Green and Efficient

The University of the West Indies (UWI) is collaborating with the Ministry of the Environment and Drainage to develop a road map to transition Barbados to a green economy.  As part of this strategy a Workshop was held to consider the feasibility of establishing a Resource Efficiency and Technological Innovation Centre (RETIC) in Barbados.  The aim is to build on the example provided by the Cleaner Production Centres that the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) have championed in forty-seven (47) developing and transition countries. The workshop was attended by participants representing important sectors of the Barbadian economy, the public sector as well as academia. 

The purpose was to identify which sectors of the economy might benefit from the establishment of a centre and the services it might provide.  Coming out of the discussions, participants felt that the Tourism and Agricultural sector would benefit from assistance that could be provided by a RETIC and that there were clear opportunities for technological innovations to make a significant impact on resource use.  The range of services that could be provided included acting as a clearing house, promoting technological innovation, training and certification and, advice.  All of these activities could generate revenue to sustain a centre.  It was recognised however, that during the initial stages some financial assistance would be required. A centre would aim to be self-financing and should operate as a not-for-profit organisation.  In wrapping up the participants agreed that the results of their deliberations would have an important role in helping to shape the Government’s Green Economy strategy as it develops.  These will be taken up and expanded upon further in the next phase of a feasibility study.

The Workshop was hosted by the UWI’s Centre for Resource Management and Environmental Studies (CERMES) with the financial assistance provided by the British Government’s Foreign and Commonwealth Office through the British High Commission to Barbados.