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Kadir van Lohuizen / NOOR
A langouste diver in front of Carti Cohabita. Residents of the island are scheduled to evacuate in August.
Photojournalist Kadir van Lohuizen traveled from the southern tip of South America to the far reaches of Alaska on the North American continent to explore migration in the Americas. What he found both supported and defied stereotypes, which he reported on a website and an app for iPad called Via Panam.
Thousands of Kuna — indigenous people living in an archipelago off the northern coast of Panama — are facing a drastic lifestyle change because of rising seas.
Kuna Yala, or Kuna Land, is comprised of 365 islands and a narrow, 250-mile-long strip of land on the Caribbean coast. Thirty-six of the islands are inhabited.
In August, the first round of evacuations will force some Kuna to the mainland because of dangerous living conditions, affecting 65 families. Ultimately, all of the islands will be evacuated — affecting 36,000 people — and new dwellings are being built and funded on the mainland by the Panamanian government.
Kadir van Lohuizen / NOOR
This family has to evacuate to the mainland in August 2012.
The inhabited islands are chock full of houses built of reeds and palm leaves and no match for storms and rising water. Historically, flooding was comparatively rare, but residents now regularly contend with surging water.
Experts say sea levels rose nearly seven inches over the past century, and levels could rise another two feet by the end of this century.
The Kuna have lived on the Caribbean coast in autonomy for more than 80 years. Two centuries ago, most Kunas lived on the mainland, but they relocated to the islands following an epidemic. They make their living from fishing and farming. They grow manioc, pineapples and bananas in their small fields on the mainland, but their most lucrative crop is coconuts.
Kadir van Lohuizen / NOOR
One of the Carti community's two political and spiritual leaders -- and his entourage -- visit the main land where the first 65 houses will be constructed.
The Kuna form a tight-knit community, have their own language, and are well-organized. Decisions are made collectively in the Onmaked Nega — the assembly hall. Meetings are presided over by a saila, a political and spiritual leader.
The coming evacuation was debated at the hall, and was eventually approved after long discussion. Many residents are still afraid of being tricked by the state. Because they have no financial resources to build new accommodations for themselves, they ultimately agreed to the evacuation plans.
Kadir van Lohuizen / NOOR
Multiple generations of this family live together on one of the islands.
K. van Lohuizen / NOOR
From Colombians fleeing war to North Americans retirees moving to Nicaragua, a photographer's journey from Chile to Alaska explores both the expected and unexpected patterns of migration in the Americas
Across the water, on the mainland, lies a 4-year-old road — the only one in the vicinity. It used to be a 12-hour walk to reach the Pan American Highway, which connects to Panama City, the country's capital. Now it takes three hours.
As a result, many of the young Kuna have left for the capital city. Conversely many more consumer goods, like televisions and Coca-Cola, now reach Kuna Yala.
Experience the entire journey, from Chile to Alaska, by exploring the slideshow at right, the Via Panam website or by downloading the app for iPad.
More Photoblogs from the Migration in the Americas series:
Mom works in US while family stays in El Salvador
US retirees flock to Nicaragua
Bolivia hopes for windfall from producing lithium for batteries
Leave a Comment:
The sky is falling, the sky is falling!
Man made or not the sea would have risen, or lowered, as it always has.
No doubt we are an added complication, but I don't see the "green" people really caring. Honda and GM built two cars that got over 50 Mpg in 1992. Both were gone by 1996. VW has built diesels that get decent fuel mileage for much longer, but in the mid 90's we almost ran them out of the US for good.
When views from space at night the Earth "glows". This doesn't take into account the countless lights on inside, and other "appliances".
This article mentions that "Consumer good, like TV and Coca Cola" now reach these people, like that is a good thing? Or that for them to move is a good thing... Like its doing us, or them, a service by inducting them into our "lazy" way of life...Burning fossil fuels (the roads they have added are mentioned)...
Sadly our own country would not have the problems we had if we only bought "Made in the USA" goods, made the best goods in the world, respected our resources (which includes the labor pool) and worked an honest days work for an honest days wage.
