National Geographic Society

The image of an isolated polar bear drifting away on a runaway ice shelf has reached many hearts as a touching reminder of the urgent challenges facing our planet as a result of climate change. Tragically, the polar bear is not the only species under an imminent threat. Films such as Time & Tide, which screened as part of the All Roads Film Festival in 2006, and explorers such as Dr. Elizabeth Lindsey have placed a human face on the crises by identifying threatened islands and their populations as the "canaries in the coal mine" for the consequences of climate change. Suggesting perhaps more symbolism than substance, the entire population (est. 12,000) of the island nation of Tuvalu recently applied for asylum in Australia. While their request was officially denied, government officials are now exploring the idea of a new visa category to "cover climate change refugees." The Maldives, a nation of 1200 islands whose highest point is 2.3 meters above sea level is exploring a different tact to relocate their population of 370,000, purchasing new land. In this global real-estate market that is currently tending favorable towards buyers, Prime Minister Mohamed Nasheed has proposed setting aside the country's tourism revenues to literally buy a new homeland. The cultural implications for relocating an entire population into another sovereign nation in one fell swoop are dramatically enormous.