(CARICOM Secretariat, Turkeyen, Greater Georgetown, Guyana) On Monday 23 April 2007, the CARICOM Secretariat will host a Press Briefing on climate change for the Caribbean media. Organized by the Caribbean Community Climate Change Centre (CCCCC), and the Secretariat of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the briefing will highlight the results of the IPCC’s latest assessment report on climate change and in particular the impacts on the Caribbean.

The IPCC is an inter-governmental organization established by the World Meteorological Organization and the United Nations Environmental Programme in 1988 to assess the science, impacts and the economics of addressing climate change and to provide advice to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. It has produced a series of Assessment Reports in 1990, 1995 and 2000, and is now in the process of releasing its Fourth Assessment Report.

These reports are reviewed by experts from around the world. A number of well-respected Caribbean scientists contribute to these vital assessments and reports. These include Dr. Leonard Nurse of Barbados, Dr. John Agard of Trinidad and Tobago, and Dr. Ulric Trotz of Guyana, Science Adviser to the Climate Change Centre.

At the Press Briefing, Dr. Nurse, Dr. Agard, Dr. Trotz and other senior scientists from the Centre will describe the trends observed in the Caribbean, the vulnerability of the islands and low-lying coastal states, the impacts of climate change in the region and the adaptation measures to be considered. This information is said to be crucial to decision-makers, policymakers and the general public to enable the Caribbean to address the challenges posed by climate change.

The Caribbean Community Climate Change Centre was established by CARICOM Heads of Government to coordinate the Region’s response to climate change. It is based in Belmopan, Belize.