Caribbean Matters: Building hurricane resilience in Antigua and Barbuda

When looking at the impact of climate change on the Caribbean, it is important to pay attention to and support local efforts to mitigate it. Our news agencies tend to cover climate disasters only as they are happening—then they move on, rarely returning to see how people are faring, coping, or recovering. The Caribbean countries are no exception to this rule.

That’s the reality for the dual-island Caribbean nation of Antigua and Barbuda. You may remember that Hurricane Irma virtually wiped out Barbuda (not to be confused with Barbados) in September 2017; you may not know that nearly seven years later, tiny Barbuda—comprising just 3% of the nation’s 101,489 residents—and its larger sibling Antigua have been facing multiple challenges ever since.

Caribbean Matters is a weekly series from Daily Kos. If you are unfamiliar with the region, check out Caribbean Matters: Getting to know the countries of the Caribbean.