WILLEMSTAD — As 2025 draws to a close, the Dutch Caribbean Nature Alliance (DCNA) is reflecting on a year in which cooperation and urgency went hand in hand. From DCNA’s perspective, 2025 was defined by intensified regional collaboration, while at the same time underscoring more clearly than ever how vulnerable nature in the Dutch Caribbean has become.
According to DCNA, the past year confirmed that nature management at the individual island level is no longer sufficient. Ecological challenges such as coral reef degradation, declining water quality, and recurring sargassum influxes are inherently cross-border in nature and require coordinated regional solutions.
Throughout 2025, this regional approach took on more concrete form. Cooperation between nature conservation organizations across all six islands intensified, with a stronger emphasis on knowledge sharing, joint programs, and collective strategies aimed at protecting shared ecosystems.
Nature and society increasingly connected
At the same time, DCNA observed that nature conservation is increasingly being linked to broader societal issues. Water quality, climate adaptation, and sustainable economic development were more frequently discussed together in dialogues with governments and partner organizations. From DCNA’s standpoint, this integration is essential: without recognizing healthy ecosystems as a fundamental condition for social well-being and economic resilience, nature protection remains fragile and reactive.
However, 2025 also exposed the limitations of the current system. DCNA warns that the implementation of nature policy remains under pressure due to fragmented funding structures and short-term, project-based support. While ecological challenges continue to intensify, long-term and structural financing is lagging behind.
According to the alliance, it is precisely this tension that makes the coming years decisive. In DCNA’s year-end reflection, 2025 is therefore not seen as a concluding chapter, but as an intermediate phase. There is greater cooperation, higher visibility, and increased awareness than in previous years.
The remaining question, DCNA notes, is whether this progress can be translated into lasting political and financial commitments. For the alliance, that is the core challenge ahead: moving from ambition to structural anchoring, so that nature conservation in the Dutch Caribbean becomes the norm rather than the exception.