The Caribbean’s contribution to climate change is negligible but the projected impacts of
global climate change on the region may be devastating given the limited adaptive capacity
of CARICOM small island and low lying coastal states. Understanding a community’s
vulnerability to potential impacts of extreme weather events, resilience and adaptive capacity
to recover post disaster is important as it can guide appropriate interventions.
Based upon a previous assessment of two large scale water and sanitation projects in Trinidad
and Jamaica, the paper proposes a series of practical indicators to measure the vulnerability,
resilience and adaptive capacity of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) from which
inferences can be made about their host communities. SMEs may engage in the development/
adaption/ adoption of “green” technologies or through lobbying efforts can improve their
own, their community’s and/or the country’s resilience to climate hazards. As indicators,
SMEs are discrete enumerable entities whose numbers may change over time due to a range
of factors, including suitability of location. Management of risk is a normal part of their
operation and they have a range of measurable attributes relating to their operational process.
The following indicators are discussed: SMEs per area, Type of industry, Registration status
of business, Tenure status, Topography and environmental conditions, Insurance, Type and
location of data storage and Organisation membership.