Beautiful stories highlighting 25 years of UNDP and GEF support in environmental innovation for sustainable development.

Natural solutions to sustainability challenges in Cuba.

TURNING CHALLENGES INTO OPPORTUNITIES. Cuba is a small island developing state (SIDS) and the protection of its coastal and marine ecosystems is a strategic issue, as they provide natural infrastructure and ecosystem services that underpin the livelihoods and well-being of the Cuban people. Over the years, the ecosystems of the Sabana-Camagüey region have come under varying degrees of pressure as a result of unsustainable practices in sectors such as agriculture, livestock, fisheries and tourism – all of which play an important role in the local and national economy. Conflicts between competing land uses emerged, and with the closure of sugar factories in the 1990s, many people were left unemployed.