When oil runs out and water is in short supply because of overpopulation we'll see how quickly we turn on the Government that created this dependency democracy.. to no avail.
It is a better story than another story about people from the middle east. But Disatisfied - 3754360 Post #26 wrote exactly what I was thinking? Why not the Atlantic coast and it's barrier islands and waterways?
Not sure where you're getting the information that sea rise isn't a very real threat there, Yank:
Study: Sea rise faster on East Coast than rest of globe - USA Today
That's oxymoronic- they aren't getting the information. For a lot of people, opinion trumps fact- because actual comprehension is hard. It takes work. It takes math. You have a clearer view than most- because physics models reality in ways that inform a broad grasp of the reasons behind effects that remain mysterious to most. Clark's Law: "Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic." Many daily use artifacts which operate on principles and use technologies completely incomprehensible to those sliding their fingers around on glowing panes of glass. It's a magic box that does cool stuff. I only had two semesters of physics and the associated calculus- an engineer doesn't really need much more, though I did find a need for further math like Boolean Algebra when I got sucked into computer science- now a basic part of almost everything. I admire your efforts to educate the ignorant regardless. Good luck with that.
Displaced population masses is just one of the costs associated to climate change that very few even consider.
Water level rising?
Who cares?
We all know that Obama will part the seas, or will walk on water...so how does this matter? The man knows he is always right, is condescending, refuses to listen to anyone, cannot compromise....and anything that goes wrong is someone elses fault.
Hey Rex, President Obama is President of the US, not Panama. Just couldn't wait to throw your 2 cents in and bring American politics into a story that has no bearing on US politics, vote for Mitt on November 4th so that he can usher in a new era of Paradise (if you are rich).
rising sea level will force more and more people to relocate to higher ground. the best prediction now is that the rise will be 2 to 6 feet over the next 100 years. It could well be more. meanwhile the oil industry tells us this is normal and there's nothing that we can do about; typical can't do attitude from the right wing fringe
Why does this or anything in other Countries effect Us? We have very serious problems right here in the United States to allow our Government to get involved in other people's problems. DO NOT REELECT ANY POLITICIANS!!
Stormy, I didn't read anywhere in the article that the US was involved in this. I do agree that we need to throw out all the politicians today and install new ones and hold them accountable or fire them after their first term.
Remember when certain groups said this was all make believe, that Al Gore was making this stuff up to further his political agenda? Maybe I'm just making this up too!
I spent 27 months in Panama as a Peace Corps volunteer (1999-2002). Although I lived on the Pacific side, many volunteers lived among the Kuna Yala. I am pretty sure their most lucrative crop is NOT trafficking in marijuana as suggested above by "el grande poste".
Me = selling land in Florida....buying land in Colorado. Georgia may actually not be a bad investment. Property's cheap, and, when the rats flee the sinking ship, that'll be the first place they stop.
All of you hypocritical global warming whinners make me want to puke. You sit on your butts in your cars at rush hour and then whine about man made global warming. Go ride a bus you lazy p.o.s.
I put solar panels on my home, eat locally-produced food (much of which I grow myself), avoid beef (the production of which accounts for a full 20% of global warming gasses ]methane]), work from home, and am very aware of the energy I consume, and go out of my way to reduce my family's consumption.
There are people who care and act. Do you?
"Sentiment without action is the death of the soul." Edward Abbey
There is a way to gain economic stability, national security, as well as be good stewards of the environment on which we directly depend, and of which we are exactly a product.
Build more wind and solar power plants, back these up with Natural Gas generators, and pump the endless amount of renewable energy onto our electric grid.
Continue developing the network of electric charging stations for our vehicles.
Over the next twenty years convert our gas-fired automobiles to hybrid electric/natural gas vehicles.
We have more domestic natural gas than we know what to do with. South Dakota currently "flares off" billions of cubic feet of it a year.
We continue to be lied to by the only real players on the face of the earth: Big Oil Interests. Everything they say is well-crafted and intended to keep us from moving away from their toxic, violence-causing, and dirty product.
Wind and Solar for our electric grid.
Natural Gas for our vehicles.
Corn for food.
And Coal for bad children's Christmas stockings.
