August marks the start of the height of the hurricane season - from mid-August to mid-October. TSF's recent mission focused on hurricane preparedness and resilience, which are essential as climate change exacerbates extreme weather events. Here's what you need to know about the latest mission update in the Caribbean.
Training in Telecoms for Resilience
What is the latest TSF mission update?
Three TSF staff recently returned from the Caribbean where they organized a training course in emergency telecommunications for members of the newly formed Caribbean Community Emergency Telecommunications Team (CETT), with the support of the Internet Society Foundation. The CETT is part of the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency, a TSF operational partner.
What is the goal of the project?
Through training and the pre-positioning of telecommunications equipment, the project aims to contribute to preparedness and resilience in the Caribbean and Southeast Asia. Participants are prepared to face network disruptions after a natural disaster, through theoretical and practical training and relevant equipment.
“With the right equipment and skills, the CETT can provide internet connection for emergency responders and the affected population.”
Diane, TSF staff working on the project.
Why is it relevant now?
The Caribbean is the second most disaster-prone region in the world with above 1,200 disasters between 2000 and 2019 affecting more than 152 million people, increasingly exacerbated by climate change. These disasters often affect telecommunication infrastructures and alter the need for a coordinated response between humanitarian actors. TSF was the first CDEMA partner to train this newly-created new Emergency Telecommunications Team.
“The hurricane season is just starting and anything can happen, and we will have to apply these skills at some point in the region.”
- Curtis, training participant in Barbados.
💡19 countries covered through 2 intergovernmental organizations
“The training taught me a lot about teamwork in situations that would happen in real life.” Davron
“What was interesting to me is that I haven’t had experience with satellite connectivity before.” Fabian
