The photo above is from Djangoula Kita in Mali. The most vulnerable of the world, like the residents of Djangoula Kita, are the people experiencing the largest effects of climate change--they have little to no option to technologically adapt in the face of a degrading ecosystem.
This past spring, Molly Burhans, GLP director, and Christopher Hendershot helped plan water infrastructure with the NGO, Mali Nyeta, in Djangoula Kita and Djangoula Foulala, Mali, West Africa. Djangoula Kita is located in the Sahel region of Africa. According to USAID reports, USGS data, and interviews with village residents, the village has been experiencing significantly diminished rainy seasons for over two decades. They have no potable water in this village, except one drilled hand-pump well that reaches the aquifer 25m below the surface. Partially because of poor water quality, they have an infant mortality rate of 1/3. If the aquifer drops too much, that well will no longer be a viable source of water. Molly and Chris met the US Ambassador for Mali, Mary Beth Leonard, before working over-seas in this village. While discussing the environment she emphasized that increasing desertification in the region, as the Sahara encroaches from the north, is tied with social unrest. It is well documented that extremist militant groups, like Boko Haram, have increasingly more power over people as resources become scarce, and these groups become one of the few providers of resources. The ecological and the social are integrally connected--they must be considered together. Damage to the environment today, damages society tomorrow and vice versa.
Author: Molly Burhans
www.goodlandproject.org
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