Yes We Can!
Picture # 4: Nice globes. I'd like to do a little global warming. Those are some really nice floppers.
Subsiding land perhaps but not rising seas. Sea level rise has actually decreased in rate in recent years. And sea level has been naturally rising at an even rate since the last ice age.
Natural, normal, nothing to do with man.
http://climate4you.com/images/UnivColorado%20MeanSeaLevelSince1992%20With1yrRunningAverage.gif
http://sealevel.colorado.edu/files/2011_rel4/sl_ns_global.png
Yes, all that ice melt in Greenland causes land to sink not raise the sea level. WTF, are you that thick?
Economykiller,
So...let me get this straight. You believe "scientists" when they say that the land is sinking, or that "global cooling" is happening, but the minute they support man-made climate change (and 99% of them do) you somehow regard them as crazy liberal lunatics?
Is this about right?
That's the problem when you start conflating religion (faith), politics (realpolitik and, occasionally, secular philosophy), business motives (Hungry Hungry Hippos) and science (mathematics and empiricism). Everything gets a little muddled.
Take global warming. From a religious perspective, it's not happening because you believe only your particular god can destroy the world. From a business perspective, global warming isn't happening because you can't afford it to be. From a political perspective, global warming isn't happening because your donors are businessmen and your constituents are religious. And, lastly, from a scientific perspective...it is happening.
Sounds to me like the tourist trade wants to take over. First evict the current private sector, then the big money can come in and put up Concrete Condos. My wife and I just returned to St. Marteen for a vacation, after being away for 15 years. We could hardly recognize the place. No access to the beaches unless you have access to a particular resort. No more breath-taking views. This is taking place all over in the Caribbean.
Not in Kuna Yala land it isn't.
No matter what the cause whats it going to cost the taxpayers to save NY and all the coastal cities when they start to go under
In all the rhetoric I have read above, I see a great deal of lip service paid to a multitude of reasons why Mexicans and South Americans are flocking to and have already flocked to the United States and Canada, the lands of milk and honey. Has it not occurred to the "blame peddlers" that the Roman Catholic Church is more to blame than any other reason for the migration? Almost all countries which espouse Roman Catholicism as its "state religion" creates, among a myriad of other social ills, ignorance, poverty, and superstition. While Her Imperial Majesty, Ill Mammy Benedict XVI and her silk, satin, gold gowns, and jewels, heap terror and misplaced allegiance on the poor, ignorant, and superstitious, all the while sitting on her gold-gilt throne in Rome, the denizens of Catholic-controlled countries tremble in abject horror for fear that Ill Pappy's alleged, god-inspired edicts will be disobeyed. King Henry VIII of England who basically outlawed the Catholic Church in the British Commonwealth and the Continental Congress of the United States of America had the good sense to separate church and state before the Roman Catholics in their over-powering greed had a chance to grab another country. Now, take a look at America and Britain and compare them to Catholic-ruled countries.
You men should have more respect for women.
If you didn't live there you DON't know anything. So don't post your stupidity as ignorant men.
You men should have more respect for women. I'm sure that if that picture was of your mother you wouldn't be making those comments. If you don't have anything better say, DON't. You are not even commenting on the story. HA, HA and the ignorant that didn't know the difference between COLOMBIA and COLUMBIA you are a joke.
Of course not, my mother's coconuts are nowhere near that ripe.
I like this series of photo essays. Good stuff. Always nice to step out of the American bubble once in a while. If some of these climate change predictions are accurate, people in the future will get to experience some really interesting things, like canoeing down the streets of Manhattan.
I live in Panama. The Guna, which they now prefer to be called, are the best organized most astute group of indigenous people here. They have had their comaraca(reservation) longer than any other indigenous group. When the U.S. had military bases in Panama, Gunas were the people hired to do non-military tasks on the bases. They, unlike many other Panamanians, know the value of good service and considered to be good to employ. They are not helpless people, they have money to build houses on the mainland if they wish. All you need to do to see how impoverished they aren't is go to Marcos Gelabart Airport( formerly Allbrook A.F.B.) and see how many of them are boarding the flight to Porvenir everyday.