Fear of the rising sea

From Barbados to Bangladesh, here is a look at nations that have been most affected by climate change.

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Papua New Guinea

Residents of Kilu village on the island of New Britain, Papua New Guinea, people have had to move homes back from flooded beaches. As seas rise with global warming, island states and low-lying costal communities elsewhere report ever-higher tides encroaching on their shorelines. Scientists project that seas will rise two feet or more in this century if greenhouse gases pollute the atmosphere unabated.

David Longstreath / AP

Kiribati

The Tarawa atoll, part of the island nation of Kiribati, is seen in an aerial view. Fearing that climate change could wipe out their entire Pacific archipelago, the leaders of Kiribati are considering an unusual backup plan: moving the populace of 103,000 to Fiji.

Richard Vogel / AP

Tuvalu

Tuvalu is one of the smallest nations in the world and is considered to be among the most susceptible to climate change. At high tide, ocean waves crash onto Tuvalu's capital, Funafuti (pictured), approaching dangerously close to residential areas on the narrow atoll city.

Soichiro Yamamoto / AP

Bangladesh

As many as 20 million people in Bangladesh are likely to be displaced by rising seas in the coming decades, according to the country’s Center for Environmental and Geographic Information Services. In the photo, a group of Bangladeshi village children — who have lost their homes due to erosion near the riverbed — stand on the banks Jamuna River, in Manikgonj.

Pavel Rahman / AP

Maldives

The island nation of the Maldives, located off the coast of India in the Indian Ocean, is at great risk of being washed away if global temperatures continue to rise. In this photo, the sun sets over vacation cottages in the Maldives. Since climate-change fears first gripped the globe, tourists have flocked to the Maldives to enjoy the islands' spectacular vistas before they vanish.

Kelly Shannon / AP

Palau

A report by the Alliance for Small Island States — which includes many nations of the South Pacific — found that capping global temperatures at a 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels is the only way to ensure the prolonged existence of many island nations. Pictured, an aerial view of the Palau Capital building in Melekeok, Palau, a South Pacific island nation at risk due to rising sea levels.

Itsuo Inouye / AP

The Philippines

A Filipino girl paddles in makeshift floater carrying water containers through a murky river in Manila. Millions of Filipinos living in coastal areas could face poverty, disease and hunger as a result of rising temperatures and increased rainfall, the World Health Organization warned.

Aaron Favila / AP

Barbados

With the vast majority of its food production, infrastructure and population lining its coastal zones, Barbados is a high-risk nation when it comes to rising sea levels. This photo shows Paradise Beach, Barbados.

/ Barbados Tourism Authority via AP

FEATURED PHOTO GALLERIES

Kriket Krekemeyer cries while cleaning up her tornado-ravaged home in Moore, Okla., Wednesday, May 22, 2013. (AP Photo/Tulsa World, Mike Simons)

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A police forensics officer investigates a crime scene where one man was killed in Woolwich, southeast London May 22, 2013. British Prime Minister David Cameron has called a meeting of his government's emergency Cobra security committee after the killing of a man in south London, his office said on Wednesday. REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth (BRITAIN - Tags: CRIME LAW POLITICS TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY)

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MOORE, OK - MAY 22: A street of tornado destructed homes is reflected on a puddle of water on May 22, 2013 in Moore, Ok. (Photo by Ricky Carioti/The Washington Post)

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WASHINGTON DC: MAY 22
Contestant Travis Rumans, 31 dances with his beloved glow sticks for talent at Penn Social in Washington, DC on May 22, 2013. The contestants help raise over $15,000 for the Children’s National Medical Center in Washington, D.C.
The Mr. DC pageant is a fundraising event to benefit Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals.
The qualifications for the Mr. District of Columbia finalists is that they must live, work and attend school in the District of Columbia between the ages of 21-30 who are unmarried, intelligent, and dapper in a suit.
(Photo by Marvin Joseph/The Washington Post)

Mr. D.C. Pageant contestants compete for charity

Contestants in the Mr. D.C. Pageant, a fundraising event, helped raise more than $15,000 for the Children’s National Medical Center.

ANNAPOLIS, MD - MAY 20: The Herndon Monument Climb is the traditional culmination of plebe year at the United States Naval Academy. The plebes climb to the top of the lard-covered 21 foot high monument and remove the 'dixie cup' hat at the top replacing it with an upperclassman's hat. After completing this, the freshmen are called 'fourth class midshipmen.' This class completed the task in 1 hour 32 minutes and 43 seconds. The hat was placed by Patrick Lien from Orlando. (Photo by Sarah L. Voisin/The Washington Post)

The Herndon Climb

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US comedian Jerry Lewis laughs on May 23, 2013 during a press confrence for the film 'Max Rose' presented Out of Competition at the 66th edition of the Cannes Film Festival in Cannes. Cannes, one of the world's top film festivals, opened on May 15 and will climax on May 26 with awards selected by a jury headed this year by Hollywood legend Steven Spielberg. AFP PHOTO / LOIC VENANCELOIC VENANCE/AFP/Getty Images

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This combination of Associated Press photos shows left, a neighborhood in Moore, Okla., in ruins on Tuesday, May 4, 1999, after a tornado flattened many houses and buildings in central Oklahoma, and right, flattened houses in Moore on Monday, May 20, 2013. Monday's powerful tornado in suburban Oklahoma City loosely followed the path of a killer twister that slammed the region in May 1999. (AP Photo)

Okla. tornado loosely followed path of 1999 twister

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A Burrowing owl tries to perch on a protective rope in a public park in Cooper City, Fla. Monday, May 20, 2013 as rain falls. (AP Photo/J Pat Carter)

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