Resilience to Climate Vulnerability and Environmental Risk (RECOVER)

Small Island Developing States (SIDS) are among the most vulnerable to climate change, consistently ranking high on global risk and climate vulnerability indices. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Sixth Assessment Report highlights the critical challenges faced by small islands and emphasizes the need for transformational adaptation strategies. 

The RECOVER project addresses these challenges through the lens of “socio-metabolic risk” (SMR) – a systemic framework focused on the availability, integrity, and circulation of critical resources such as energy, water, and materials, which are vital for societal wellbeing. Socio-metabolic risk can be compared to circulatory health issues in humans: both limit an entity's ability to adapt and respond to significant disruptions. 

Maladaptive and climate-insensitive practices on SIDS - like coastal squeeze, heavy reliance on imports, and centralized energy systems - exacerbate vulnerabilities and heighten exposure to climate risks. Mitigating socio-metabolic risk is essential to prevent cascading failures across environmental, economic, and social systems, enabling small islands to withstand and adapt to climate impacts effectively. Through pilot projects in Maldives, Mauritius, Seychelles, and Fiji - referred to as ‘hubs of innovation’ - RECOVER collaborates with local stakeholders to co-develop scalable, system-transforming climate resilience strategies.  

RECOVER is funded and supported by the Climate Adaptation and Resilience (CLARE) programme. CLARE is a flagship research programme on climate adaptation and resilience, funded mostly (about 90%) by UK Aid through the Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), and co-funded by the International Development Research Centre (IDRC), Canada.  

Simron J. Singh is the principal investigator of the project and Vanessa Schweizer is a part of the research team.