Holding on to home, as the ocean engulfs the Solomon Islands
Photo credit: © IOM/Junior Patrick Makau via News.un.org Excerpt from news.un.org Sikaiana, less than two square kilometres, is encircled by the sea and is home to just 300 people. It is also more than 200 kilometres from the main island of the Solomon archipelago. Most homes lie steps from the shore, where high tides flood the tree line and seep into wells, making freshwater scarce. Still, life continues with a sense of routine. Children walk barefoot to school, fishermen prepare their nets, and families tend to their gardens as they always have. At the island’s only school, Principal Tuiao Kapule pauses to draw rainwater from a storage tank – a precious resource on this isolated atoll where every drop counts. “When I was growing up, life in Sikaiana wasn’t like this,” he says. “Now the tides are higher, saltwater levels have risen, and it’s harder to grow food the way we used to.” He watches his students playing nearby, their laughter echoing through the schoolyard. “Families are finding it hard to cope with the changes,” he says. “Some students stay home when there isn’t enough to eat.”
