Panama's sinking islands - 11th October 2023

Carti Sugtupu is an island in the Caribbean Sea. It's 1,200 metres off the north coast of Panama. It's small. There isn't enough space. Two thousand Guna people live there. But life isn't easy. There's no electricity. They share a public toilet. The people earn money from fishing and tourists. Some of them make and sell traditional clothes.

But this is going to change soon. Magdalena Martinez is happy to leave the island.

Magdalena Martínez: "We want a home where we can live with dignity, with electricity 24 hours a day, with drinking water all day long, because here we have to collect water from the rivers. So, it would be a good thing for us. But there's also the cost. Here, we pay nothing."

Climate change is a problem for the island. Sea levels are rising.

Steven Paton says the island will disappear in 30 years.

Steven Paton: "This is an example of one of the islands. It was at an altitude of only half a metre, but with the current sea level rise, this island will not last longer than 20 or 30 years, at the most."

The Guna people have to leave the island. The Panama government built a new town for 300 families. There's a school too.

Braulio Navarro's happy to move.

Braulio Navarro: "Oh, I've been waiting for it for a long time. Yes, I'm happy, I'm happy! I want to move quickly. Yes, it's true because I know we will be better off there. I know it will be a bit difficult at first, but little by little we will get used to it. That's what I think. Yes, I'm happy."

The Guna people are happy to move. But, they don't want to lose their island culture.

But Magdalena Martinez thinks the culture won't die.

Magdalena Martínez: "Yes, this will change our lifestyle quite a bit. But I want to make it clear that it won't change our spirit, it won't change our habits, it won't change our way of being."