The Pacific island nation of Tuvalu — home to about 11,000 people — may be forced to move its entire population within decades, becoming the first country in history to relocate due to climate change.
Sea levels around Tuvalu have risen about 15 cm in the past 30 years, faster than the global average, according to NASA. With an average elevation of just two meters, the country’s nine coral atolls are increasingly threatened by flooding, saltwater intrusion, and loss of farmland. Experts warn Tuvalu could be uninhabitable by mid-century.
The government has already secured a relocation deal with Australia, launched cultural preservation projects, and is building a “digital nation” to safeguard its sovereignty, records, and heritage online.
Daily life is already disrupted — roads, homes, and the airport face regular inundation, freshwater supplies are shrinking, and traditional fishing and farming are under pressure. Without sharp cuts to global emissions, Tuvalu’s physical existence could vanish, leaving only a digital twin as proof it ever stood above the waves.
