Climate risk and resilience assessment for Caribbean projects

Decision-led assessment

The work begins with the asset, investment or community decision—not a generic climate checklist.

• Risk and vulnerability assessment
• Resilience planning
• Infrastructure and development inputs
• Evidence for investment decisions

Caribbean context

Regional experience helps connect global approaches with island geographies, institutions, hazards and implementation realities.

Practical outcomes

Findings are translated into priorities, design considerations, management actions or further evidence needs.

Who this is for

This service is for infrastructure owners and project teams considering how environmental exposure affects their plans. The decision may concern an investment, a development proposal, an existing asset or a community. Explain what is being considered and which choices remain open so the assessment can focus on useful evidence.

The work can also help a team organise questions that cross technical disciplines. Climate findings need to connect with the decisions people can take about planning, design, management and further investigation.

What we assess: climate risk assessment and resilience

• Flooding and drainage.
• Hurricane and storm exposure.
• Coastal hazards: storm surge, erosion and sea-level rise.
• Drought and water availability.
• Extreme heat.

The evidence includes national and regional climate projections, historical event and hazard records, site surveys, and ESL's long-term field monitoring records where they cover the site. Present-day conditions and future climate scenarios are considered over the asset's design life or the investment period, agreed with the client at scoping.

Methods include hazard and exposure mapping, flood and drainage assessment against design return periods, vulnerability assessment of assets and communities, and adaptation options appraisal. Specialist modelling outside ESL's own capability is carried out with specialist partners and identified as such in the report.

The scope should explain which questions the work will address. A broad resilience enquiry does not, by itself, define the investigations needed for a particular asset or investment.

How it works

1. Define the decision. Describe the asset, investment or community question and the options under consideration.
2. Bring together the context. Share available project information, previous studies and the environmental concerns already identified.
3. Agree the assessment. Establish the scope and the evidence needed to examine exposure, vulnerability and possible responses.
4. Evaluate the findings. Connect the assessment with the project's planning and delivery choices, including remaining information needs.
5. Explain the priorities. Discuss the findings as practical design considerations, management actions or areas needing further evidence.

What you receive

Each assessment produces a written report covering hazards, exposure and vulnerability findings, risk ratings, and adaptation and design recommendations. Maps or figures are included where relevant.

The report states the data sources, assumptions, scenario choices and uncertainties. Where evidence is limited, it explains how far that affects confidence in a finding. An ESL specialist reviews the findings with the client and project team, connecting the assessment with the decisions ahead.

Frequently asked questions

When should we consider a climate risk assessment?

Bring the question forward when exposure or resilience could affect a planning, investment or management decision. Explain the decision and the information already available so ESL can consider a proportionate assessment scope.

How does a climate vulnerability assessment fit our project?

ESL's service includes risk and vulnerability assessment alongside resilience planning. The assignment should specify which vulnerability questions matter for the asset or community and how the findings will inform the project.

Can ESL support climate adaptation in the Caribbean?

ESL is based in Jamaica and has delivered work across the Caribbean, including Antigua and Barbuda, The Bahamas, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, Saint Lucia and Trinidad and Tobago. Site-specific work outside Jamaica is scoped and agreed for each project.

Can we use the assessment in an investment discussion?

Evidence for investment decisions is part of the service. Identify the intended audience and its questions at the start so the output can be scoped for that purpose rather than assuming a general report will answer every review requirement.

What happens if the available information is incomplete?

Further evidence needs are one of the possible outputs of ESL's assessment. Make known gaps clear at the start and distinguish information already available from investigations that may need to be commissioned.

Related reading

• Caribbean Water Security Needs More Than Funding
• Jamaica's Fisheries and Climate Change – Moving in a Positive Direction