Much current evidence suggests that global temperatures are slowly increasing. It is believed that this increase will be associated with a sea level rise. Tuvalu, approximately 1000 km north of Fiji in the South Pacific Ocean, is one of six countries, all of them island states, that
could face total destruction when sea levels rise
. If sea level rises occur anywhere near the extreme projections that have been made, we can write these nations off the map.
(Pernetta, 1988). This paper examines possible implications to the people of Tuvalu.
James Lewis is a Fellow in Development Studies at the University of Bath, UK. This paper is based on the report of a field mission by the author on behalf of The Commonwealth Expert Group on Climate Change and Sea Level Rise (Lewis, 1988).
Since submission of this article, James Lewis has taken part as a resource person at the Small States Conference on Sea Level Rise at Male, capital of the Maldives, 14th to 18th, November, 1989. A report of the Conference will be submitted for a subsequent issue ofThe Environmentalist.