Climate Policies in Latin America and the Caribbean: Success Stories and Challenges in the Fight against Climate Change

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mauricio Cárdenas ◽  
Juan Pablo Bonilla ◽  
Federico Brusa
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Latin America ◽  
Climate Policy ◽  
Latin American ◽  
Necessary Condition ◽  
Caribbean Region ◽  
Public And Private ◽  
Success Stories ◽  
Adoption And Implementation ◽  
The Caribbean

This work is aimed at nontraditional climate policy actors such as the finance and planning ministries of Latin America and the Caribbean. The objective is to provide a glimpse into the existing, limited, regional examples of how effective climate policy may be achieved while also contributing to sustainable economic and social development. The objectives of this work are multiple: (i) identify regional, tested, growth-spurring policy options that also contribute to sustainable development; (ii) present public and private financial solutions that may enable a just transition; (iii) offer considerations on regionally relevant green recovery packages; (iv) frame these elements within the existing regional political economya necessary condition for effective implementation; and (v) identify existing knowledge gaps while suggesting research avenues to further support the adoption of relevant measures. The Latin American and Caribbean region is highly vulnerable to climate change. Historically, the region has adopted an “adaptation first” posture. The regions early adoption and implementation of the Paris Agreements Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) framework also led to some ambitious decarbonization plans, as well as to considerable advances in the energy and transportation sectors. As countries submit the second iteration of their NDCs, some coordinated whole-of-government approaches emerge. Notwithstanding some positive signs, plenty remains to be done in sectors such as agriculture. From an implementation perspective, the challenge remains the same: to transform ambitious objectives into measurable results.

The Concept of the Caribbean in the Latin American Policy of the United States

1973 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 285-308
Author(s):  
Harold Molineu
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Latin America ◽  
Latin American ◽  
The United States ◽  
Caribbean Region ◽  
The Past ◽  
Caribbean Area ◽  
The Caribbean ◽  
Armed Intervention ◽  
Special Region

During the past twenty years, the United States has been involved in three cases of armed intervention in Latin America: Guatemala in 1954, Cuba in 1961, and the Dominican Republic in 1965. In addition, there was the naval blockade and possibility of intervention in Cuba in 1962 during the missile crisis. Each of these episodes occurred in the Caribbean region (defined as including those areas either in or adjacent to the Caribbean Sea). There were no similar armed interventions elsewhere in Latin America during this period, and in fact, all of the incidents of United States armed intervention in the Twentieth Century have taken place in the Caribbean area. Therefore, in its actions in Latin America, the United States appears to distinguish between the Caribbean area and the rest of the continent. The Caribbean is treated as a special region where military intervention is apparently more justifiable than elsewhere in Latin America. Only in the area outside the Caribbean has Washington found it possible to abide by its inter-American treaty commitments to nonintervention.

scholarly journals Composed Index for the Evaluation of Energy Security in Power Systems within the Frame of Energy Transitions—The Case of Latin America and the Caribbean

Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (9) ◽  
pp. 2467
Author(s):  
Sergio Fuentes ◽  
Roberto Villafafila-Robles ◽  
Joan Rull-Duran ◽  
Samuel Galceran-Arellano
Keyword(s):  
Latin America ◽  
Power Systems ◽  
Power System ◽  
Latin American ◽  
Energy Security ◽  
Caribbean Region ◽  
Electrical Systems ◽  
Energy Transitions ◽  
The Caribbean ◽  
Time Frames

Energy transitions are transforming energy systems around the globe. Such a shift has caused the power system to become a critical piece of infrastructure for the economic development of every nation on the planet. Therefore, guaranteeing its security is crucial, not only for energy purposes but also as a part of a national security strategy. This paper presents a multidimensional index developed to assess energy security of electrical systems in the long term. This tool, named the Power System Security Index (PSIx), which has been previously used for the evaluation of a country in two different time frames, is applied to evaluate the member countries of the Latin American Energy Organization, located within the Latin America and the Caribbean region, to measure its performance on energy security. Mixed results were obtained from the analysis, with clear top performers in the region such as Argentina, while there are others with broad areas of opportunity, as is the case of Haiti.

scholarly journals Breastfeeding and the nutritional transition in the Latin American and Caribbean Region: a success story?

