(City of Belmopan, Belize) The Caribbean Community Climate Change Centre (CCCCC)
has launched the #Betterclimate4MyHealth campaign, an urgent call to action to young
people, across the 16 CARIFORUM countries to advocate for immediate action to address
the health-related issues caused by the global climate crisis.
Using evidence and stories of real young people, ages 9-30, the campaign will encourage
Caribbean youth to be agents of climate change for action.
During the launch, Mr. Keith Nichols, Head of the Project Development and Management
Unit, at the CCCCC invited Caribbean youth to join the movement for climate and health
action.
“We want to hear your concerns. We want to hear your ideas and we want to make your
voices louder,’ said Mr. Nichols. “We know that you play an important role in our fight
against climate change and you deserve a fair chance and a healthy life, free from the
negative implications of the crisis.”
Mr. Mirco Schroeder, Programme Manager at the European Union Delegation Office in
Belize emphasized that the global climate crisis requires commitment and action from
everyone. “Your stories are relevant, [and] your ideas are vital to make this substantial
change.”
The Campaign is being executed in collaboration with the Pan American Health
Organization/World Health Organization (PAHO/WHO) under the European Union (EU)
funded 2020-2025 EU/CARIFORUM Strengthening Climate Resilient Health Systems
in the Caribbean.
3
rd Floor, David McKoy Building, Bliss Parade, P.O. Box 563, Belmopan, BELIZE
Tel: (501)822-1104 or 1094, Fax: (501)822-1365, Website: www.caribbeanclimate.bz
The project targets the strengthening of national/sub-regional health systems to better
manage the impacts of climate change on the health of the Caribbean people and on
health services and delivery systems.
“Health systems in the Caribbean have made significant gains in past decades; however,
they remain highly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change,” expressed Mr. Dean
Chambliss, Subregional Program Director of the Caribbean Program Coordination office
of the Pan American Health Organization. “More innovative and interdisciplinary
interventions will enable our youth to contribute more meaningfully to decision making,
planning and implementation of programmes to realize the regional climate and health
agenda. Under our project, with the theme empowering Caribbean action for climate and
health, we are prioritizing youth engagement to drive change, “Mr. Chambliss stated.
The impacts of climate change have a ripple effect on a country’s development.
“It causes the economy to shrink by 2.2% forcing the government to divert funding which
could have been spent on important things for the development of our country like
education for young people like you,” Hon. Orlando Habet, Belize’s Minister of
Sustainable Development, Climate Change and Disaster Risk Management stated. “We
want our young people to be engaged, to be participatory, so we must include you in
consultations and decision-making processes because every single one of us can contribute
to the solutions and every action we take is important,” encouraged Hon. Orlando Habet.
To learn more about the I deserve a #BetterClimate4MyHealth campaign and how to get
involved, visit: www.caribbeanclimate.bz.
The Caribbean Community Climate Change Centre is an inter-governmental Caribbean
Community (CARICOM) institution that is mandated by the CARICOM Heads of Government to
coordinate the Region’s response to climate change. We maintain the Caribbean’s most extensive
repository of information and data on climate change specific to the region, which in part enables
us to provide climate change-related policy advice and guidelines to CARICOM Member States.
In this role, the Centre is recognized by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate
Change, the United Nations Environment Programme, and other international agencies as the
focal point for climate change issues in the Caribbean. The Centre is also one of the few institutions
recognized as a Centre of Excellence by United Nations Institute for Training and Research.
CCCCC is empowering the Caribbean Community to act on climate change.
