Climate Impact Atlas for the BES islands
Climate Impact Atlas for Bonaire, St. Eustatius and Saba
Customer
Location
Duration
Read more
Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management
Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba
2023 – present
Climate Impact Atlas for the BES islands
Climate Impact Atlas for Bonaire, St. Eustatius and Saba
Customer
Location
Duration
Read more
Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management
Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba
2023 – present
To help Bonaire, St. Eustatius and Saba (BES islands) prepare for the effects of climate change, we have developed a climate impact atlas. The Climate Impact Atlas BES has been commissioned by the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management. The atlas can be used by anyone dealing with climate change on Bonaire, St. Eustatius or Saba.
The islands of Bonaire, St. Eustatius, and Saba are confronted with enormous challenges from climate change. Rising sea levels may threaten coastal communities, while hurricanes, heatwaves and heavy rainfall are intensifying. To secure the future of the islands, it’s crucial to understand how vulnerable we are for weather extremes and climate change. A climate impact atlas can help gain insight into the islands’ vulnerabilities and form a vital part of a sustainable knowledge infrastructure to support climate action.
What does the project entail?
The first Climate Impact Atlas for the BES islands will consist of three components:
- Climate statistics for Bonaire, St. Eustatius and Saba
- A climate data viewer for Bonaire
- Climate stories for Bonaire
The climate statistics will provide information about present and future climate temperatures, rainfall, wind and sea level. These are based on the updated climate scenarios for the Netherlands and the BES islands from the Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute (KNMI). The viewer for Bonaire will show the available maps with a brief explanation. The climate stories provide background information to the main map layers in the viewer and can help in using these maps.
What did we do?
In 2023, we developed the viewer and stories for Bonaire. To this end, we organised workshops with various stakeholders in October 2023 on what the climate impact atlas could best look like. We will use the knowledge we gathered during these workshops for follow-up plans, for example for St. Eustatius and Saba. The first version of the Climate Impact Atlas BES was launched at the end of 2023.
Who contribute to the development of the atlas?
The Climate Impact Atlas BES is funded by the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management, with CAS as coordinator. Data for the atlas comes from the Dutch Caribbean Biodiversity Database (DCBD), the Institute for Environmental Studies (VU-IVM), the Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute (KNMI) and Wageningen University & Research (WUR). The NWO programme Island(er)s at the Helm helps to integrate the perspective and knowledge of islanders into the atlas.
Other organisations involved
The Climate Impact Atlas BES is supported by the Dutch Caribbean Nature Alliance (DCNA), the Public Entity of Bonaire (OLB), the TERRAMAR Museum, STINAPA, EcoVision, Wageningen Environmental Research (WENR), the Royal Netherlands Institute of Southeast Asian and Caribbean Studies (KITLV), Delft University of Technology (TU Delft), Rijkswaterstaat (RWS), the Marine Information and Data Centre (IHM), Deltares, and the Netherlands Enterprise Agency (RVO).
What does the project entail?
The first Climate Impact Atlas for the BES islands will consist of three components:
- Climate statistics for Bonaire, St. Eustatius and Saba
- A climate data viewer for Bonaire
- Climate stories for Bonaire
The climate statistics will provide information about present and future climate temperatures, rainfall, wind and sea level. These are based on the updated climate scenarios for the Netherlands and the BES islands from the Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute (KNMI). The viewer for Bonaire will show the available maps with a brief explanation. The climate stories provide background information to the main map layers in the viewer and can help in using these maps.
What did we do?
In 2023, we developed the viewer and stories for Bonaire. To this end, we organised workshops with various stakeholders in October 2023 on what the climate impact atlas could best look like. We will use the knowledge we gathered during these workshops for follow-up plans, for example for St. Eustatius and Saba. The first version of the Climate Impact Atlas BES was launched at the end of 2023.
Who contribute to the development of the atlas?
The Climate Impact Atlas BES is funded by the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management, with CAS as coordinator. Data for the atlas comes from the Dutch Caribbean Biodiversity Database (DCBD), the Institute for Environmental Studies (VU-IVM), the Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute (KNMI) and Wageningen University & Research (WUR). The NWO programme Island(er)s at the Helm helps to integrate the perspective and knowledge of islanders into the atlas.
Other organisations involved
The Climate Impact Atlas BES is supported by the Dutch Caribbean Nature Alliance (DCNA), the Public Entity of Bonaire (OLB), the TERRAMAR Museum, STINAPA, EcoVision, Wageningen Environmental Research (WENR), the Royal Netherlands Institute of Southeast Asian and Caribbean Studies (KITLV), Delft University of Technology (TU Delft), Rijkswaterstaat (RWS), the Marine Information and Data Centre (IHM), Deltares, and the Netherlands Enterprise Agency (RVO).