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© 2025 Island Innovation. All rights reserved.

    News

    Curated stories and analysis from islands and sustainability leaders worldwide.

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    Showing 9 of 98 news items in Green Finance & Economy
    Position Paper: Bridge the Climate Finance Gap for the BES Islands
    Green Finance & EconomyMarch 25, 2026

    Position Paper: Bridge the Climate Finance Gap for the BES Islands

    Excerpt from clean-energy-islands.ec.europa.eu The special municipalities of Bonaire, Sint Eustatius, and Saba (BES islands) are located in the Caribbean and part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The BES islands face growing challenges in securing the financing needed for a clean, reliable, and affordable energy transition. Energy transition financing is not only an environmental imperative for economic stability and energy security. The BES islands are highly motivated and have a robust pipeline of projects to meet their climate goals. By streamlining access to the right funding mechanisms, these initiatives can be unlocked. Clearer, scale-appropriate investment pathways will accelerate the transition to clean, reliable, and affordable energy, ensuring long-term stability and prosperity for households, utilities, and public budgets alike. As special municipalities, the position of the local governments and the utilities of the islands of Bonaire, Sint Eustasius, and Saba differs from that of autonomous OCTs, and as a result, they face specific challenges in financing their energy transition. In this position paper, the Clean energy for EU islands secretariat presents those challenges and proposes recommendations for European and national policymakers to improve access to funding for the energy transition in the BES islands.

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    New Small States Bulletin highlights power of Commonwealth partnership for vulnerable economies
    Green Finance & EconomyMarch 18, 2026

    New Small States Bulletin highlights power of Commonwealth partnership for vulnerable economies

    Excerpt from thecommonwealth.org The Commonwealth has mobilised millions of dollars in climate finance, strengthened debt management across 16 countries, and accelerated renewable energy investment in vulnerable Commonwealth Small States, with results highlighted in a new report launched today in London. The Commonwealth Small States Bulletin 2025, themed “Stronger Together: Scaling Solutions for Small States,” was unveiled at the Commonwealth Investment Network (CIN) Summit, detailing practical solutions for supporting small states in navigating rising debt pressures, climate shocks, and limited access to finance.

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    When autonomy meets climate stress: Centralized finance and climate adaptation in a semi-autonomous island
    Green Finance & EconomyMarch 2, 2026

    When autonomy meets climate stress: Centralized finance and climate adaptation in a semi-autonomous island

    Excerpt from “When autonomy meets climate stress: Centralized finance and climate adaptation in a semi-autonomous island” by Marie Stéphania Perrine, published on LinkedIn Pulse (24 February 2026). Introduction Across small island contexts, decentralization is frequently framed as a pathway to locally tailored development and improved governance responsiveness (Narotoma, 2022). Yet in climate-exposed island jurisdictions, the practical implications of autonomy depend less on formal legislative authority than on fiscal architecture (OECD, 2023). Semi-autonomous island regions often exercise administrative and policy control over key development sectors while remaining embedded within nationally centralized macro-fiscal systems (Baldacchino, 2006). This institutional configuration has significant consequences for climate-resilient development. This article examines how fiscal arrangements shape resilience capacity in semi-autonomous island jurisdictions, drawing specifically on the case of Rodrigues (Mauritius). It argues that climate vulnerability interacts decisively with centralized fiscal design (SNG-WOF, 2022): where decentralization transfers responsibility without transferring scalable financial instruments, vulnerability may be compounded rather than reduced (Tye and Suarez, 2021; Alcántara-Ayala et al., 2025).

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    How insurance can transform our resilience to climate shocks
    Green Finance & EconomyJanuary 25, 2026

    How insurance can transform our resilience to climate shocks

    Excerpt from eco-business.com Photo credit: Noel Celis / Greenpeace via eco-business.com As the world accelerates efforts to decarbonise, a crisis continues to unfold: the rising toll of climate shocks on people least equipped to bear them. When Hurricane Melissa slammed into Jamaica as a Category 5 storm, it produced extensive damage and highlighted the exposure of vulnerable communities to climate risk. Early estimates suggest tens of billions of dollars in economic losses, yet insurance penetration - a tool that could help remedy these losses - remains very low with less than 5 per cent of properties estimated to have meaningful cover.

