The Caribbean Meteorological Organisation (CMO) is very pleased to announce an unprecedented level of participation at the 105th Annual Meeting of the American Meteorological Society (AMS), held in New Orleans, Louisiana, from 12–16 January 2025.
The CMO is very proud of the involvement of its Member States at the 2025 AMS, the world’s largest yearly gathering for the weather, water and climate community, with participation from meteorologists, hydrologists, research scientists, emergency managers, academics, weather broadcasters, students and more. This milestone in the CMO’s participation reflects the region’s growing commitment and role in informing solutions for climate action by advancing actionable meteorological services and scientific knowledge for the benefit of its people and economies.
Expanding Caribbean Footprint at AMS
For the first time, the CMO Headquarters and the Caribbean Institute for Meteorology and Hydrology (CIMH) were joined by an expanded contingent of presenters from National Meteorological Services (NMSs) of CMO Member States. Representing the CMO Members in person were the National Meteorological Services of Barbados, the Cayman Islands, Grenada, Jamaica, the Turks and Caicos Islands, and Trinidad and Tobago, while the NMS of St Vincent and the Grenadines joined virtually. Six experts of CMO National Meteorological Services delivered presentations at the 2025 AMS Annual Meeting.
Another 4 CMO Member experts were invited panellists for a session entitled “Building Resilience in the Caribbean: Advancing End–to–End Early Warning Systems“ and moderated by Dr Arlene Laing, Coordinating Director of the CMO Headquarters. Dr Laing also served as a panellist in World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) Town Hall Meeting on “Early warnings for All: The UN’s EW4All initiative“. She also presented in a Side Event organised by the Caribbean Institute or Meteorology and Hydrology (CIMH), on supporting the Caribbean in meeting weather, water, and climate challenges. Two CMO Member experts were also invited speakers for the Panel on Climate, Environment, Health, and Early Warning: Advancing Actionable Climate Forecasts and Disease Modeling and Predictions, a growing area in weather and climate services. Dr Nicole Dawkins-Wright, an emergency physician and first-time participant at an AMS meeting noted, “The collaboration of the Jamaica Meteorological Service and the Ministry of Health and Wellness and other stakeholders is critical for the advancing progress in attaining a climate resilient health system for Jamaica.” In addition, CIMH lecturers, interns, and students presented their research on various topics including a modelling study of Beryl and research field studies. Beyond the CMO Member States, participation of the Caribbean included representatives from the Bahamas, Bermuda, Curaçao, and St Maarten.
Towards a Thriving Planet
The AMS Annual Meeting’s theme, “Towards a Thriving Planet: Charting the Course Across Scales,” resonates deeply with the Caribbean’s mission to address weather, climate, and water challenges across local, regional, and global contexts. The theme also underscores the importance of bridging scales in weather, water, and climate science and services — a principle that aligns with the Caribbean’s approach to leveraging global knowledge and technology to aid local solutions.
The CMO presentations focused on critical topics, including extreme and record-breaking weather in 2024 and the development of responsive and fit-for-purpose services for storm surge, heat and health as well as impact-based forecasting for mariners and enhancing observations with 3D-printed automatic weather stations; efforts supporting Early Warnings for All. At AMS 2025, the Caribbean experts shared interconnected risks and challenges, successes, best practices, and lessons learned during the passage of destructive Hurricane Beryl.
Director of the US National Hurricane Centre Dr Mike Brennan who opened the session on Hurricane Beryl, noted, “They told a great story about the Impact-based Decision Support provided by the various meteorological services during Beryl.” Presentations also highlighted the collaboration and coordination with core partners and stakeholders that were harnessed to ensure responsiveness to the last mile. Presenters showcased innovations in dissemination of early warning information and an improved understanding of actionable messaging and operational modalities in the communication of early warning information that improved preparation, which ultimately saved lives. This underscored the leadership of the CMO and NMHSs in addressing the unique challenges of extreme weather and climate events in the Caribbean Small Island Developing States (SIDS).
Dr Arlene Laing, CMO Coordinating Director, remarked, “The active involvement of CMO experts at AMS2025 signals the region’s dedication to leveraging meteorological science and innovation to protect lives, property, and livelihoods. This unprecedented participation at the international level reflects the growing capacity and expertise within our NMHSs, which is valued by international partners. With those partners, our experts are committed to advancing meteorology and related sciences and applying science to societal needs across the Caribbean.”
A Platform for Knowledge Exchange and Innovation
The AMS Annual Meeting provides a valuable platform for Caribbean meteorologists to share their experiences and learn from their global counterparts. The increased Caribbean footprint at this year’s meeting will foster deeper collaboration and promote innovative solutions to shared challenges.
The CMO and its Member States extend our immense gratitude to the US Permanent Representative with the WMO, the NOAA/National Weather Service International Affairs Office, and the AMS for supporting the in-person participants and the United Nations World Food Programme for supporting the 2 virtual participants. The AMS Annual Meeting showcased the region’s contributions and provided the opportunity to strengthen and build partnerships that enhanced meteorological and related services across scales and disciplines. Links to the sessions and presentations with CMO participation are provided in the Annex.
The CMO is proud of the diligent work of the staff of Caribbean NMHSs and their collaborators in helping to save lives, livelihoods, and property and will continue facilitating and promoting their activities, while urging for recognition and support for their valuable contributions.
Sessions and Presentations including Experts from CMO Member States:
- Building Resilience in the Caribbean: Advancing End–to–End Early Warning Systems
- Joint Session with the 41st Conference on Environmental Information Processing Technologies and 10th Symposium on US-International Partnerships: International Hazards – ‘The UN’s Early Warnings for All (EW4All) Challenge
- Innovations in Observations, Impact–Based Forecasting and Public Engagement to Advance Early Warnings in Barbados
- Recent Advances in Sensor Solutions and Relationships to Underpin Cayman Islands Smart Flood Early Warning Detection System
- 41st Conference on Environmental Information Processing Technologies
- Outcomes from the Innovations in Open Science (IOS) Planning Workshop: Community Expectations for a Geoscience Data Commons
- 21st Conference on Major Weather Impacts of 2024 – Tropical Storms Overview and Hurricane Beryl
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- Efficacy of Grenada’s Hurricane Forecast and Warning Services and Communication Process during Hurricane Beryl
- Preparedness, Impact and Response: The St Vincent and the Grenadines Meteorological Services Handling of Category–4 Hurricane Beryl
- Major Hurricane Beryl 2024: Hurricane Preparedness Taking on a New Meaning? –Impacts on Southern Parishes Including the Bread–Basket Parish
- WMO Town Hall Meeting – Early Warnings for All: The UN’s EW4All Initiative
- 25th Symposium on Meteorological Observation and Instrumentation
- Joint Session of the 38th Conference on Climate Variability and Change and 16th Conference on Environment and Health
- CIMH Side Event: Highlights of the Weather, Water, and Climate Challenges in the Caribbean: Collaborations and Opportunities
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