At a United Nations climate summit, Grenada's delegation can fit around a café table. The country has roughly 100,000 people and produces a tiny fraction of global greenhouse gas emissions. Yet small island states like Grenada have shaped some of the most important words in international climate law, including the 1.5°C temperature goal written into the Paris Agreement in 2015.
Grenada also holds an unusual place in the story because a Grenadian now runs the UN climate secretariat. Simon Stiell, a former Grenadian minister responsible for climate resilience, became Executive Secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in 2022. This explainer sets out how a micro-state gets heard, which alliances do the heavy lifting, what Grenada asks for, and where the limits of that influence lie.
Strength in numbers: AOSIS and the small-island bloc
No country with a delegation of a handful of officials can follow every negotiating room at a COP, where dozens of tracks run in parallel late into the night. Small states solve this by pooling effort. The main vehicle is the Alliance of Small Island States, AOSIS, a coalition of island and low-lying coastal countries from the Caribbean, the Pacific, the Indian Ocean and elsewhere that negotiates as a bloc.
Inside AOSIS, delegates divide the work: one country's expert follows adaptation finance, another follows transparency rules, another the science reviews. Positions are agreed in advance and spoken with one voice, which turns dozens of small states into a block of votes that a consensus-based process cannot ignore. Because UN climate decisions are adopted by consensus, a determined group of countries can hold out until its core concerns are addressed.
Grenada also works through CARICOM, the Caribbean Community, and the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States, which coordinate Caribbean positions and share technical support. Within the wider negotiations, small islands often align with the group of developing countries known as the G77 and China, although their interests do not always match those of large emerging economies.
The moral argument that gives small islands weight
The influence of small islands rests on a simple and hard-to-answer argument: they did almost nothing to cause climate change and face some of its worst consequences. Sea level rise threatens coastal roads, towns and beaches; warmer oceans fuel stronger hurricanes; coral reefs that protect shorelines and feed fishing communities are bleaching. For Grenada, the destruction of Carriacou and Petite Martinique by Hurricane Beryl in July 2024 turned that argument from a projection into lived experience.
This is why island negotiators speak in terms of survival rather than economic cost. The campaign slogan “1.5 to stay alive” summed up the position before Paris: a world warmed by 2°C, the target many large economies preferred, would be far more dangerous for islands than one held to 1.5°C. The final Paris text committed countries to hold warming well below 2°C and to pursue efforts to limit it to 1.5°C, a formula widely credited to island diplomacy.
The argument also has a scientific backbone. Small states pushed for the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change to assess the impacts of 1.5°C specifically, and the resulting 2018 special report became a reference point in every negotiation since.
What Grenada actually asks for
Deeper emissions cuts by the big emitters. No adaptation programme can protect an island from unlimited warming, so the first ask is always that the largest economies cut emissions faster, in line with 1.5°C pathways.
Adaptation finance that small states can reach. Grenada needs sea defences, stronger roads and drainage, resilient water systems and climate-smart agriculture. A recurring complaint is that climate funds are slow and paperwork-heavy for governments with small civil services.
Money for loss and damage. Some harm cannot be adapted away. Small islands campaigned for years for a dedicated fund to address loss and damage, which was agreed in principle at COP27 in 2022.
Recognition of debt and vulnerability. Caribbean governments argue that measuring development by income per person hides how exposed they are to shocks. They push for vulnerability to count in access to cheap finance and debt relief.
Their own credible plans. Grenada's position is stronger when it shows its own commitments, such as its nationally determined contribution and adaptation plans, rather than only asking others to act.
A Grenadian at the top of the UN climate system
Simon Stiell served in Grenada's government in portfolios including climate resilience and the environment before being appointed head of the UNFCCC secretariat in 2022. The secretariat organises the annual COP conferences, supports negotiations and tracks national reporting, but it does not make decisions; governments do. His role is to serve all parties neutrally, not to represent Grenada.
Even so, the appointment matters to how the issue is discussed at home. It made the abstract world of climate negotiations feel closer, and it signalled that people from small island states are recognised as experts rather than only as petitioners. In Grenada, the domestic portfolio now sits with the Ministry of Climate Resilience, the Environment and Renewable Energy, whose minister, Kerryne James, has represented the country at recent COPs.
