“The Bahamas stands today to be heard, to bring attention to our plight, to bring about action now to sustain our business and secure a brighter future [for our country and our people,” said Davis, who is also the country’s minister of works and urban development. “Climate change is not simply about changing our way of life, it is primarily about saving lives.”
Davis made this comment as part of his remarks at the United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP) Third International Conference on Small Island Developing States (SIDS). There are 51 SIDS, all of whom are vulnerable to the damaging effects — rising waters, ocean acidification, unpredictable and violent storms — of climate change.
Davis’s address stood out from the pack, however, because The Bahamas stands out among the SIDS as one of the most threatened by climate change. Of 193 United Nations member states, The Bahamas consistently ranks among the top five most vulnerable to a warming world. Most of the country is within two meters of sea level, and much of the natural beauty is exposed to warming and acidified waters. A majority of the GDP relies on tourism, and much of the infrastructure — ports, roads, hotels — that supports the industry could be compromised by violent tropical storms that rip through “Hurricane Alley.”
As an archipelago with 700 islands but a total permanent population of around 230,000, The Bahamas is in a tenuous economic position. What they don’t earn through tourism is limited to feeding the people with industries like fishing, another at-risk sector. Thus, Davis lobbied the industrialized world to subsidize and support The Bahamas actions to fight global warming.
Christophe Mazurier, a world-renowned financier born in France but now based in The Bahamas, is already lobbying Europe and the United States to come to The Bahamas aid. Mazurier has written editorials, networked with associates in the finance industry and worked with grassroots organizations in The Bahamas to help hammer out deals that will protect the picturesque island archipelago.
The conference early in September resulted in $1.9 billion worth of partnerships, subsidies and aid for SIDS, a chunk of which will go to The Bahamas. Nevertheless, Davis will go on lobbying through the United Nations while Mazurier will use his connections to raise awareness among private citizens.