ABSTRACT
The next two chapters look at the problem of sea level rise for human life – one looks at the developed countries and one at the Third World. The problems which rich countries with major capital investments and wealthy cities in coastal areas face from sea level rise are quite different from those of poor countries whose land is mostly used for subsistence agriculture, or for cities where a substantial part of the population lives in poverty. For the rich, sea level rise means the risk of economic loss and disruption, but in the Third World the risk for many people is of death rather than bankruptcy. With this perspective, even the most affluent of readers will hardly object to starting the narrative with the Third World and its people.
