Financing Island Futures Through Debt Swaps & Climate Levies
From Island Innovation
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Debt-for-climate swaps and fossil fuel levies are gaining traction as fair, practical solutions to help Small Island Developing States (SIDS) with the climate crisis. In a recent op-ed, Gaston Browne, Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda argues that debt restructuring can free fiscal space for resilience projects, while levies on fossil fuel profits would ensure polluters bear a fair share of costs. He points out that although COP29 pledged $300 billion annually by 2035, adaptation needs could reach $387 billion a year by 2030, leaving vulnerable nations exposed to disasters like Hurricane Erin, the fastest-intensifying storm on record.
What SIDS need is predictable, grant-based, and locally led funding that strengthens sovereignty, supports vital sectors like tourism and fisheries, and enables long-term resilience. Anything less, he warns, leaves entire nations on the brink. “As I head to Climate Week NYC and the U.N. General Assembly, my people, and millions of others on small islands developing states, stand to lose their homelands,” he shared. “That is a future I cannot and will not accept.”
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Continue the dialogue in person
| The recently concluded Virtual Island Summit 2025 brought together thousands of people to exchange knowledge on island sustainability. |
| ”Although separated by the ocean, island territories can come together in the same space to dialogue, share, and learn from one another.-Antonio Morales, President of the Cabildo de Gran Canaria |
Now, we invite you to continue the conversation in person at the Global Sustainable Islands Summit in Gran Canaria, 20–22 April 2026. Join us to strengthen partnerships, showcase your work, and explore solutions for sustainable economic development, this time face-to-face, on an island setting designed to inspire.
Early-bird tickets are now available at the lowest rate! Don’t miss your chance to register before prices increase.
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