The Pacific island nation of Tuvalu is getting ready to evacuate all 11,000 of its residents in an unprecedented response to climate change. The low-lying nation, which is only 6.5 feet above sea level on average, is in danger of being submerged by rising sea levels brought on by global warming. Tuvalu has started putting long-term migration plans into action because the situation has gotten so bad.
A historic deal between Australia and Tuvalu was signed in 2023, establishing a climate visa program that permits 280 Tuvaluan nationals to move there permanently annually. Demand has already increased for the lottery-based visas. The urgency of the situation was highlighted by the Australian High Commission in Tuvalu, which reported 8,750 registrations, including whole families, for the limited number of annual spots.
According to experts, the migration rate may increase to 4% of Tuvalu’s population per year, which could mean that almost 40% of the country’s population will move within ten years. Many may travel back and forth or eventually return, but a permanent contingency plan is still essential, according to Jane McAdam, a research fellow at UNSW Sydney.
In addition to making plans for the actual move, the Tuvaluan government is also attempting to protect the nation’s culture and identity. In the event that the islands are lost to rising seas, efforts are being made to digitally preserve their landscape and cultural heritage through 3D scanning.
The situation in Tuvalu serves as a sobering reminder of the pervasive and rapidly intensifying effects of climate change. The UN Human Development Program estimates that rising coastal flooding could endanger more than 70 million people. Similar dangers might affect hundreds of crowded cities by 2050.
Speaking at the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, Prime Minister Feleti Teo of Tuvalu underlined: “We are not responsible for the existential threat we face, but it will transform us.” In addition to being a humanitarian emergency, Tuvalu’s gradual disappearance is a reminder that urgent global climate action is required before other countries suffer a similar fate.