2003 ◽  
Vol 19 (suppl 1) ◽  
pp. S119-S127 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rafael Pérez-Escamilla
Keyword(s):  
Latin America ◽  
Latin American ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Secondary Data ◽  
Breastfeeding Duration ◽  
Caribbean Region ◽  
Demographic And Health Surveys ◽  
Rural And Urban Areas ◽  
The Caribbean

The objectives of this paper are to examine recent breastfeeding duration trends in Latin America and the Caribbean to document: (a) rural-urban differentials, (b) differences in educational levels, and (c) changes in breastfeeding duration across time. Secondary data analyses were conducted with 23 Demographic and Health Surveys collected between the mid-1980s and mid-1990s. Results indicate that median breastfeeding duration is still greater in rural (as compared to urban) areas and among less (versus more) educated women, although these differentials are decreasing with time. In five of the six countries examined for secular trends, breastfeeding duration continues to increase in both rural and urban areas. Breastfeeding duration in urban and rural areas was strongly correlated within countries. Breastfeeding duration improved more among women with the highest and declined among those with the lowest levels of education. Results indicate that breastfeeding duration has increased in Latin America and the Caribbean at a time when the opposite was predicted, given the region's increased urbanization. Breastfeeding protection policies and promotion programs may explain part of the increase in breastfeeding duration.

scholarly journals Composed Index for the Evaluation of Energy Security in Power Systems within the frame of Energy Transitions – The case of Latin America and the Caribbean

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sergio Fuentes ◽  
Roberto Villafafila-Robles ◽  
Joan Rull-Duran ◽  
Samuel Galceran-Arellano
Keyword(s):  
Latin America ◽  
Power Systems ◽  
Power System ◽  
Latin American ◽  
Energy Security ◽  
Critical Infrastructure ◽  
Energy System ◽  
Caribbean Region ◽  
Energy Transitions ◽  
The Caribbean

Energy transitions are reshaping the global energy system. Such shift has taken the power system to become a critical infrastructure for achieving economic development of every nation in the planet, therefore, guaranteeing its security is crucial, not only for energy purposes but as a part of a national security strategy. This paper presents a multi-dimensional index developed to assess energy security of electrical systems in the long term. This tool, named Power System Security Index (PSIx), and which has been previously used for the evaluation of a country in two different time frames, is applied to evaluate the member countries of the Latin American Energy Organization, located within the Latin America and the Caribbean region, in order to measure their performance on energy security. Mixed results were obtained from the analysis, with clear top performers in the region such as Argentina, while there are others with broad areas of opportunity, as it is the case of Haiti.

Taking Stock of Regional Democratic Trends in Latin America and the Caribbean Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Keyword(s):  
Latin America ◽  
Latin American ◽  
Freedom Of Expression ◽  
Political Representation ◽  
The State ◽  
Vulnerable Groups ◽  
Caribbean Region ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Structural Problems ◽  
The Caribbean

This GSoD In Focus Special Brief provides an overview of the state of democracy of Latin America and the Caribbean at the end of 2019, prior to the outbreak of the pandemic, and assesses some of the preliminary impacts that the pandemic has had on democracy in the region in 2020. Key findings include: • Democratically, the region was ailing prior to the pandemic, with some countries suffering from democratic erosion or backsliding, others from democratic fragility and weakness. Overall, trust in democracy had been in steady decline in the decade preceding the pandemic. Citizen discontent has culminated in a protest wave hitting several countries in the region at the end of 2019. • The COVID-19 pandemic has hit a Latin American and Caribbean region plagued by unresolved structural problems of high crime and violence, political fragmentation and polarization, high poverty and inequality, corruption, and weak states. • Long-overdue political and socio-economic reforms have compounded the health and economic crises caused by the pandemic. This, coupled with heavy-handed approaches to curb the virus, risk further entrenching or exacerbating the concerning democratic trends observed in the region prior to the COVID-19 outbreak. • The challenges to democracy Latin America and the Caribbean during the pandemic include: the postponement of elections; excessive use of police force to enforce restrictions implemented to curb the pandemic; use of the military to carry out civil tasks; persistent crime and violence; new dangers for the right to privacy; increases in gender inequality and domestic violence; new risks posed to vulnerable groups; limited access to justice; restrictions on freedom of expression; executive overreach; reduced parliamentary oversight; political polarization and clashes between democratic institutions; new openings for corruption; and a discontented socially mobilized citizenry that rejects traditional forms of political representation. • Despite the challenges, the crisis ultimately provides a historic opportunity to redefine the terms of social contracts across the region, and for governments to think innovatively about how to open up spaces for dialogue and civic participation in order to build more inclusive, sustainable and interconnected societies, as well as more accountable, transparent and efficient democratic systems of government. The review of the state of democracy during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 uses qualitative analysis and data of events and trends in the region collected through International IDEA’s Global Monitor of COVID-19’s Impact on Democracy and Human Rights, an initiative co-funded by the European Union.

