Stay or go? Pacific Islanders face climate's grim choice

Highest elevation in tuvalu : 4.6m

No surprise.

It should never be hosting so many as 11,000 inhabitants in the first place.

If sea levels really are rising, there is nothing politicians can do about it. These islanders will have to live with it, or re-locate to another island. Nobody can resist nature.

If sea levels really are rising, there is nothing politicians can do about it. 

There are a lot of things that can be done against climate change that politicians can help with (or more likely become a hurdle to).

These islanders will have to live with it, or re-locate to another island. Nobody can resist nature.

The problem is that the elevation is not a natural process but caused by humans, it is not nature the one that they are resisting but the negative effects of human activity on a global level.

The forces of nature are powerful, as we have seen historically islands disappear, and new ones be created. The natural cycle.

I went to Tarawa in Kiribati back around 1987 on a mission to support the hospital ship Merci.

people lived in open buildings without walls. The sea was like 5 feet lower than ground level. I have seen pictures now and many parts are under water.

The forces of nature are powerful, as we have seen historically islands disappear, and new ones be created. The natural cycle.

That is still wrong,

The problem is that the elevation is not a natural process but caused by humans, it is not nature the one that they are resisting but the negative effects of human activity on a global level.

it’s so much more complicated than most people think. just reducing emissions has two effects. one, aerosols (particulate matter) reflect sun energy, thus less particulates raises temperature.

less co2, which traps heat, reduces temperature. it’s not a single element solution and they are not one for one.

during the peak reduction in emissions during covid, you would think the effect was lower temperature, but that effect was less than the heating effect from less aerosols.

temperatures still rose.

the surface temperature of moon was affected during this time. earth reflects energy and the moon absorbs it when the sun is not shining on the moon, when massive energy is absorbed. the temperature of the moon reduced during the times when only reflected energy from the earth reduced during peak covid.