93
living, thus putting a large percentage of young
people and other sectors of the population in poverty. The government has been unsuccessful in
coming up with a viable alternative to banana
production as a strategy to provide sustainable
employment. The increase in unemployment has
severe consequences for the escalation of unlawful practices among the youth such as crime,
drugs and gang culture. Drought and temperature
rise have also impacted negatively on agricultural
production.
The impact of climate change on the tourism
sector was highlighted as a critical development
issue by participants and researchers alike. The
contamination of the entire beachfront and dive
sites by seaweeds and seagrass has prevented
tourists from bathing in the sea and participating
in dive tours and snorkelling along the coral
reefs. This situation is compounded by coral
bleaching, which has resulted in the death of the
coral reefs due to increases in sea surface temperature (Nurse et al. 2014; IPCC 2014a, b;
Hernandez-Delgado 2015). The destruction of
coral reefs is also having severe consequences for
the fisheries sector as well as for the tourism
industry (Chatenoux and Wolf 2013; Nurse et al.
2014; Hernandez-Delgado 2015). The negative
impacts on the tourism and fisheries sectors have
caused a reduction in livelihoods in both industries and have led to economic hardships in these
small island communities (Poschen 2015; UNDP
2015). The economies of small island
communities could be significantly susceptible to
environmental disasters (Adrianto and Matsuda
2002) and extreme weather events such as hurricanes (Scavia et al. 2002). It is predicted that further increases in the impact of climate pressures/
stressors on SIDS communities would increase
social and economic vulnerability (Nurse et al.
2014; IPCC 2014a, b).
The youth are frustrated with the lack of
investments by the government to prepare them
for the future; they have no faith nor trust in the
government. The training currently provided in
schools and colleges should focus on providing
the youth with the necessary skills and knowledge to develop employment and sustainable
livelihoods in the future, including green jobs and
renewable technologies such as wind, solar and
geothermal energy (ILO 2010; Poschen 2015).
Therefore, such knowledge and skills in the construction of solar, wind and other forms of renewable energy would enhance energy efficiency as
well as reduce greenhouse gas emissions into the
atmosphere, thus reducing the impact of climate
change in the future (Poschen 2015). This training programme is not available in the current
education curriculum.
The youth are the resources to drive the future
development of SIDS, and unfortunately, they are
not given adequate resources to develop themselves. Ultimately, this would have serious longterm consequences on the effectiveness of society
to build its adaptive capacity and resilience to
adapt to climate change. The literature cogently
argued that climate change would bring severe
changes to existing enterprises and the economic
sectors. Therefore, many jobs and livelihoods
that are currently in existence today will not exist
in the future. Those jobs that will still be in the
future will require new knowledge and skills to
carry them out efficiently (ILO 2010, 2013;
UNDP 2015).
The government would have to change gear
urgently to ensure that appropriate programmes
are implemented to provide skills and knowledge
to the youth to enable them to develop their adaptive capacity to deal with the vulnerabilities
plaguing the island. A range of new skills and
expertise will be needed to ensure the youth
acquire these skills and competencies to adapt to
climate change. Part of this preparation would be
to protect existing enterprises, workplaces and
communities from the negative impacts of climate change (ILO 2013; Nurse et al. 2014;
Poschen 2015; UNDP 2015).
Enhancing Poverty Reduction
and Well-Being
To improve food security and reduce poverty in
the future, the youth need to be trained in scientific knowledge and skills to cultivate droughtand disease-resistant crops, as well as to
implement more viable sustainable farming pracTheme 1: Exploring the Vulnerability of the Youth in SIDS Communities
living, thus putting a large percentage of young
people and other sectors of the population in poverty. The government has been unsuccessful in
coming up with a viable alternative to banana
production as a strategy to provide sustainable
employment. The increase in unemployment has
severe consequences for the escalation of unlawful practices among the youth such as crime,
drugs and gang culture. Drought and temperature
rise have also impacted negatively on agricultural
production.
The impact of climate change on the tourism
sector was highlighted as a critical development
issue by participants and researchers alike. The
contamination of the entire beachfront and dive
sites by seaweeds and seagrass has prevented
tourists from bathing in the sea and participating
in dive tours and snorkelling along the coral
reefs. This situation is compounded by coral
bleaching, which has resulted in the death of the
coral reefs due to increases in sea surface temperature (Nurse et al. 2014; IPCC 2014a, b;
Hernandez-Delgado 2015). The destruction of
coral reefs is also having severe consequences for
the fisheries sector as well as for the tourism
industry (Chatenoux and Wolf 2013; Nurse et al.
2014; Hernandez-Delgado 2015). The negative
impacts on the tourism and fisheries sectors have
caused a reduction in livelihoods in both industries and have led to economic hardships in these
small island communities (Poschen 2015; UNDP
2015). The economies of small island
communities could be significantly susceptible to
environmental disasters (Adrianto and Matsuda
2002) and extreme weather events such as hurricanes (Scavia et al. 2002). It is predicted that further increases in the impact of climate pressures/
stressors on SIDS communities would increase
social and economic vulnerability (Nurse et al.
2014; IPCC 2014a, b).
The youth are frustrated with the lack of
investments by the government to prepare them
for the future; they have no faith nor trust in the
government. The training currently provided in
schools and colleges should focus on providing
the youth with the necessary skills and knowledge to develop employment and sustainable
livelihoods in the future, including green jobs and
renewable technologies such as wind, solar and
geothermal energy (ILO 2010; Poschen 2015).
Therefore, such knowledge and skills in the construction of solar, wind and other forms of renewable energy would enhance energy efficiency as
well as reduce greenhouse gas emissions into the
atmosphere, thus reducing the impact of climate
change in the future (Poschen 2015). This training programme is not available in the current
education curriculum.
The youth are the resources to drive the future
development of SIDS, and unfortunately, they are
not given adequate resources to develop themselves. Ultimately, this would have serious longterm consequences on the effectiveness of society
to build its adaptive capacity and resilience to
adapt to climate change. The literature cogently
argued that climate change would bring severe
changes to existing enterprises and the economic
sectors. Therefore, many jobs and livelihoods
that are currently in existence today will not exist
in the future. Those jobs that will still be in the
future will require new knowledge and skills to
carry them out efficiently (ILO 2010, 2013;
UNDP 2015).
The government would have to change gear
urgently to ensure that appropriate programmes
are implemented to provide skills and knowledge
to the youth to enable them to develop their adaptive capacity to deal with the vulnerabilities
plaguing the island. A range of new skills and
expertise will be needed to ensure the youth
acquire these skills and competencies to adapt to
climate change. Part of this preparation would be
to protect existing enterprises, workplaces and
communities from the negative impacts of climate change (ILO 2013; Nurse et al. 2014;
Poschen 2015; UNDP 2015).
Enhancing Poverty Reduction
and Well-Being
To improve food security and reduce poverty in
the future, the youth need to be trained in scientific knowledge and skills to cultivate droughtand disease-resistant crops, as well as to
implement more viable sustainable farming pracTheme 1: Exploring the Vulnerability of the Youth in SIDS Communities