SPOTLIGHT
When small is The OPEC Fund is launching a series of initiatives to address the multiple C limate change will affect every country on earth, but not all in world’s population, spread across more than 1,000 islands.
the same way. For some it is already a question of survival. On October 17, 2009, the President of the Maldives convened a meeting of his cabinet around 5 meters underwater: “We are trying to send our message to let the world know what is happening and what will happen to the Maldives if climate change isn’t checked,” Mohamed Nasheed said. The United Nations has 39 countries on its list of Small Island Developing States (SIDS). They are located in the Caribbean, the Pacific and the Atlantic, Indian Ocean and South China Sea and host a vast range of unique and diverse ecosystems. The ocean under their control is 28 times the size of their combined land mass. The aggregate population of all SIDS is 65 million, slightly less than 1 per cent of the
As early as 1992 SIDS were recognized as a special case by the UN Conference on Environment and Development (known as the “Earth Summit”) in Rio de Janeiro. Even though small islands are responsible for less than 1 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions, the Rio declaration “Agenda 21” warned: “They are considered extremely vulnerable to global warming and sea-level rise, with certain small low-lying islands facing the increasing threat of the loss of their entire national territories.” While vanishing under the waves would be the extreme outcome of climate change, many SIDS are already witnessing the growing impacts of tropical cyclones, storm surges, sea level rise, as well as droughts, coral bleaching
challenges faced by Small Island Developing States By Axel Reiserer, OPEC Fund
October 17, 2009: Former President of the Maldives
Mohamed Nasheed convened his cabinet meeting underwater
“Climate change is affecting settlements and infrastructure, health and well-being, water and food security and economies [in SIDS].”
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)
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