A threat to our human rights: Tuvalu's perspective on climate change.

• Author: Ielemia, Apisai

If there is one issue that strikes at the heart of my nation, Tuvalu, it is climate change. Tuvalu is a small coral atoll nation located in the middle of the south pacific. Our lives are closely linked to the marine environment and we live off the bounty of the ocean, with fish being our main source of protein.

The islands are very narrow: Funafuti, the capital, is a mere 600 metres wide at its widest point and the land is less than 2 metres above sea level. We are very conscious of the sea that surrounds our small islands and now also of climate change.

We must carefully use the small amounts of freshwater that lie underneath the atolls. We cautiously dig small pits to reach the freshwater in the ground so that we can grow pulaka (a root crop sometimes called taro) and save every drop of rain that falls. Tragically, our environment is changing. The old people have noticed the changes, beaches have disappeared, small islets have been washed away, coral reefs are starting to die and crops are dying from saltwater intrusion. The recent report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) confirmed all these observations and predicted worse to come. As the temperature of the oceans increases, more corals will die. Sea levels will rise and severe storms will get far worse. Tuvalu faces a very uncertain future.

While we share responsibility for protecting our own environment, the impacts of climate change are caused by emissions from countries many thousands of kilometres away. We are at the mercy of the international community. For this reason, Tuvalu has been very active in climate change negotiations and has actively participated in recent discussions in the UN Security Council. For a small island developing State like Tuvalu, this is a security issue of immense proportions. Though difficult to comprehend, it is possible that our entire nation could disappear as a result of climate change. As was stated by Tuvalu's Ambassador to the United Nations, Afelee Pita, to the Security Council in early 2007, the climate change impact is an unprecedented threat to our nationhood. It is an infringement of our fundamental rights to nationality and statehood, as constituted under the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other international conventions.

Tuvalu joined the United Nations on 5 September 2000, firmly believing in the Organization's noble pillars of development, security and human rights. We are now calling on the United Nations...