GLOBAL NOTEBOOK
their populations. And while there are
other small ocean nations that remain
existentially threatened by the global
warming phenomenon, larger nations
like Egypt and Bangladesh, though in
no position to find themselves entirely
under the sea, are highly susceptible
to any type of sea level change, and
as many as 40 million citizens worldwide could be displaced by 2040.
The problem, however, of internal
displacement by no means eclipses the
question of the removal of an entire
internationally-recognized state, as
well as the additional amnesty concerns
that come with the emigration of an
entire population.
But more importantly, the situation brings up a flurry of different international questions, highlighting the
dynamic between larger and smaller
nations at the negotiating table.
Marshall Islands, Nauru, and other
threatened nations have already joined
together in a coalition to ask the International Court of Justice to appropriate
their demands. Perhaps what is most
perplexing is figuring out who foots
the bill of moving threatened populaces and recovering lost capital and
homes. A central idea, one that drives
the sinking nations’ coalition, remains:
that nations that largely contribute to
climate change and rising sea levels
like the United States and China are
inherently responsible and thus are
obligated to cover for those nations
threatened by emissions. And surely,
they will have a lot to do to ensure
the safety and wellbeing of the people
they’ve endangered.
While a lot has been discussed regarding who is to blame, not much has
actually been speculated as to what the
situation will look like in half a century.
The concrete methods by which these
emigrants will leave is still up in the
air. Some nations, tired of waiting for
a multilateral solution, have taken the
mission upon themselves.
Kiribati has proceeded with a land
deal with Fiji that will allocate areas for
inhabitants required to relocate, while
leaders in the Maldives have instead
looked to constructing artificial islands
in an attempt to slow down the natural
rising of the tide and to boost tourism
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for the small nation.
Most threatened nations, however,
are haunted by the possibility that their
tiny populations of culturally unique
inhabitants will fall through the cracks,
a terrible but understandable side effect of the hegemonic international
dialogue we have today.
And if larger states proximally
close to sinking nations do in fact decide to assist them – most clearly seen
in Australia and its relationship with
the smattering of nearby atolls – there
is much more to consider.
How will inhabitants get from one
nation to the other? What polic