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    Spain unveils €405m support scheme for renewables and clean-tech manufacturing
    Green Finance & EconomyJanuary 15, 2026

    Spain unveils €405m support scheme for renewables and clean-tech manufacturing

    Excerpt and Photo Credit: strategicenergy.eu Spain has launched two new funding calls totalling 405 million euros to advance its energy transition strategy, combining support for renewable energy deployment with measures to strengthen domestic industrial capacity in clean technologies. The initiatives are managed by the Ministry for the Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge (MITECO) and the Institute for the Diversification and Saving of Energy (IDAE). Together, they aim to accelerate the replacement of fossil fuels while positioning Spain as a competitive manufacturing hub for the European clean-tech value chain.

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    St. Kitts and Nevis Expands Investment Focus to Agriculture, Renewable Energy and Technology
    Green Finance & EconomyOctober 6, 2026

    St. Kitts and Nevis Expands Investment Focus to Agriculture, Renewable Energy and Technology

    St. Kitts and Nevis has broadened the scope of its investment portfolio beyond the traditional offerings by putting agriculture, aquaculture, renewable energy, information technology, financial services, light manufacturing and international education alongside tourism within its priority sectors of opportunities. The IMF projects a growth of 2.5% over the medium term in 2026, with construction, agriculture, renewable energy projects and continued tourism expansion supporting the economy. The projection and the investment architecture reflects the direction, providing investors with entry points across established industries and areas in St. Kitts and Nevis. Agriculture moves towards technology and value creation Agriculture and Aquaculture are opening investment opportunities across the wider food-production chain. SKIPA identifies packaging services, storage facilities, inter-regional transport services, commercial farming, agro-processing, hydroponics and aquaculture among the opportunities available to investors. The range reflects an investment landscape that extends beyond traditional cultivation. Capital can enter through the infrastructure that moves agricultural products, the facilities that preserve them and the technologies that increase production. Commercial farming provides an opportunity to expand agricultural output, while hydroponics and aquaculture offer technology-based approaches to food production. Further opportunities sit after production. Packaging, storage and inter-regional transport can strengthen the movement of agricultural products, while agro-processing creates scope to add value before products reach consumers. The opportunities cover several stages of the agricultural value chain, from production and technology to processing, storage and distribution. Aquaculture adds an important blue-economy dimension to this landscape. St. Kitts and Nevis has been exploring both land-based and marine-based aquaculture as a means of increasing domestic fish production while reducing pressure on wild fisheries. The Federation’s aquaculture agenda includes opportunities in fish and shellfish production, including tilapia and shrimp, as well as sea moss cultivation. The energy transition Renewable energy presents a different type of investment opportunity. SKIPA’s framework is built around the Federation’s transition from dependence on fossil fuels towards solar, wind, geothermal, hydro and waste-to-energy. The National Energy Policy also encourages public-private partnerships in the development, financing and management of renewable-energy projects. The opportunity is already defined at project level. SKIPA identifies potential investments including 2–5 MW waste-to-energy plants, 2–5 MW solar projects, 2–5 MW wind projects and a 10 MW geothermal project, as well as LED and solar street-lighting infrastructure. The agency also identifies import-duty and customs-service-charge exemptions for approved renewable-energy equipment, including solar PV panels, wind turbines, solar water heaters, solar air-conditioning units and related equipment. For investors, the sector therefore combines project development with the wider infrastructure required for an evolving energy system. The digital economy Information technology provides another route into the Federation’s investment landscape. St. Kitts and Nevis has been pursuing a digital-transformation strategy supported by the National ICT Centre. Its infrastructure includes e-government services, ICT technical support, G-Cloud services, an innovation hub, telephony services and training facilities. SKIPA’s investment framework extends into call centres, credit-card application services, transaction processing, data entry and research, database management, web applications and software development. The Federation is also developing its Internet Exchange Point, designed to facilitate local peering between internet service and content providers while supporting digital services, cybersecurity, emergency management and educational-content distribution. Financial services with a regional footprint Financial services form one of the Federation’s more established investment sectors. SKIPA describes St. Kitts as a financial centre for the Eastern Caribbean and points to the presence of institutions including the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank, Eastern Caribbean Securities Exchange and Eastern Caribbean Central Securities Depository. The sector covers deposit-taking, investment, insurance, trust and corporate business, operating under licensing requirements and legislation designed to meet international standards. The investment structure also includes ordinary and exempt companies, limited partnerships, trusts, foundations and captive insurance companies. The Financial Services Regulatory Commission supervises the non-bank financial sector, providing the regulatory structure around these activities. For investors, this creates a specialised financial-services market with both domestic and regional relevance. Tourism remains a core market Tourism remains a major component of the Federation’s investment landscape. SKIPA identifies tourism as a strategic sector for economic growth and development and notes its contribution to GDP, foreign-exchange earnings and employment. The agency also points to opportunities for further development in the hotel and visitor economy. Existing and new properties have expanded the island’s accommodation stock, while SKIPA identifies high-end tourism as an area with room for further growth.

