07 May 2007 - My name
is Ben Namakin. I am originally from Kiribati,
but I currently live in Pohnpei (formerly
known as Ponape) in the Federated States
of Micronesia (FSM). I work as an environmental
educator for the Conservation Society of
Pohnpei (CSP), the only local environment
non government organisation on the island.
At the CSP, I implement The Green Road
Show (GRS). This is a very famous, fun and
interactive tool that teaches children in
elementary schools, high schools, the college,
and community members about many issues,
including climate change.
The impacts of flooding - coastal erosion,
saltwater intrusion, infrastructure destroyed
During my childhood days in Kiribati, we
never experienced severe sea flooding. There
were storms, but they weren’t that bad.
As the sea levels continue to rise in Kiribati,
several king tides hit the island. Saltwater
intrusion affects the quality of water in
wells, floods taro patches, gardens, and
puts stress on plants/trees which are very
important to the life and culture of an
I-Kiribati.
For example, pandanus trees mean a lot
to us; they are used for house construction,
local medicine, food, traditional clothing,
etc., but are dying from saltwater intrusion.
Serious storm surges cause coastal erosion,
floods grave yards, and in 2006, led to
the collapse of the beautiful Dai Nippon
causeway. This incident bore huge costs
on the people of Kiribati. They had to build
new homes with their own finance, and dig
up their deceased relatives from their graves
and bury them further inland.
While studying for my High School Diploma
in Pohnpei in 2001, during my free time,
I would hang out with my friends on a small
islet name Dekehtik located on the barrier
reef couple of miles away from the school.
It was my favourite camping, picnicking
and snorkeling spot. In 2005, I found to
my surprise that Dekehtik Islet had split
into two. I went to see for myself, with
my own eyes, and there it was, badly destroyed
by sea flooding. How sad to see this unexpected,
sudden threat on the islanders and the landowners!
Coastal communities flooded during high
tide
Visiting the community on the coast of Sokehs,
Pohnpei, I learnt that many villagers had
built their houses on raised foundations
as the sea water was flooding their homes
during high tide. They also built walls
in front of their houses to prevent flooding
during heavy rains. The villagers I spoke
to mentioned noticing these changes in the
last five years but not in the past.
The civil, economic, social and cultural
rights that climate change abuses have strengthened
my spirit to stand up for my nation, fight
for our rights and to let many people know
that we need to do something now to stop
global warming.
Spreading the word
I participated at the Youth Summit during
the United Nations Conference on Climate
Change in 2005. I spoke at the conference
plenary session which had more than 10,
000 people to deliver the youth’s message
on “Our Climate, Our Challenge, Our Future”
.
In 2006, I participated in a Climate Change
tour across the United States. Through seminars,
I encouraged university students to join
the climate change movement. I also worked
hard to convince leaders in the USA to improve
US policy on clean energy to address climate
change, ratify the Kyoto Protocol, and most
importantly make decisions that will not
affect my people in the Pacific Islands
negatively.
