Regional implementation meeting on access rights and sustainable development in the Caribbean region and workshop on climate change, natural disasters and coastal vulnerability

Monday, 24 August 2015

8:00 a.m. – 8:30 a.m. Participant registration

8:30 a.m. – 9:00 a.m. Opening remarks

• Turkessa Benjamin Antoine, Senior Legal Officer, Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States
• Diane Quarless, Director, ECLAC Sub-regional headquarters for the Caribbean
• Karetta Crooks-Charles, Saint  Lucia National Trust, Saint Lucia

9:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. Session 1: Current status of the implementation of Principle 10 in Latin America and the Caribbean and recent international and regional developments

• Carlos de Miguel, ECLAC
• Winston Anderson, Judge, Caribbean Court of Justice

Panellists:

• Maureen Payne, Junior Minister, Ministry of Justice and Legal Affairs, Antigua and Barbuda
• Turkessa Benjamin Antoine, Senior Legal Officer, OECS

11:00 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. Coffee break

Session 2: Good Practices, challenges and lessons learned in the Caribbean region on access to environmental information, public participation and justice in environmental matters

11:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. Panel 1: Good practices on access to information in environmental matters

Featured speaker:

• Damian Cox, Director, Access to Information Unit, Prime Minister’s Office, Jamaica

Panellist:

• Samantha Robertson, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Human Rights Association

Dialogue with the participants 

12:30 p.m. – 2:00 p.m. Break

2:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. Panel 2: Good practices on access to participation in environmental matters

Featured speaker:

• Melinda Janki, Executive Director, The Justice Institute Guyana

Dialogue with the participants

3:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m. Coffee break

3:30 p.m. – 4:30 p.m. Panel 3: Good practices on access to justice in environmental issues

Featured speaker:

• Chateram Sinanan, Chairman, Environmental Commission, Trinidad and Tobago

Panellist:

• Cristina Coc, President of Board of Directors, Maya Leaders Alliance

Dialogue with the participants

4:30 p.m. – 5:30 p.m. Panel 4: What is missing in the Caribbean Region for full application of access rights

• Carole Excell, World Resources Institute / The Access Initiative
• Amrikha Singh, Caricom
• Danielle Andrade, Attorney at Law, Jamaica

Dialogue with the participants

5:30 p.m. Closure of the day

Tuesday, 25 August 2015

8:30 a.m. – 8:45 a.m. Summary and wrap up of day one and presentation of objectives and methodology of the session

8:45 a.m. – 9:45 a.m. Presentation of the Bali Guidelines and the Preliminary document of the regional agreement

• Andrea Brusco, UNEP
• David Barrio, ECLAC

9:45 a.m. – 12:45 p.m. Review of preliminary document (access to information)

12:45 p.m. - 2:00 p.m. Break

2:00 p.m. - 3:30 p.m. Review of preliminary document (public participation)

3:30 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. Review of preliminary document (access to justice)

5:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m. Conclusions

Wednesday, 26 August 2015

Enhancing access to information on climate change, natural disasters and coastal vulnerability in the Caribbean: leaving no one behind

8:30 a.m. – 10:00 a.m. Session 1: Access to information on climate change and coastal vulnerability in the Caribbean region

Carlos de Miguel, Sustainable Development and Human Settlements Division, ECLAC

Panellists:

• Asha Singh, Head, Oceans Governance Unit, OECS
• Ruth Spencer, GEF National Focal Point, Antigua and Barbuda

Open discussion

10:00 a.m. – 10:30 a.m. Coffee break

10:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. Session 2: Disasters and the measurement of their effects and impact in the Caribbean region

Omar Bello, ECLAC Subregional Headquarters for the Caribbean

Panellist: Karetta Crooks-Charles, Saint Lucia National Trust

Open discussion

12:30 p.m. – 1:00 p.m. Closing of the workshop