Information and Communications Technology Within Coastal Resilience Planning Frameworks: The Case of Jamaica, a Small Island Developing State

Coastal areas increasingly grapple with coastal hazards like hurricanes, tropical storms, sea level rise, and flooding. Proactive and agile coastal resilience solutions are necessary to reduce such risks and their associated socio-economic and environmental impacts. For these reasons, global coastal planners are pursuing climate action through multi-sector collaborations, innovative hybrid natural and manufactured solutions, and feasible mid to long-term coastal resilience strategies. While climate action is high on governments’ agenda globally, integrating information and communications technology has diffused widely within the coastal planning space in small island developing states, drawing on more technology-driven solutions. Very few empirical studies in the Caribbean address using information and communications technology within coastal resilience planning. This study presents original analyses of robust ICT-driven coastal resilience planning framework in Jamaica that can be applied to other small island developing States (SIDS) and global coastal communities. The research advances and extends theories like socio-ecological systems, wicked problems, and Digital Era Governance to better explain ICT-driven coastal resilience planning. The components of the research objectives are achieved through theoretical applications, document analysis, and in-depth interviews. The findings suggest that ICT-driven coastal resilience planning is prominent and valuable in Jamaica for satellite sensing, environmental data collection, and ease of data and information sharing among planners and citizens. However, there are planning and implementation barriers from planners and citizens, such as technology aversion and skepticism, inefficient information and communications technology infrastructure and training, and staffing and resource deficits. To remedy those barriers, coastal resiliency planners and policymakers recommend best practices such as collaborative planning, diversity, equity and inclusion, ethical considerations, capacity building, and data-driven policymaking. I also share the findings on ICT-driven coastal resilience planning opportunities like climate financing, public education, training and sensitization, climate dialogue, and a culture shift among planners and citizens. Based on the study findings, I recommend that all collaborating partners comprehensively research, design, and plan an ICT-driven coastal resilience planning framework before implementation in coastal communities like Jamaica. Consultation, local-level data collection, and tweaking the strategies to fit the needs of residents are essential components to make the ICT-driven coastal resilience strategies work