The Secretary of the United States Navy, Carlos del Toro, reaffirmed this Wednesday his country’s commitment to the Caribbean nations in their fight against the “existential threat” of climate change.
“The United States is in the Caribbean,” Del Toro said during a meeting with authorities, students, professors at the University of the Bahamas, in Nassau. “Time is not on our side. We are in a critical decade to make significant progress towards avoiding worst-case climate scenarios. We must act now. We view the climate crisis as we would any ship disaster: everyone on deck.”
The head of the US Department of the Navy, the second Hispanic in that position, assured that he came to the Caribbean island to “hear challenges and stories” about how to face the climate emergency, “whose consequences are already being felt in the Caribbean and also in USA”.
“Climate change does not respect borders. Hurricanes do not care about the passport you carry with you,” he insisted, while recalling that the region has experienced a dozen devastating storms in the last decade alone.
Climate change and its effects have caused sea level rise in the Caribbean, whose islands have also suffered from flooding, extreme temperatures, and the salinization of farmland, endangering ecosystems and the ability to earn a living on a area that is sustained mainly thanks to tourism.
The Secretary of the US Navy mentioned several of the cooperation projects with universities and governments in the region in this regard, including a million-dollar project to finance infrastructure for disaster assistance, together with assistance in dealing with health emergencies and outbreaks. epidemic.
Climate change does not respect borders. Hurricanes don’t care what passport you carry with you”
He specified that they are working on energy efficiency programs to lower carbon emissions in their bases and vessels, in addition to financing scientific research on the soil and marine life, especially coral reefs in the Caribbean.
“No one can fight climate change alone, we want to share information, resources and knowledge with allies, governments and NGOs. All over the world, from Vietnam or Ghana to right here in the Caribbean, we are collaborating on projects and developing good practices” , he claimed.
Secretary Del Toro, born in Cuba, insisted that he still feels part of the Caribbean community and has made the “threat of climate change a priority” since taking office 18 months ago.
He added that the US Navy launched in May the Climate Action Plan 2030. “To continue to be the world’s dominant maritime force, the Navy must adapt to climate change: we must build resilience and reduce the threat,” del Toro said.
In addition, he highlighted the willingness of the Biden Administration to support efforts to reduce the effects of climate change, reflected in the Partnership between the United States and the Caribbean to address the climate crisis 2030 (PACC 2030), presented by Vice President Kamala Harris last June.
Del Toro also mentioned the recent visit to the Bahamas of the United States envoy for climate affairs, John Kerry, and announced that he will transfer this exchange to him when both coincide at the VIII Our Oceans Conference, to be held in Panama on March 2 and 3.
Secretary Del Toro announced that next April the IX Inter-American Specialized Conference for Science, Technology and Innovation will be held in Orlando, with participants from the United States, the Caribbean and Central America, which will focus on the use of scientific innovation to face climate change and marine pollution.
“We recognize that the strength and resilience of our friends and neighbors in this region is vitally important to our own security and as I have said, and as I will continue to say, we want to help,” he remarked.
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