Readers should keep the distinction clear. Statements made by the UNFCCC Executive Secretary are made on behalf of the secretariat, while Grenada's negotiating positions are set by its government and coordinated through AOSIS and CARICOM.
Common misconceptions about small-state diplomacy
Coverage of climate summits tends to flatten what small states do. A few corrections help when reading the news:
- They do not have a veto in the usual sense. Consensus gives every party leverage, but blocking an agreement entirely is costly and rarely used; influence comes from shaping text in advance.
- Speeches are the visible part, not the main work. Most influence happens in drafting sessions, bloc meetings and informal consultations that never make the evening news.
- Finance pledges are not money in the bank. A headline figure announced at a COP may take years to reach projects, and some is offered as loans rather than grants.
- Small states are not all alike. A Caribbean tourism economy, a Pacific atoll and a larger island with oil reserves may disagree on details such as fossil fuel language.
- Domestic action still matters. Grenada's own targets are small in global terms but give its diplomats credibility when they ask others to do more.
The limits of a loud voice
Influence over wording is not the same as control over outcomes. Global emissions are driven by decisions taken in a small number of large economies, and no amount of eloquence in a negotiating room can force those governments to change domestic energy policy. Small islands have won landmark text, but the gap between promised and delivered emissions cuts remains wide.
Capacity is a second limit. Grenada's delegation is small, many of its experts hold several jobs at home, and the travel and preparation costs of attending every intersessional meeting are significant. Regional technical bodies and partner organisations help fill the gap, but the imbalance with countries that send hundreds of delegates is real.
Finally, attention is fragile. Climate competes with wars, inflation and elections for space on the international agenda. That is why small states have increasingly taken their case to other forums, including requests for advisory opinions from international courts on states' climate obligations, and discussions about debt and development finance at the international financial institutions.
Why it matters at home, not only abroad
Climate diplomacy can look remote from daily life in Grenada, but its results flow back in concrete ways. Adaptation projects that rebuild drainage in flood-prone communities, protect coastal roads or install rainwater storage at schools are often financed through funds that exist because small states negotiated for them. The rules on how easily a country can access that money are written in the same negotiating rooms.
The diplomacy also shapes how Grenada describes itself to investors and visitors. A country that presents a credible climate plan and an active diplomatic profile is better placed to attract concessional finance, technical partnerships and research programmes than one that is silent.
Finally, there is a democratic dimension. Grenadians are entitled to know what their government commits to abroad, from emissions targets to finance requests. National statements at each COP, the nationally determined contribution and reports submitted to the UNFCCC are public, and local media and civil society groups increasingly follow them.
Frequently asked questions
Does Grenada negotiate on its own at COP meetings?
Grenada attends as a sovereign party with its own delegation, but most of its negotiating work is coordinated through the Alliance of Small Island States and Caribbean groupings, so positions are agreed with other islands and presented jointly where interests align.
Is Simon Stiell representing Grenada at the UN?
No. As Executive Secretary of the UNFCCC he heads the secretariat that serves all parties to the convention. Grenada's own positions are set by its government and voiced by its ministers and negotiators.
What is the 1.5 degree target and why do islands care so much?
It is the aim in the Paris Agreement to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. Scientific assessments show markedly greater risks to reefs, coasts and storm intensity at 2 degrees, which makes the lower limit critical for islands.
How much does Grenada contribute to global emissions?
A very small share, far below one per cent, because of its size and economy. Its emissions come mainly from imported diesel used for electricity, petrol and diesel for vehicles, and waste, which is why energy and transport dominate its national plan.
Which Grenadian ministry handles climate change?
The Ministry of Climate Resilience, the Environment and Renewable Energy leads climate policy, international reporting and coordination of adaptation projects, working with other ministries such as agriculture, infrastructure and finance. Portfolios can be reorganised after elections, so check the current structure.
Has small-island diplomacy actually achieved anything?
Yes, mainly in shaping agreements: the 1.5 degree goal in the Paris Agreement, the IPCC special report on 1.5 degrees and the agreement to create a loss and damage fund all owe a great deal to sustained pressure from island states.
