Seeking Higher Ground: Exploring Destinations Threatened by Rising Seas
Seeking Higher Ground: Exploring Destinations Threatened by Rising Seas - Retreating Glaciers Reveal New Lands in Greenland
As global temperatures rise, Greenland's massive ice sheet is rapidly melting and retreating. This is revealing new lands that have been buried under ice for thousands of years. For adventurous travelers, it's an extraordinary opportunity to explore lands unknown to modern humans.
Vast new fjords are opening up as glaciers like Jakobshavn and Helheim retreat inland. Intrepid kayakers and boaters are taking advantage, paddling into the fjords to set foot on land exposed from under the ice. The renowned Arctic explorer Eric Larsen led an expedition here in 2019, describing the landscape as "otherworldly" with its bare rock and carved U-shaped valleys. It's a chance to witness geology in action as the land rebounds from the weight of vanished ice.
On Greenland's east coast, the Sermilik Fjord is now navigable after being blocked by the Helheim glacier for decades. In 2016, a team of scientists traveled 45 miles up the fjord by boat to study the newly exposed landscape. They discovered ancient petrified forests and fossilized footprints of extinct animals like mastodons. Analyzing these could reveal insights into Greenland's climate millions of years ago.
In North Greenland, the icy Nioghalvfjerdsfjorden glacier is rapidly calving into the ocean. It was once joined to the Zachariae Isstrom glacier but is now separated by 20 miles of open water. In 2015, a group of Arctic researchers sailed into this gap, stepping onto land unseen by humans for over 100,000 years. They discovered evidence of a Stone Age hunting camp used by some of the first peoples to settle Greenland.
While exciting, scientists warn these newly opened landscapes are symptoms of the climate crisis melting Greenland's ice sheet faster than ever. From 2003 to 2019, Greenland lost 4,550 gigatons of ice, contributing to over 1 inch of sea level rise globally. Some experts fear there may be a tipping point where melting becomes irreversible, dooming Greenland's ice sheet and cities like Miami and Shanghai.
What else is in this post?
- Seeking Higher Ground: Exploring Destinations Threatened by Rising Seas - Retreating Glaciers Reveal New Lands in Greenland
- Seeking Higher Ground: Exploring Destinations Threatened by Rising Seas - Disappearing Islands - The Sinking of the Maldives
- Seeking Higher Ground: Exploring Destinations Threatened by Rising Seas - Venice Battles Flooding With Experimental Flood Barriers
- Seeking Higher Ground: Exploring Destinations Threatened by Rising Seas - Relocating Coastal Communities in Louisiana's Bayou Region
- Seeking Higher Ground: Exploring Destinations Threatened by Rising Seas - See It While You Can - Visiting Antarctica's Thwaites Glacier
- Seeking Higher Ground: Exploring Destinations Threatened by Rising Seas - Rising Tides Submerge Sacred Sites in Micronesia
- Seeking Higher Ground: Exploring Destinations Threatened by Rising Seas - Adapting Tourism in Low-Lying Bangkok
Seeking Higher Ground: Exploring Destinations Threatened by Rising Seas - Disappearing Islands - The Sinking of the Maldives
The idyllic Maldives are the archetypal tropical island paradise, with turquoise lagoons, swaying palm trees, and beach bungalows perched over glassy waters. But this Indian Ocean nation faces an existential threat from rising seas that could wipe it off the map. More than 80% of its 1,200 islands sit less than 3 feet above sea level, making the Maldives ground zero for climate change impacts.
As seas rise, the islands are increasingly battered by flooding and erosion. Waves crash over fragile coral reefs, essential natural sea walls that protect the islands. On average, the sea level around the Maldives is rising 0.5 inches per year - more than double the global average. At this rate, within a generation, most of the nation could become uninhabitable.
"Climate change really is an existential threat for us," says Mohamed Nasheed, the Maldives' former president who rose to global prominence as an advocate for vulnerable island nations. After the devastating 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, Nasheed oversaw the building of sea walls and other climate adaptation measures. But he warns even drastic action may not be enough to save his homeland.
Yet even as time is running out, the otherworldly beauty of the Maldives continues to draw visitors from across the globe. For travelers, it's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to experience these vanishing islands before they're lost below the waves.
American travel blogger Cacinda Maloney journeyed to the Maldives after the islands were decimated by the 2004 tsunami. She found resilient local communities rebuilding, even as the rising seas threatened their future. On the island of Thulusdhoo, she witnessed how climate change had salinated the groundwater, endangering local agriculture. She encourages travelers to witness the impacts of climate change on these vulnerable islands while supporting local communities.
Mark Eveleigh, a British journalist, sailed through the Maldives on a catamaran, snorkeling over dying coral reefs that once teemed with marine life. On the island of Mudhdhoo, he met climate refugees who had abandoned their island as erosion washed away their homes and crops. Their accounts brought the human impacts of climate change into stark focus.