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    Seychelles President tells UN global financing must ‘measure reality correctly’ for small island states
    Green Finance & EconomySeptember 28, 2026

    Seychelles President tells UN global financing must ‘measure reality correctly’ for small island states

    Seychelles' President Patrick Herminie has called for a rethink of how small island states qualify for international financing at the United Nations General Assembly, saying that relying on income per capita can conceal the economic vulnerabilities faced by countries such as Seychelles. He made the statement in his address at the General Debate of the 81st Session of the UN General Assembly in New York and called for the full implementation of the Multidimensional Vulnerability Index (MVI), which is designed to measure countries according to structural vulnerabilities that conventional economic indicators may overlook. “Measuring a nation's development solely by GDP per capita ignores extreme exposure to climate shocks and geographic isolation. If international finance is to serve reality, it must first measure reality correctly,” he said. High income, limited access to finance The issue is particularly significant for Seychelles, which has achieved high-income status but remains a small island developing state with an economy heavily exposed to developments beyond its borders. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) said in its 2026 assessment of Seychelles that the country's high-income status limits its access to concessional financing, despite its vulnerability to external shocks. The IMF noted that Seychelles remains heavily dependent on tourism and imports, leaving the economy exposed to disruptions in international travel, commodity prices and shipping. The institution projected economic growth of 1.5% for 2026, compared with an estimated 5.1% in 2025, amid disruptions linked to the conflict in the Middle East. Around 60% of visitors to Seychelles travel through Doha, Dubai or Abu Dhabi, while the country imports about 95% of its energy as well as much of its food and industrial inputs. The World Bank similarly describes Seychelles as Africa's only high-income economy, while noting that its small domestic market, geographic isolation, limited diversification and exposure to external and climate shocks remain significant structural constraints. The tension between income and vulnerability has long been raised by small island developing states, or SIDS, many of which have argued that traditional measurements can leave relatively prosperous island economies with reduced access to affordable development finance despite their exposure to disasters and external economic shocks. The UN General Assembly adopted the Multidimensional Vulnerability Index in August 2024 as a tool to complement conventional income-based measurements. The index considers economic, environmental and social vulnerabilities and is intended to provide a broader picture of the structural challenges facing countries. The UN has said that access to concessional financing has traditionally depended heavily on income per capita, which can fail to reflect countries' exposure to external shocks. Herminie told world leaders that the issue went beyond access to development funding and extended to the sustainability of national debt. “For small island states, debt sustainability is a matter of national survival. We require affordable, accessible, long-term financing, meaningful debt relief, and the full implementation of the Multidimensional Vulnerability Index,” he added. Climate costs His remarks come as Seychelles continues to balance its comparatively strong economic indicators with the high costs associated with climate adaptation. A World Bank assessment released earlier this year found that without action, climate and environmental pressures could reduce Seychelles' GDP by more than 6% by 2050, with implications for employment, incomes and public finances. Herminie linked the financing challenge directly to climate change, describing rising sea levels and threats to coastal infrastructure and livelihoods as present-day concerns rather than future risks. “For Seychelles, climate change is not a prospective debate, it is a daily reality that strikes at the very foundations of our society. Economic growth that bankrupts the planet for future generations is not progress,” Herminie said. He welcomed the International Court of Justice's advisory opinion on states' obligations in relation to climate change and called for stronger action on mitigation, adaptation, technology transfer and support for loss and damage. Seychelles had participated in proceedings before the ICJ, where it argued that small island states face particularly severe consequences from a climate crisis to which they have contributed comparatively little. The proceedings were initiated following a UN General Assembly request seeking clarification of states' obligations under international law and the consequences where environmental harm particularly affects vulnerable countries, including SIDS.

