Fighting back against climate change: Canada helps create more resilient coastal communities

NAIROBI, Kenya, Nov. 26, 2018 /CNW/ - The impact that climate change has on the health and sustainability of our water resources threatens the livelihood and health of people around the world, especially people from Pacific islands countries and territories and Small Island Developing States. Ocean warming, acidification and sea-level rise put these coastal communities and their economies at risk.

Today, the Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard, the Honourable Jonathan Wilkinson, reiterated Canada's commitment to working with the global community to support resilient coasts and coastal communities by highlighting the following Canadian investments:

• $10 million to the Pacific Initiative for Biodiversity, Climate Change and Resilience. Funding for this joint initiative with the European Union, France, New Zealand and Australia will support efforts in the Pacific region to adapt to climate change, protect biodiversity, and improve ocean and fisheries health.
• $20 million for capacity development and technical assistance in Small Island Developing States. This includes areas of public financial management, financial sector supervisory capacity, and fostering inclusive growth.

Support in these areas complements Canada's commitments to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the marine conservation targets under the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity, as well as the Charlevoix Blueprint for Health Oceans, Seas, and Resilient Coastal Communities Canada endorsed during the G7 Leaders' Summit in June 2018.

Minister Wilkinson highlighted the funding during his statement of commitment to the sustainable blue economy, which he delivered on behalf of Canada during the opening day of the Sustainable Blue Economy Conference in Nairobi, Kenya. This first-ever global conference on the sustainable blue economy, which Canada is co-hosting, runs until November 28^th.

Quotes
"For coastal communities, like those of the Pacific region and Small Island Developing States, the ocean and their fisheries play a fundamental role in the prosperity of their communities, their food security, and their overall well-being. As a global community, we have the ability to slow down and even reverse the damage created by climate change. By working together through action-oriented collaborations like the Pacific Initiative for Biodiversity, Climate Change and Resilience, and through capacity building, we can build more resilient communities, protect biodiversity, improve the health of our oceans and support sustainable fisheries."

The Honourable Jonathan Wilkinson, Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard

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Associated Links

• Canada co-hosts the Sustainable Blue Economy Conference
• Canada's oceans agenda
• Charlevoix Blueprint for Health Oceans, Seas, and Resilient Coastal Communities
• Canada's Environment, Oceans and Energy Ministers announce concrete action to advance economic progress through healthy, sustainable oceans at G7 Ministerial Meeting
• Environment, Oceans and Energy Ministers ready to take action on our oceans and seas; conclude G7 joint meeting on Healthy Oceans, Seas and Resilient Coastal Communities

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SOURCE Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) Canada