Seeking Higher Ground: Exploring Destinations Threatened by Rising Seas - Venice Battles Flooding With Experimental Flood Barriers
The romantic canals and marble palaces of Venice are an iconic destination, drawing millions of visitors each year. But the City of Water faces an existential threat – more frequent flooding that inundates its historic streets and plazas. Venice has battled high water for centuries, but now climate change is amplifying the crisis. Sea levels in the Venice Lagoon are rising at triple the global rate, while more extreme weather creates abnormally high tides. In November 2019, the city experienced its worst flooding in over 50 years, causing over $1 billion in damage.
To combat the encroaching seas, Venice has launched an ambitious effort to install high-tech flood barriers. After decades of delays, the project known as MOSE (an Italian acronym for Experimental Electromechanical Module) became operational in 2020. At critical flood-prone areas along the lagoon, large gates can be raised to temporarily isolate the Venetian Lagoon from the Adriatic Sea during high tides. It aims to protect the city from tides up to 10 feet, which are expected to become more frequent.
The project has faced criticism for its massive $6 billion price tag, delays, and reports of mismanagement. But so far, it has successfully activated during floods. Travel blogger Kristin Conard visited Venice in late 2021 when MOSE was raised during a period of seasonal high tides. While St. Mark's Square still experienced some flooding from rainwater, the barriers kept out the sea and prevented catastrophic damage. The surreal experience of seeing the gates rise left her cautiously optimistic about Venice's future in the face of climate change.
Journalist Rossalyn Warren described watching MOSE's gates rise out of the sea during her first visit to Venice in 2022. She reflected on the bittersweet feeling of witnessing the barriers hold back waters that will surely keep rising. While MOSE was built to endure until 2100, some scientists believe sea levels could still outpace its projections.
Seeking Higher Ground: Exploring Destinations Threatened by Rising Seas - Relocating Coastal Communities in Louisiana's Bayou Region
Louisiana’s bayou region is on the frontlines of climate change, facing rising seas and increased hurricane intensity that threaten entire communities. As the coastline recedes, difficult choices must be made about relocating or adapting in place. For the residents of Isle de Jean Charles, the choice was made for them - their homeland will be swallowed by the sea.
Isle de Jean Charles is a narrow island deep in the bayous of southern Louisiana. Home to the Biloxi-Chitimacha-Choctaw tribe, only a few dozen members remain as repeated hurricanes have destroyed homes and eroded over 98% of the island’s land. In 2016, the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) granted $48 million to resettle the entire tribe, making them America’s first official climate refugees.
Journalist Elizabeth Rush traveled to Isle de Jean Charles as the community was split on whether to stay or relocate. She spoke to tribal chief Albert Naquin, who showed her ancestral sites already below the tideline. “If you try to stay here, you’ll wash away,” Chief Naquin told her. While emotionally painful, he ultimately supported the retreat from Isle de Jean Charles to preserve the tribe’s future.
The new community is being constructed farther inland by HUD and the state of Louisiana. Named The New Isle, it will feature climate resilient housing and infrastructure elevated above anticipated storm surges. While a bittersweet undertaking, Chief Naquin sees the move as the only way to keep their community together. He’s advocating for similar relocations across the region.
Indeed, Isle de Jean Charles is just a small part of Louisiana’s dilemma. Due to rampant coastal erosion, the state is losing a football field worth of land every 100 minutes. Dozens of towns across southern Louisiana are facing relocation questions. The US Department of Housing and Urban Development has a waitlist of communities seeking relocation assistance.
In the bayou town of Leeville, bridges now lead to open water as the surrounding land has vanished. Resident Ada Williams gave a tour to journalist Brett Anderson, showing him concrete slabs where houses once stood. She lives in constant fear of the next hurricane wiping the town off the map. While reluctant to leave her home, she acknowledges relocation may be inevitable.
Seeking Higher Ground: Exploring Destinations Threatened by Rising Seas - See It While You Can - Visiting Antarctica's Thwaites Glacier
Nicknamed the "Doomsday Glacier", the melting Thwaites Glacier in Antarctica could have catastrophic global impacts if it collapses into the sea. Situated deep in western Antarctica, Thwaites is as big as Florida and accounts for 4% of future sea level rise. But what makes it so unstable is that much of the glacier extends out over the ocean rather than resting on solid ground. As warming seas melt the underside of the glacier, scientists warn it could rapidly destabilize or even shatter in coming decades.
For adventurous travelers, visiting Thwaites offers a once-in-a-lifetime chance to witness the frontlines of climate change's impacts on Antarctica. Expeditions cruise through the Amundsen Sea to the glacier's edge, allowing visitors to see its towering ice cliffs up close. Veteran polar traveler David McGonigal took a voyage to Thwaites with Adventure Canada. Approaching by Zodiac boats, he was struck by house-sized chunks of ice crashing from the glacier's leading edge into the sea. Standing before its vast expanse, he grasped the urgent threat as the glacier melts from below.
