What is the EcoNexus framework?

Why ecology, ecosystems, economics and people have to be understood together, and what that means for small islands.

Dr. Peter Edwards
3 min read

On a small island, nothing stays in its own lane for long. Clear a hillside for a quick crop and the next heavy rain carries that soil into the rivers and out onto the reef. The same reef that protects the coastline, feeds fishing communities and draws visitors. A drought like the one El Niño is bringing to Jamaica now does not only stress the mango trees. It raises costs on the farm, prices in the market and the country's bill for imported food. Yet we tend to study these things in separate university departments, manage them through separate ministries and fund them from separate budgets. EcoNexus starts from a simple observation: in the Caribbean and other small island states, ecology, ecosystems, economics and people are one connected system, and the most important decisions sit where they meet.

The EcoNexus framework is a way of asking four questions together, whether the subject is a mangrove, a mango orchard or a national policy.

Ecology: how does the living system actually work, from soils and water to species and reefs?

Ecosystems: what does that system provide, such as coastal protection, clean water, pollination and fish?

Economics: what are the real costs and benefits, who pays, who gains, and which values do markets miss?

People: whose livelihoods, culture and choices are involved, and what will they actually do?

Solutions that answer only one of these questions rarely last. I learned this based on years of experience. I started my training as a marine scientist and moved into environmental economics because good ecological data on its own seldom changed decisions. My experience with farming in Jamaica has reinforced my professional experiences: weather, markets and people make decisions for you even when you think you have it figured out.

That is the lens we bring to every article, episode and conversation on EcoNexus. Jamaica is rebuilding after Hurricane Melissa while facing drought and extreme heat, and small island states everywhere are making choices about land, water, food and coasts that will shape them for decades. Our aim is to test ideas against evidence, not politics: Does it work with nature? Does it pay, and for whom? Will it hold up under the next storm or dry season? We will explore those questions with scientists, economists, farmers, policymakers and practitioners from across the Caribbean, its diaspora and the wider world of small islands. Welcome to the conversation.