On Friday 16 October, cabinet members of the Maldives donned full scuba gear to meet 6 metres below the surface of a turquoise lagoon, 20 minutes boat ride from the capital, Malé. In the presence of their dive instructors and snorkelling journalists, communicating in hand-signals and on white boards, they signed a document ahead of the UN climate change conference in Copenhagen, in the hope of bring to the attention of other governments the urgent need to cut carbon emissions.
The sea which has sustained the people of these islands for centuries, is rising. The 1,200 island archipelago is no more than a couple of metres above see level, which has risen some 20cm in the last century. By 2100, sea levels are estimated to rise by over a half metre, threatening the homes and lives of many of the 300,000 Maldivians, their children and grandchildren.
President Mohamed Nasheed is no stranger to rising water. Arrested and jailed several times in the 1990's for his opposition to former president Maumoon Gayoom's corrupt, autocratic, and profligate 30-year rule, Anni (as he is known in Dhivehi) was rewarded in 2008 with victory in the nation's first ever democratic elections. He wasted no time in getting to work dismantling the culture of largesse and entitlement which flourished under the previous regime. Amongst his first actions after inauguration were dramatic cuts to the enormous costs and gross privileges of the presidency. He has moved out of his predecessor's grand office (with its gold plated loo) and relocated down the corridor to work in a smaller, less ornate room, which he shares with his secretary. At his bequest, the government has also auctioned off the presidential yacht, and there is talk of turning the private presidential island into a scientific research centre.
After winning kudos locally by cost cuts, President Nasheed now faces an even greater political challenge abroad: convincing world leaders to cut their countries' emissions and curb climate change which disproportionally affects poorer, low-lying nations, like the Maldives.
It would be easy for this tiny, relatively poor country to plead poverty and incapacity in the face of this insurmountable climatic crisis, but President Nasheed is determined that the Maldives lead the way to a more sustainable future. In March this year, he pledged that within a decade, the nation will go carbon-neutral, moving completely to wind, solar, and biomass power and lowering emissions with a new generation of green boats.
Perhaps because of the hardship of his incredible journey from jail to President, Nasheed remains a realist. As it produces less than 0,1% of the world's emissions, he realises a carbon-neutral Maldives won't stop the waters rising, but, he insists, it can be a powerful example to large, industrialised nations that 'rapid reductions in emissions are possible, practical and profitable,' even for a tiny developing country. He hopes the investment will position the country to become a leader in green technology and eco-tourism.
Whilst lobbying for international action and leading the way with ambitious renewable energy policies, he is not betting all of the Maldives' future on preventative action. President Nasheed has discussed setting up a solemn sovereign fund, supported by incomes from the country's large tourism industry, which could be used to buy land if and when the country becomes a swamp. Sites in nearby India and Sri-Lanka have already been identified, as well as further afield in dry, land abundant Australia. This is perhaps the most sobering and surest response he can make to climate change. Who would rely on the leaders of the industrialised world, and their voters, to cut back on the privileges afforded to them by their carbon fuelled lifestyles, and turn back the tide, before it's too late for the Maldives?
President Mohamed Nasheed is no stranger to rising water. Arrested and jailed several times in the 1990's for his opposition to former president Maumoon Gayoom's corrupt, autocratic, and profligate 30-year rule, Anni (as he is known in Dhivehi) was rewarded in 2008 with victory in the nation's first ever democratic elections. He wasted no time in getting to work dismantling the culture of largesse and entitlement which flourished under the previous regime. Amongst his first actions after inauguration were dramatic cuts to the enormous costs and gross privileges of the presidency. He has moved out of his predecessor's grand office (with its gold plated loo) and relocated down the corridor to work in a smaller, less ornate room, which he shares with his secretary. At his bequest, the government has also auctioned off the presidential yacht, and there is talk of turning the private presidential island into a scientific research centre.
After winning kudos locally by cost cuts, President Nasheed now faces an even greater political challenge abroad: convincing world leaders to cut their countries' emissions and curb climate change which disproportionally affects poorer, low-lying nations, like the Maldives.
It would be easy for this tiny, relatively poor country to plead poverty and incapacity in the face of this insurmountable climatic crisis, but President Nasheed is determined that the Maldives lead the way to a more sustainable future. In March this year, he pledged that within a decade, the nation will go carbon-neutral, moving completely to wind, solar, and biomass power and lowering emissions with a new generation of green boats.
Perhaps because of the hardship of his incredible journey from jail to President, Nasheed remains a realist. As it produces less than 0,1% of the world's emissions, he realises a carbon-neutral Maldives won't stop the waters rising, but, he insists, it can be a powerful example to large, industrialised nations that 'rapid reductions in emissions are possible, practical and profitable,' even for a tiny developing country. He hopes the investment will position the country to become a leader in green technology and eco-tourism.Whilst lobbying for international action and leading the way with ambitious renewable energy policies, he is not betting all of the Maldives' future on preventative action. President Nasheed has discussed setting up a solemn sovereign fund, supported by incomes from the country's large tourism industry, which could be used to buy land if and when the country becomes a swamp. Sites in nearby India and Sri-Lanka have already been identified, as well as further afield in dry, land abundant Australia. This is perhaps the most sobering and surest response he can make to climate change. Who would rely on the leaders of the industrialised world, and their voters, to cut back on the privileges afforded to them by their carbon fuelled lifestyles, and turn back the tide, before it's too late for the Maldives?
Watch the cabinet's scuba session and other fascinating BBC clips here:
Maldives cabinet make a splash
Leading by an achievable example
Maldives leader on climate pledge
Maldives rises to climate challenge
Maldives sells presidential bling
Much BBC online content was leveraged in this article.
Images courtesy of Reuters and NASA/GSFC/METI/ERSDAC/JAROS, and U.S./Japan ASTER Science Team.
Are you lingering around blue lagoons yet again?? Haha, great article Gil, do you think 10yrs is a realistic cut-off point? We should monitor them closely, perhaps by means of a visit!
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