The Marshall Islands, scattered in the Pacific Ocean between Hawaii and Papua New Guinea, consists of five main islands and 29 atolls — small low-lying islands formed by coral reefs. The total land mass is roughly the size of Washington, D.C., and the average height above sea level for the entire country is just seven feet. President Hilda C. Heine, who is serving a second stint in office, has spent much of her career working to sound the alarm about rising temperatures. But with each year, the challenges grow. Mosquito-borne diseases have spread because of more frequent rainfall. The islands’ economy relies on the sale of tuna that foreign fishing fleets catch in their waters; now tuna are leaving for cooler parts of the Pacific. Many young residents are moving abroad. And as the planet continues to warm and glaciers melt, this tiny country may be among the first to be swallowed by the sea.
How is climate…
