Rosalea Hamilton | Climate resilience and constitutional reform: Lessons from Hurricane Beryl

Hurricane Beryl is another reminder of the existential threat that climate change poses for the Caribbean. It was not just a record-breaking Category 5 meteorological event; it was a profound reminder of our vulnerabilities, inequities, and inadequate governance arrangements.

As we grapple with the devastating aftermath, we have an opportunity to reimagine our future and rethink strategies to build climate resilience and improve governance. A key strategy is constitutional change to empower communities to find meaningful and relevant climate-resilient solutions before and after such climate events.

ROLE OF COMMUNITIES

Amid the devastation, the true first responders were the community members that faced the fury of sustained wind speeds of about 160 miles per hour (257 kilometres per hour). I met a few of them in the worst-hit communities in southern Jamaica. Some lived many miles from designated shelters and from organisations that can provide support. Without communication, they had to fend for themselves. As neighbours and extended families, they banded together to weather the storm and pick up the pieces afterwards. Community action is sometimes the difference between life and death, especially in areas where official responders are slow to arrive. To prevent injury, especially to children, residents in Waterford, St Catherine, captured a crocodile in their midst while awaiting the official response from Jamaica’s National Environment and Planning Agency.

Such community action underscores a critical point: local communities are not merely passive victims of natural disasters but active agents capable of significant contributions to disaster response and recovery. In the aftermath of Hurricane Beryl, Prime Minister Holness highlighted this point. He commended community members for helping themselves and helping others and noted that in a crisis, citizens should not wait on government action. He reminded citizens that they have “agency ... the ability to help yourselves”.

However, the ‘agency’ of individuals is constrained by limited resources, inadequate or degraded community infrastructure, and, importantly, the absence of constitutionally recognised power to make or influence policy and law. As social beings, humans require both individual agency and collective association to thrive. Individual agency is strengthened when communities have power and can protect individual rights and freedoms. But communities lack formal recognition in law. Hence, they lack the capacity to make many proactive decisions about structural safeguards that can help them to better respond to climate events that directly affect their lives and livelihoods.

By empowering people in communities to use their local knowledge and experience to make and influence climate-related decisions, communities can strengthen their resilience, mitigate the impact of climate change, and improve social and economic outcomes.

COMMUNITY-BASED CLIMATE RESILIENCE

1. Early warning systems that leverage local knowledge and networks should be institutionalised to ensure timely evacuations and adequate preparations.

2. Training/capacity building are necessary to enhance the ability of communities to cope with, and recover from, disasters.

3. Decentralised resource allocation to local governments and community organisations will enhance responsiveness and efficiency. It limits opportunities for large-scale corruption, abuse of power, and delays typically associated with centralised disaster relief efforts.

To effectively act on these lessons, decentralised, participatory governance is essential, where communities are involved in formulating and implementing policy. This must be formalised as nationally recognised rights enabling communities to decide how to prepare for and to recover from climate events. Enforceable rights to a healthy, sustainable environment and local economy are also paramount.

MEANINGFUL CONSTITUTIONAL REFORM

In Jamaica, although s.2(4)(a) of The Constitution (Amendment) (Local Government) Act, 2015 encourages community participation in local government, there are no effective mechanisms in place to achieve this. The right to participate in public affairs and the right of communities to self-determination is codified in international law to which Jamaica is a signatory (e.g., International Covenant on Civil & Political Rights, 1963).

It is essential, therefore, that regulations and relevant institutional arrangements exist to give real meaning to these rights. This includes establishing legal frameworks that support community-owned businesses to develop the local economy and improve living standards. Community-owned renewable energy projects, water-management systems and other infrastructure developments that can protect the environment and the livelihood of community members are also essential.

Constitutional provisions to give real meaning to participatory governance and self-determination are essential to build climate resilience. They give communities the security and legitimacy they need to pursue innovative solutions to climate challenges. Such provisions include the right to

1.Participate in public affairs … right to “formulation and implementation of policy”.

2.Petition municipal councils and central government – right to submit written and/or oral requests, complaints or appeals, express opinions, raise concerns, or suggest changes.

3.Make decisions about how to spend a share of the Local Government Development Budget.

4.Self-determination – right to make our own decisions about how to mitigate the effects of climate change and improve living conditions in our communities.

Constitutional reform should also embed climate-justice principles, ensuring that the burdens and benefits of climate policies are distributed equitably. This involves prioritising the needs of vulnerable and marginalised populations and ensuring that development policies do not exacerbate existing inequalities. Here, we should reconsider the role of the Senate as more than a legislative rubber-stamping body for Cabinet decisions. Instead, senators should become protectors of marginalised groups/communities, ensuring that opportunities and resources are fairly distributed and defenders of the equality of status and spatial equity of the parishes in the development of communities across Jamaica.

BERYL’S WAKE-UP CALL

The devastation wrought by Beryl is a wake-up call. Climate analysts argue that we are experiencing “climate departure”, a new state where heat records and extreme temperatures become the norm. A 2013 study projected that Kingston will be among the first cities in the world to reach its climate departure in 2023. However, if we take mitigation action now, we can slow the climate-departure process.

We stand at a critical juncture, with an opportunity to transform adversity into a catalyst for change. Let’s rebuild our governance systems to leverage the strength, wisdom, and aspirations of our communities in securing our future. Let’s decentralise power, integrate community voices into policymaking, and enshrine climate justice and good governance in our Constitution. Let’s build more resilient communities ready to face the catastrophic storms of the future.

Rosalea Hamilton, PhD, is founding director, Institute of Law & Economics. Send feedback to rosaleahamilton@gmail.com and columns@gleanerjm.com