cyclones, coastal erosion, coral bleaching and marine heatwaves.
Edited by CHEC Honorary Patron Ian Douglas, the journal sets these climate-related hazards alongside the natural hazards island communities have long lived with, including volcanic eruptions, earthquakes and tsunamis. It then examines how international assistance is working, from intergovernmental climate funds to blue bonds and the blue economy. It also highlights local projects led by UN initiatives, Commonwealth partnerships and NGOs that are helping communities protect their coastlines and livelihoods.
In this issue:
Part I: The climate related threats affecting the islands
Extreme Weather and the Commonwealth’s Small Island Developing States – Thomas Shakespeare
Living on the Edge: Commonwealth Pacific Countries Navigating a Changing Ocean – Janine Pierce
The Year the Tide Turned: South Australia’s Algal Bloom Impact on Coastal Life and Economy – Janine Pierce
Part II: International assistance
Financing Resilience: A Status Update on Intergovernmental and Corporate Climate Funds for Commonwealth Small Island Developing States – Subbu Loganathan
Blue Carbon in the Blue Economy in the Blue Pacific – Donnell Davis
Part III: Helping communities through local projects
Women’s Work in the Blue Carbon Economy in South-East Asia and the South-Western Pacific – Donnell Davis
Designing a Blue Economy Project in Antigua & Barbuda: Mangrove Restoration, Pollinators, Livelihoods and Public Engagement – Jane Samuels
We encourage our readers to recognise the remarkable resilience of island communities, while understanding that resilience alone is not enough. Effective long-term solutions require immediate emissions reductions and a growth of international support, so that the small island states of the Commonwealth can continue to thrive.
Read the full journal here!
