An Island Nation Turns Away from Climate Migration, Despite Rising Seas

"The people of Kiribati face a choice: Move to land in another country or try to build resilience off the coconut trade — for as long as their islands are livable."

"AMBO, Kiribati — Taneti Maamau, president of the Republic of Kiribati, leans forward from his office desk at Parliament, clasps his hands, and grins. "We try to isolate ourselves from the belief that Kiribati will be drowned," he says. "The ultimate decision is God's."

As early as 2050, it is estimated that climate change will render Kiribati, a string of 33 coral atolls that necklace the central Pacific, unlivable. And when it does, the i-Kiribati—the name that Kiribati's indigenous residents give themselves—will have to move.

But when and how Kiribati migrates hangs on domestic politics splintered by questions of how best to run an island nation short on time, space and cash."

Ben Walker reports for  InsideClimate News November 20, 2017.