Climate Change, Adaptation and Security in Central America and the Caribbean (CSL Issue Paper, Volume 3-11)

摘要

Conservation International classifies Mesoamerica and the Caribbean among the world's top twenty-five 'biodiversity hotspots' because climate change will have a major impact on those region's economies and natural resources. Climate-related changes are already being experienced in the region with many Latin American countries being vulnerable due to their extensive coastlines, particularly the small island states in the Caribbean. Hurricanes, floods, landslides and earthquakes in the region are becoming more frequent or severe, thereby affecting stability, contributing to poverty, destroying agricultural land, and contributing to food and clean water scarcity. These changes will shape the region's security environment, and increase the need for military support to civil authorities in order to mitigate and adapt to those effects.