Maldives’ government holds first underwater meeting

It may only be a matter of years before the Maldives is fully submerged underwater; however, a recent government ceremony literally held underwater was not in preparation for future meetings. The event was staged to draw attention to the global fight against climate change before the Copenhagen meetings in December.

The meeting was held Saturday October 16th for Mohammed Nasheed, the Maldives’ President, and his cabinet to sign a document calling for the nations of the world to decrease their carbon dioxide emissions. The Maldives have taken a leadership role in the global fight against climate change largely out of necessity.

The nation is an archipelago of 1,192 islands in the Indian Ocean which is only 7 feet above sea level on average. Rising sea levels threaten the nation’s very existence to the point where President Nasheed has set up a fund for the purchase of a new homeland should the nation be destroyed. This urgency has prompted the Maldives to pledge to become the world’s first carbon neutral country.

Rising water levels are not an issue that impact only  the Maldives, but the entire world. 1 of every 10 people on earth lives in a low-lying region in danger of being flooded by rising sea levels. Many populous regions of Asia are at risk, as are the coastal regions of the United States.

Not only is flooding a concern, but also harsher weather events such as powerful hurricanes. The hurricane corridor in the southeast US is particularly vulnerable, but so is the northeast. California is worried about losing beaches, a major source of tourism revenue for its economy. Even areas no where near the sea will be impacted: if mass migrations from flooded regions become a reality refugees will seek asylum elsewhere.

The potential impact of rising sea levels in both a social and an economic sense is astonishing.

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