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The First Climate Refugees


 
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#1 mariaandrea

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Posted 15 March 2012 - 08:44 AM

On the eve of the year 2000 the teeny tiny nation of Kiribati was the first to welcome the dawn of a new millennium. It was a beautiful ceremony, beamed around the globe, with dancing and chanting on the beach. Now, the island nation is going under water. Everyone knew it would happen back in 2000 and much of the commentary in the millennium show pointed that out. 12 years later the globe has pretty much forgotten Kiribati and it won't be long before there's nothing left to remember as the ocean engulfs the nation of low islands.

The population is considering a move to Fiji, according to Grist:

Quote

Some of Kiribati’s 32 coral atolls have already started to disappear beneath the waves. President Anote Tong and his countrymen fear that continued sea level rise will wipe their civilization out entirely unless they relocate to Fiji lickety-split. Tong is reportedly in discussions with Fiji’s military government to buy 5,000 acres of land on the country’s second largest island, Vanua Levu.


“This is the last resort, there’s no way out of this one,” Mr Tong said. “Our people will have to move as the tides have reached our homes and villages.”

Depending on when Kiribati makes its big move, the country could be the world’s first modern climate-induced migration.

What adds extra poignancy to this is that Kiribati is a very green country, doing everything right, being swallowed up - quite literally - by the excesses of the rest of us. Read more on Grist:

http://grist.org/lis...as/?fb_ref=fbrw

Oh, and want to see how it happens? The rising sea levels, I mean. Great blog post here: http://www.altenergy...stal-towns-r514

#2 Sandra Piddock

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Posted 15 March 2012 - 11:32 AM

That's awful - particularly as the country is doing its best to be green, but I guess these days, that's what you have to expect if you're a tiny island nation. It's awful that they'll have to leave their heritage and their homeland behind. Let's hope they can make a good life in Fiji. The President seems to be pitching in with the rest, anyway.

#3 Shortpoet-GTD

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Posted 15 March 2012 - 03:19 PM

I remember talking about this a few years back on the old (now defunct) treehugger site.

African people on the move because of drought.
Island nation citizens on the move because of rising waters.

Climate refugee's will become a common word. :blink:

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