The 2022 climate change meeting known as the Conference of Parties (COP) 27 was held in El Sharm Sheik, Egypt during the period from Sunday, November 6th to Friday, November 18th. COP to the United Nation Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) is the convention’s highest authority and meet yearly to review the implementation of the Convention and any related measures that are adopted under its purview. This year’s conference is termed the implementation COP and there was a call for governments to abide by their promises to put policies and measures in place to initiate action against global warming.  

Grenada being a small island developing state (SIDS) is particularly at risk of the impacts of climate change. Stronger and more frequent Hurricanes, unpredictable rainfall patterns coupled with a longer period of drought have prompted small islands like Grenada to ensure that they take measures to adapt and mitigate against these occurrences. The country’s limited financial resources certainly do not help the situation as a reliance on donor funding is a necessity to implement measures to curb the effects of climate change.  

Grenada was represented by a delegation comprising of persons from Ministry of the Environment, Climate negotiators, youth, and project representatives.  A total of three projects all of which are involved in various aspects of mitigation, adaption, awareness, and climate resilience were represented. The projects represented were: The Resilient Islands Project, 195 in 365 project and the Climate-Resilient Water Sector in Grenada project (G-CREWS). The overall objective of the team is to focus on four main areas: Loss and damage, Climate Finance, Oceans and Mitigation. The G-CREWS project fits under the mitigation agenda and was represented by its Project Manager Mr. Brian Bonaparte.  The project was born out of the need to adapt and mitigate against climate change and therefore it was given the opportunity to show the Caribbean and by large the world that Grenada is doing its part.  

Every opportunity was made to ensure that the project was featured in one way or another whether it be through bilateral meetings or presentations to various stakeholders from different countries. This exposure gave component 5 of the project a significant boost. This component involves regional learning and replication and intends to formulate a community of practice with projects, and organizations that have a common interest in undertaking interventions aimed at reducing the effects of climate change. Representatives were from similar projects such as the Water Sector Resilience Nexus for Sustainability in Barbados, Global waste initiative 50 by 2050 for Africa towards a global impact, and various stakeholders from regional and international countries.   

One of the main events which featured the project was appropriately titled “Grenada Day” as it sort to showcase the various projects that were being undertaken in Grenada to fight against global warming. This event was held at the CARICOM pavilion on Wednesday 16th November 2022. G-CREWS was by far the largest project featured and it is one of the first Green Climate Funded projects to be implemented in the Eastern Caribbean. It is also fortunate to have the financial support of the German Ministry of the Environment and the Government of Grenada.   

The project got its spotlight with a presentation and there were attendees from: the Caribbean Climate Smart Accelerator, Caribbean Community Climate Change Center (5Cs), and representatives from various Caribbean, African and European countries.  

The presentation showed the project’s envisioned impacts and five components. Emphasis was placed on the mitigation and adaptation side of the impacts of the project. Activities with adaptation focus primarily on more water being available while mitigation is on the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions through various measures such as the use of renewable energy.  Challenges faced and ways of mitigating them were also shared.  

The G-CREWS project video was also aired during the presentation and at intervals during the day showcasing the various activities that are proposed and were already implemented in the project. Some of these are: storage tanks and rainwater harvesting systems. Brochures, business cards, factsheets, and flash drives about the project were distributed to the various attendees, most of whom seem enthused with the holistic approach the project has taken to building climate resilience in the water sector. This project was certainly seen as a beacon of light among SIDS.  

Another significant engagement took place with Dr. Ulf Jaeckal and Ms. Nina Alsen both from the Ministry of the Environment, Nature conservation, Nuclear Safety, and Consumer Protection in Germany. They were given a synopsis of the project and the topics that were discussed are: the challenges faced, mitigation measures, and National Adaptation Plan.  

Water took center stage at COP 27 and a water pavilion ran throughout the event. Some of the events which took place at the pavilion are:  

• International panel on Delta and coastal management – This event hosted panelists from countries which are located on deltas such as Bangladesh. A focus was placed on helping developing countries tailor their funding proposals to be able to access the financial resources that are available by donors.  

• Nature-based solutions for water and climate security –. Some of the noted points that came out from this event were: the need to integrate water conservation into national policies, and the need to adapt to cater to the increasing severity of weather events.  

• NEXUS solutions for climate-resilient water, energy, food, and environment security: The water, energy, food, and environment (WEFE) nexus were explained and the interconnectedness and complexity of the world’s resource systems that are essential for humankind to achieve its social, economic, and environmental objectives were discussed in detail.  

COP 27 can be deemed an overall success for the G-CREWS project and Grenada.  

A comprehensive project with the mandate of the inclusion of the people of Grenada, Carriacou, and Petit Martinique to make our tri-island state water resilient was greeted with a lot of interest. The project presentation on Grenada day echoed the need for all nationals to be on board to make this project successful because this is a project for the people.