On October 22nd, 2023, Pew Charitable Trusts and Silvestrum Climate Associates, with support from the NOAA Blue Carbon Inventory (BCI) Project, hosted a Technical Workshop on Coastal Wetlands/Blue Carbon in National Climate Commitments Technical Workshop in Panama City, Panama. Two members of the NOAA BCI Project, Dr. Rebeca Brenes and Dr. Lisa Beers (Silvestrum Climate Associates), were key organizers of the workshop and served as technical experts, sharing experiences and methods related to integrating critical coastal ecosystems into national greenhouse gas inventories in the U.S. and Costa Rica. This workshop was convened in conjunction with the Latin America and Caribbean Climate Week (October 23-27, 2023) in the lead up to The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change’s (UNFCCC) Climate Change Conference (COP28) that will take place later this year in the United Arab Emirates.
The workshop convened research, policy, and technical expertise in the field of blue carbon and coastal wetlands. Case studies from regional leaders, including Costa Rica, Belize, and Panama were shared, as well as technical briefings and round table discussion topics including research, data sharing, greenhouse gas inventories, national policy development, and nationally determined contribution (NDC) commitments. Participants included individuals from countries throughout the Latin America and Caribbean region, including Belize, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, and Panama.
The NOAA BCI Project is a Department of State funded, multi-agency project led by NOAA’s Climate Program Office’s Adaptation Sciences program, in partnership with NOAA’s Marine Protected Areas Center, that supports partner countries’ efforts to include coastal wetlands in their greenhouse gas accounting and enhance the management of these critical ecosystems. More information about this project can be found here.
Learn more about the NOAA BCI Project »
For more information, contact Amanda Catron.
Image credit: Rebeca Brenes