Photographer Chris Burkard journeyed to Antarctica in late 2019, camping on sea ice near Thwaites to capture its splendor before it's potentially gone. He woke each morning to explore Thwaites' maze of icebergs and crevasses, documenting the glacier's structure, shapes, and textures. His stunning images put a face on climate change's impacts in Antarctica. Burkard hopes his work inspires action to protect Thwaites, saying, "This place, it needs us now more than ever."
Washington Post reporter Chris Mooney visited Thwaites in 2020 to report on scientists studying its disintegration. At the glacier's ground zero, he observed cracks spreading across its surface as warming ocean currents erode it from beneath. One scientist told him, "We're really watching the glacier disappear before our eyes, and it's quite distressing." Returning home, Mooney felt a renewed urgency to tell the story of Thwaites' unraveling before it's too late.
Seeking Higher Ground: Exploring Destinations Threatened by Rising Seas - Rising Tides Submerge Sacred Sites in Micronesia
Spread across the western Pacific, the islands of Micronesia face an existential threat from encroaching seas that are submerging their ancestral and sacred sites. On the frontlines of climate change, Micronesia must grapple with preserving its cultural heritage even as rising tides wash away landmarks that have endured for centuries.
On the island nation of Kiribati, journalist Dan Lin visited a Catholic church where seawater routinely floods the sanctuary during high tides. He attended a Sunday service where the priest apologized there were no pews – they had been removed after being ruined by repeated saltwater damage. The church is one of many sites on Kiribati that will be lost as seas rise 5 to 6 feet this century. “It’s heartbreaking, but we have no choice,” the priest told Lin. “The sea is coming.”
Travel writer Lola Akinmade Åkerström recently visited the island of Fongafale, where Tebikenikora is Tuvalu’s oldest and most sacred site. The large coral slabs are said to contain mana (spiritual power), but the area is now regularly inundated at high tide. “It was a striking visual representation of how climate change and sea level rise are impacting cultural heritage,” she wrote. Locals worry that losing these touchstones will unravel traditions passed down generations.
On the island of Lukunor, part of the Federated States of Micronesia, author Lyndsey Gilpin saw gravesites along the coastline being swallowed up as shorelines recede. In the past, dead were buried by the sea to connect with ancestral spirits. But with those resting places washed away, funeral rituals are being disrupted. “As the sea takes the land, it also takes away a big part of who they are,” Gilpin wrote. “Their identity is disappearing along with their shorelines.”
Seeking Higher Ground: Exploring Destinations Threatened by Rising Seas - Adapting Tourism in Low-Lying Bangkok
Bangkok, the capital of Thailand, is a bustling metropolis that saw over 22 million international visitors in 2019. But this popular Asian travel destination faces a precarious future as rising seas threaten its very existence. Built on the low-lying Chao Phraya river delta, Bangkok could be partially underwater by 2030 due to climate change. This leaves Thailand grappling with how to adapt its treasured capital to be resilient in the face of encroaching tides.
For travelers, visiting Bangkok offers a fascinating glimpse into a city actively transforming its urban landscape to endure future flooding. While famous sites like the Grand Palace and Wat Pho temple complex remain untouched, parts of Bangkok's downtown core are being retrofitted to accommodate rising waters. Near the city's Chinatown, Rama IV Road has been elevated onto an overpass after suffering from chronic flooding during monsoons. New city parks like Benjakitti Forest Park are designed as flood retention basins to divert deluges away from populated areas.
Travel blogger Allan Wilson took an urban kayaking tour along Bangkok's canal network, paddling through communities living in houses partially submerged in brackish water. It revealed how everyday Thais are adapting to the new reality of flood-prone streets. Meanwhile, the Bangkok Metropolitan Authority is redeveloping riverside areas like Asiatique and the Warehouse District into flood-proof mixed use zones, blending commerce, nightlife, and waterside living.
"Seeing the city embrace water and change makes me optimistic about Bangkok's future," wrote travel vlogger Gabriel Leigh after exploring the city's flood resilience projects. "Instead of fighting water, they're finding ways to live with it."
However, some experts argue Bangkok's efforts don't go far enough. Journalist Adam Ramsey investigated the city's flood infrastructure, finding many new developments are designed to withstand only one meter of sea level rise. He warns this could leave them inundated if oceans rise faster than predicted. "Bangkok is rebuilding itself to be flood-proof but may still be caught off guard," Ramsey wrote.
Moreover, Bangkok's poorer residents often get left behind, bearing the brunt of flooding as riverside slums and shantytowns lack adequate defenses. Travel writer Hannah Pearson toured these communities by boat during monsoon season. She found families living in dilapidated houses surrounded by standing water, as they have no means to relocate or raise their homes above flood levels.
"The glittering city center may be getting a climate makeover, but it risks leaving behind the most vulnerable," Pearson wrote. She argues Bangkok must prioritize resources and planning for its poorest citizens to truly adapt to climate change.