Climate Change Impacts on Agriculture in Latin America and the Caribbean: An Application of the Integrated Economic-Environmental Modeling (IEEM) Platform

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Onil Banerjee ◽  
Martin Cicowiez ◽  
Ana Rios ◽  
Cicero De Lima
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Labor Productivity ◽  
Latin American ◽  
Climate Change Impacts ◽  
Crop Productivity ◽  
Environmental Modeling ◽  
Sectoral Output ◽  
The Caribbean ◽  
Negative Impacts ◽  
Agricultural Yields

In this paper, we assess the economy-wide impact of Climate Change (CC) on agriculture and food security in 20 Latin American and the Caribbean (LAC) countries. Specifically, we focus on the following three channels through which CC may affect agricultural and non-agricultural production: (i) agricultural yields; (ii) labor productivity in agriculture, and; (iii) economy-wide labor productivity. We implement the analysis using the Integrated Economic-Environmental Model (IEEM) and databases for 20 LAC available through the OPEN IEEM Platform. Our analysis identifies those countries most affected according to key indicators including Gross Domestic Product (GDP), international commerce, sectoral output, poverty, and emissions. Most countries experience negative impacts on GDP, with the exception of the major soybean producing countries, namely, Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay. We find that CC-induced crop productivity and labor productivity changes affect countries differently. The combined impact, however, indicates that Belize, Nicaragua, Guatemala and Paraguay would fare the worst. Early identification of these hardest hit countries can enable policy makers pre-empting these effects and beginning the design of adaptation strategies early on. In terms of greenhouse gas emissions, only Argentina, Chile and Uruguay would experience small increases in emissions.

IDB Group and Climate Action

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Latin American ◽  
Paris Agreement ◽  
Climate Finance ◽  
Development Bank ◽  
Multilateral Development Banks ◽  
Climate Action ◽  
The Caribbean ◽  
Development Banks ◽  
Bank Group

As one of the leading development partners for Latin American and the Caribbean (LAC), the Inter-American Development Bank Group (IDB Group) is fully committed to lead by example on climate change action. Since the signing of the Paris Agreement, the IDB Group has provided over $20 billion in Climate Finance, amounting to about 60% of all Climate Finance to the region from Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs).

scholarly journals Effects of Climate Change on Exposure to Coastal Flooding in Latin America and the Caribbean

PLoS ONE ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 10 (7) ◽  
pp. e0133409 ◽  
Author(s):  
Borja G. Reguero ◽  
Iñigo J. Losada ◽  
Pedro Díaz-Simal ◽  
Fernando J. Méndez ◽  
Michael W. Beck
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Latin America ◽  
Coastal Flooding ◽  
The Caribbean

scholarly journals Maritime Piracy in the Modern Era in Latin America

2020 ◽  
pp. 121-128
Author(s):  
Amarilla Kiss
Keyword(s):  
Latin America ◽  
International Law ◽  
Latin American ◽  
Legal Aspect ◽  
Maritime Piracy ◽  
American States ◽  
The Caribbean ◽  
Domestic Law ◽  
Modern Era ◽  
Latin American Countries

Maritime piracy is an activity that was considered defunct long ago and that Latin American countries experience it again in the 21st century. Since 2016 the number of attacks has increased dramatically involving armed robbery, kidnapping and massacre. Modern day piracy has nothing to do with the romantic illusion of the pirates of the Caribbean, this phenomenon is associated with the governmental, social or economic crisis of a state. When it appears, we can make further conclusions regarding the general conditions of the society in these states. But do these attacks really constitute piracy under international law? Does Latin American piracy have unique features that are different from piracy in the rest of the world? The study attempts to answer the questions why piracy matters in Latin America and how it relates to drug trafficking and terrorism. Apart from that, the study presents a legal aspect comparing the regulation of international law to domestic law, especially to the national law of Latin American states.

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