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“We want to be able to compete in terms of moving our country in the green technology way and we need to be able to learn how to teach research.” So said Mr. A. Griffith, a science teacher from Barbados and one of the hundreds of educators who took time out of their busy holiday schedules to attend the Online Teacher Training Workshop held by the Caribbean Examinations Council (CXC) from 14th to 16th December 2021. The three-day workshop was the final chapter of a workshop series funded by the Technical Assistance Programme for Sustainable Energy in the Caribbean (TAPSEC) [...]

Sustainable energy is crucial to regional development. This has only become clearer as we work to recover from the effects of the ongoing pandemic. A future in which the Caribbean region is no longer reliant on imported fossil fuels, free from the uncertainties of unpredictable oil prices and protected from the environmental impacts of fossil fuel use will be a bright one indeed. While the diversification of our energy resources is a major part of the shift to a sustainable energy future, it’s equally critical to ensure that our energy sectors are capable of withstanding the challenges ahead. Side-by-side with [...]

Guyana is one step further along in its transition towards a green economy with its participation in the Regional Integrated Utility Service (IUS) pilot programme. With technical support from the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) and CARICOM, Guyana Power and Light Incorporated (GPL) partnered with the Organisation of American States (OAS) and the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) to join the programme. The IUS pilot programme shifts the traditional relationship between regional energy utilities and their customers, promoting sustainable energy use by closing the gap between customers seeking access to renewable energy/energy efficient technology and utility companies [...]

Energy is at the heart of our daily lives. We rely on a stable and sustainable energy supply to support the majority of our activities, from ensuring our children’s attendance at digital school to meeting deadlines at work, to relaxing at home with our loved ones. Unfortunately, across the Caribbean region, our national energy grids often face pressure from a variety of sources, which can undermine their ability to provide power reliably. A key method for addressing this issue is strong, comprehensive planning, which can be the difference between a nation’s ability to recover from significant challenges and a population [...]

The Caribbean region has an abundance of renewable natural resources that can play key roles in helping us follow the path set out in the Caribbean Sustainable Energy Roadmap and Strategy (C-SERMS). From solar to wind power, hydro to geothermal energy and ocean energy to biofuel, there is a wide variety of renewable energy potential across CARICOM. However, most of these resources remain untapped due to a lack of investment in projects that would seek to utilise them. The Caribbean Centre for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency (CCREEE) has taken on the mantle of bridging this gap through the establishment [...]

The journey towards a sustainable, climate-resilient and renewable energy future requires careful planning and sound decision-making resting on a foundation of high-quality data. For the Caribbean region — an area spanning almost three million kilometres and encompassing a wide variety of natural resources, infrastructures and needs — reliable data is particularly essential and has historically been difficult to come by. In recognition of this, the Caribbean Centre for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency (CCREEE) has created the CARICOM Energy Knowledge Hub (CEKH). This information and knowledge management framework provides access to unprecedented amounts of accurate, up-to-date, energy-related data all in [...]

Policy and regulation development play a foundational role in the kind of meaningful change the Technical Assistance Programme for Sustainable Energy in the Caribbean (TAPSEC) is seeking to support throughout the region. Before the Caribbean can transition to a future in which all citizens have access to sustainable, reliable and resilient energy supplies, we need solid frameworks for how every stakeholder and organisation will operate. In recognition of this pressing need, TAPSEC’s policy component focuses on supporting the regional modernisation and implementation of the policies, legislation and regulatory frameworks guiding the development of our renewable energy and energy efficiency capacity. [...]

Capacity-building is at the heart of any development initiative. In order to adapt to an ever-changing world, a nation (and a region) must develop and strengthen the skills of its people as well as the processes and resources of its organisations and communities. For this reason, capacity-building is a crucial pillar of TAPSEC’s mission to support the Caribbean region’s journey towards a sustainable future. Leading the way in this arena is Dr. Niebert Blair, TAPSEC Capacity Building Advisor, with responsibility for supporting the regional and international exchange of innovative technological solutions, financing models and regulatory mechanisms relating to the Renewable [...]

In an area as culturally diverse and geographically expansive as the Caribbean, any regional initiative pursuing a meaningful impact requires a strong understanding of the unique contexts and constraints of each society therein. This perspective is only growing more critical as the intensifying effects of climate change and the economic impacts of the ongoing pandemic combine to threaten the region’s growth. Now more than ever, sustainable energy policies such as the CARICOM Energy Policy (CEP) and Caribbean Sustainable Energy Roadmap and Strategy (C-SERMS) offer a path towards a hopeful future for the millions of citizens living in this region. Based [...]

In September 2017, Dominica, Saint Croix and Puerto Rico were devastated by Hurricane Maria, the worst natural disaster in the recorded history of those islands. The deadly Category 5 storm destroyed more than 90% of Dominica’s structures as its powerful winds ripped leaves from trees and stranded residents of remote communities without grid-based electricity for more than a year. Maria damaged or destroyed 70% of St. Croix’ buildings (including the island’s only hospital) while knocking out the power grid and communications networks for the entire U.S. Virgin Islands. In Puerto Rico, it caused more than US$90 billion in damages and [...]