August 28, 2015

SVSU welcomes expert on climate change effect on small islands

Saginaw Valley State University will welcome a recognized authority on the effect of climate change on small island states. Lorna Veronica Inniss, acting director of the Coastal Zone Management Unit in Barbados, will speak Monday‌, Sept. 14 at 7:30 p.m. in SVSU’s Rhea Miller Recital Hall.

Climate change can be linked to a number of problems unique to small islands, such as rising sea levels that can result in decreased land area, warming sea surface temperatures, human health effects and natural environmental disasters. These are a few examples of the issues that impact the sociological, economic, and cultural futures of these small, independent nations. 

Through her work with the Caribbean island nation of Barbados, Inniss has taken a leadership role in addressing this challenge. She serves as the island’s primary contact to the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission, and played a key role in developing the Barbados Program of Action for the Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing States. The program was adopted as a way to understand and address these special challenges; it was implemented within the United Nations Division for Sustainable Development.

Inniss also served as the elected chair of the U.N. Intergovernmental Coordination Group for the Caribbean Tsunamis and Coastal Hazards Warning System from 2008-2012. She is the joint coordinator of a group of experts established by the United Nations General Assembly to deliver the first ever Integrated Global Marine Assessment.  Later this year, Inniss will be taking a position as head of the Caribbean Environment Programme, United Nations Environment Programme. She completed a Ph.D. in oceanography and coastal sciences at Louisiana State University.

In addition to her public talk, Inniss also will meet with SVSU faculty, staff and students during her visit.