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    Hurricane Lowell Triggers Another Payout of Hawaiʻi’s First-Ever Reef Insurance, the Second Time in Three Weeks
    Green Finance & EconomySeptember 22, 2026

    Hurricane Lowell Triggers Another Payout of Hawaiʻi’s First-Ever Reef Insurance, the Second Time in Three Weeks

    On Sept. 7 Hurricane Lowell pummeled Kauaʻi, Niʻihau and parts of Oʻahu with heavy rain, strong winds and dangerous surf, particularly on south- and west-facing shores. The Category 2 storm caused widespread damage to homes and buildings, island-wide power outages and the loss of at least two lives. The large swells, reaching up to 30 feet on Kauaʻi and 20 feet on Oʻahu, caused substantial damage along exposed coastlines and are believed to have significantly impacted coral reefs on south- and west-facing shores. On Kauaʻi, live corals have already been documented washed ashore, while underwater assessments are being mobilized to determine the extent of reef damage and marine debris. This storm recorded strong enough winds to trigger a second payout from the reef insurance policy held by The Nature Conservancy in collaboration with the Hawaiʻi Emergency Reef Restoration (HERR) Network. The payout of $300,000 will fund a reef damage assessment and repair following the impacts from Hurricane Lowell. This comes two weeks after TNC received the first-ever payout of $200,000 on Aug. 21 after Hurricane Lala brought dangerous flooding, strong winds and massive power outages throughout the state, with the most damage occurring on Hawaiʻi Island. Active since 2022, when it became the first insurance policy for nature in the United States, the policy is designed to rapidly disburse funding when hurricanes or severe tropical storms produce windspeeds of 50 knots (57 mph) or more near the Islands. “In an era when climate-related hazards are occurring more often and intensely, we need innovative ways to support ecosystems and people. Parametric insurance, with its swift and flexible payouts, is one option to catalyze repair and restoration of reefs that protect coastal areas from storm damage,” says Eric Roberts, TNC’s climate and disaster risk finance senior manager. “Hawaiʻi’s program is a model that could be applied to other reefs and ecosystems throughout the U.S. and beyond.”   Distribution of the payout will be determined collaboratively with the HERR Network. These funds will enable the HERR Network—a coordinated statewide coalition of government agencies, scientists, nonprofits and community groups—to assess reefs around the state after the storm and determine next steps to rescue, reattach and repair damaged corals, and build capacity for reef restoration around the state. Currently, the team is still addressing the damage caused by Hurricane Lala. The group will meet to determine the best course of action to catalyze reef recovery in areas impacted by the latest storm. “A top priority will be to facilitate reef damage assessments following this storm. Given what we saw with Hurricane Lala, I think the best thing we can do is work to understand impacts as quickly as possible,” says Julia Rose, TNC's coral restoration Program manager in Hawaiʻi and Palmyra. “Understanding damage is the first step in being able to address some amount of it. But I also see that storm-driven reef damage has historically been overlooked and under-documented in Hawai‘i. We don’t know how much was lost during Iniki in 1992 or Iwa in 1982, outside of anecdotes. We don’t know if there was any reef recovery and how long that took. Bringing attention and resources to this effort, even if we can only address a small fraction of the damage, will hopefully have lasting impacts on future responses and stewardship of our reefs.”

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    The coast of Lanzarote, an environmental paradise pressured by many economic interests
    Green Finance & EconomyMay 21, 2026

    The coast of Lanzarote, an environmental paradise pressured by many economic interests

    Excerpt from lavozdelanzarote.com Each year, four kilometers of natural coastline are lost in the Canary Islands due to the construction of ports, hotels, tourist centers, and their associated infrastructure. Lanzarote is the island that has adapted worst to the Coastal Law, despite having had 38 years to do so. The island of volcanoes has only determined 81.36% of its maritime-terrestrial public domain, almost thirteen points below the regional average, and has delimited 86.73% of its public servitude, which prevents construction in the hundred meters adjacent to the public domain, 8.4 points below the Canarian average. A study concludes that the biggest gaps in adapting the law occur "at the exact points where the hotel industry has the greatest interest". The worst adapted municipality is Yaiza, with 20 pending kilometers. The tourist town of Playa Blanca came to be the piece of Spanish coast with most illegal hotels. The research promoted by the Foundation for Nature and the Environment Canarina and elaborated by the Observatory of Sustainability has brought to the table an exhaustive analysis of the reality of the Canary coast, comparing and crossing public data to explain the reality of the archipelago. "The coast is the one suffering the most environmental pressure," the general director of the Canarina Foundation, Anne Striewe, a graduate in Biological Sciences and an expert in Environmental Management, told La Voz.

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