[Media Invitation] Launch of the Regional Environmental Monitoring Data Portal (REMDAP)

The Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) Commission will be launching a Regional Environmental Monitoring Data Portal (REMDAP) on Tuesday, March 19, 2024, at the Dolphin’s Conference Room, Bay Gardens Beach Resort and Spa, Rodney Bay, Gros Islet. This initiative is in partnership with the United Nations Environment Programme’s Caribbean Environment Programme (UNEP-CEP) and the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA), through the GEF-funded Integrating Water, Land, and Ecosystem Management in Caribbean Small Island Developing States (GEF IWEco) Project.

In 2021, a Feasibility Study for the Establishment of a Regional Environmental Monitoring Data Portal was completed under the IWEco project. The study recognised the importance of prioritising the generation of environmental data for more effective science-based decision-making and the need for a shared web-based geo-spatial portal for environmental data. Under Component 3.1 of the project, implemented by CARPHA and the OECS Commission, REMDAP was determined to be a priority initiative for the Caribbean region based on national stakeholder consultations. The portal has been developed and implemented in eight participating countries, including five OECS Member States: Antigua and Barbuda, Grenada, St. Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, and St. Vincent and the Grenadines. Later this year, REMDAP will be implemented in four other OECS Member States: Dominica, Montserrat, Anguilla, and the Virgin Islands. This will be supported by the EU-funded Biodiversity Support Programme in ACP Coastal Environments (BioSPACE) project.

The overall objective of REMDAP is to contribute to the preservation of Caribbean ecosystems and natural resources through the improvement of data availability and to serve as a clearinghouse mechanism to strengthen the process of regional environmental monitoring and assessment. It also seeks to:

1. Provide a readily available source of reliable data to decision-makers, academics, NGOs, etc.;
2. Provide a set of useful metrics, indicators, and variables for monitoring;
3. Include multi-scale tools and indicators to monitor progress towards achieving targets in multilateral environmental agreements; and
4. Upgrade capacity in the region (for the management of spatial data and information for environmental indicators).

REMDAP will contribute to the preservation of Caribbean ecosystems and natural resources through the improvement of data availability, enabling informed decisions, and will strengthen the process of regional environmental monitoring and assessment.

WHAT: Launch Regional Environmental Monitoring Data Portal (REMDAP)

WHEN: Tuesday, March 18, 2024

TIME: 8.30 a.m. (AST) 

IN-PERSON ATTENDEES: Bay Gardens Beach Resort and Spa, Rodney Bay, Saint Lucia