GIJN’s Guide to Investigating Sea Level Rise: Chapter Six ⁠— Notable Investigations

What follows is a collection of sea level rise stories representing either unique investigative work or interesting ways of approaching sea level rise stories.

This list is categorized by topic, though given the wide-ranging impact of sea level rise, a story about ecological loss often morphs into stories about economics, migration, and other topics.

It should be noted that much of the coverage of sea level rise is driven by new research from scientists and others who have measurement capabilities beyond those of journalists, but reporters can build on such findings.

To share their work or keep up with what is being posted worldwide, many reporters use the hashtag #sealevelrise on social media.

The Big Picture: Coastal Communities Threatened

Rising Waters: This prize-winning series of stories by The Post and Courier documented the multiple effects of rising seas in South Carolina in the US.

Rising Seas Threaten Communities in Ghana, by Mongabay.

Where France is Shrinking, by FranceInfo.

Image: Screenshot

The Drowning Coast: A three-part special report “about the ecological crisis facing Louisiana’s vanishing coast, and the people who live there,” by The New York Times and NOLA.com.

Climate Change Is Stretching Mumbai to Its Limit, by The Atlantic.

​​Cambio Climático Y Subida De Los Mares: Descubre Qué Zonas De Chile Desaparecerían Debajo Del Agua (Climate Change and Rising Seas: Discover Which Areas of Chile Could Disappear Under Water), by Landera Sur (in Spanish).

The Greenland Connection, by The Post and Courier in South Carolina (winner of a 2022 Covering Climate Now award in the long feature category).

History at Risk: Port Maria, Birthplace of Jamaica’s First Slave Revolt, Braces for Climate Change Impact, by Unbias the News.

In Samoa We Are Born into Land, Climate Change Threatens to Take It Away From Us, podcasts produced by Laura Brierley Newton and Jessica Bineth.

Atlantises Tomorrow, by Agence-France Presse (a winner of a 2022 Covering Climate Now award in the short video category.

An Impossible Choice, by The Guardian here, here, and here (winner of a Covering Climate Now award in the radio podcast series category).

Salt Scourge: The Dual Threat of Warming and Rising Salinity, by YaleEnvironment360.

How Climate Change Will Change Canada ⁠— And How We Can Make Our Communities More Resilient, by The Globe and Mail.

Rising Sea Level Poses Threat of Extinction to Gambian Communities, by The Voice.

Climate Change: On the Edge and Nowhere to Go: Several Alaska Native Villages Face Imminent Destruction, by Indian Country Today (US).

Will Climate Change Spell the End of Coastal Living As We Know It?, by ABC News (Australia).

Sea Level Rise Hits Hard on Babanga Island, by The Solomon Star (Solomon Islands).

Submerged Cities of the Future, by Kompas (Indonesia).

‘It Scares The Bejesus Out Of Me’: Coastal Erosion Eats Away at Nova Scotia’s Waterfront, by the Canadian Broadcasting Company.

Oceans, the Asia-focused second episode in the documentary series, The Longest Day, by Leo Gizzi.

The French and German Coastal Regions on the Climate Change Frontline, by Euronews.

The Areas of Wales That Would Be Under Water and Lost by 2050 Based on Current Climate Trends, by Wales Online.

A Crisis Right Now: San Francisco and Manila Face Rising Seas, by The New York Times (US and the Philippines).

Miami’s Climate Dystopia Gets Real, by Rolling Stone (US).

Migration

The Great Climate Migration: A Warming Planet and a Shifting Population, by ProPublica.

The Hungry Tide: As the River Swallows their Land, Villagers in Bangladesh Turn Environmental Refugees, by GaonConnection.

Image: Screenshot

Cambio climático: otra guerra de la que huyen los hondureños, (Climate change, Another Battle from Which Hondurans Are Fleeing), by Contra Corriente (Honduras).

Environment Factors Push People Out of Their Homes on India’s East Coast, Leaving Behind Ghost Villages, by Mongabay.

How Dire Climate Displacement Warnings Are Becoming a Reality in Bangladesh, by The New Humanitarian.

As Climate Fears Mount, Some in US Are Deciding to Relocate, by YaleEnvironment360.

‘It’s Happening Now’: How Rising Sea Levels Are Causing a US Migration Crisis, by the Guardian.

Rising Sea Swamps Island Along Bengal Coast, by The Third Pole.

Impact on Women, Children, the Poor, and the Vulnerable

Urban Poor Struggle to Adapt as Rising Seas Threaten to Remap Metro Manila, the first of a two-part series from The Inquirer followed by: Long-Term Plans Needed to Protect Metro Manila’s Most Vulnerable From Rising Seas (The Philippines).

In Deep Waters: Is Climate Change Impacting the Reproductive Health of Women in Coastal Bangladesh?, by GaonConnection.

Climate Change Harsher on Women in Coastal Areas, by The Daily Star (Bangladesh).

Run, Rebuild, Repeat as Floods Eat Away at India’s Indigenous Land, by Thomson Reuters Foundation News.

In Two Corners of Bengal’s Coast, “Fire” and Water Hold Women Hostage, by The Wire (India).

‘Silent Financier’: How Bangladesh’s Poor Are Paying the Costs of Climate Damage, by Thomson Reuters Foundation News.

Climate Change Threatens Homes of Boston’s Most Vulnerable, by Climate Central and NBC Boston (US).

Gunas: The Ethnic Group Cornered by Climate Change, by Centro de Periodismo Investigativo (Puerto Rico).

Image: Screenshot

Sea-Level Rise Threatens Gullah Geechee Land, Way of Life. They Have a Plan to Save It: Part of a series by the Savannah Morning News that did not rely on maps, but told many personal stories (US).

Underserved, Underwater: Mapping a Future for Coastal NC: A Public News Service report on the effects of rising sea level on a Black community in North Carolina (US).

High Ground, High Prices: A CNN report on how climate change is speeding gentrification in some of the most flooding-vulnerable cities in the US.

Why Environmental Justice Is Crucial in Climate Resilience: Just Look at New Sea Level Rise Predictions, by KQED (San Francisco, US).

Coastal Flooding Is Putting Retirement Savings at Risk, by Next Avenue (US).

Impact on Farming and Fishing

‘Taste This, It’s Salty’: How Rising Seas Are Ruining the Gambia’s Rice Farmers, by the Guardian.

Image: Screenshot

Pakistan’s Indus Delta Becoming No Man’s Land, by The Third Pole.

‘There’s Going to Be No Fishing.’ Can Mississippi Marshes Be Saved From Sea Level Rise?, by The News & Observer (US).

Lose the Seagrass and Lose the Fisheries, by Carolina Public Press (US).

Loss of Wildlife Habitats

Camargue: Why Is France’s Natural Wildlife Paradise Threatened by Climate Change?, by Euronews.

Reclaiming Karachi’s Edge, by Dawn (Pakistan).

Blue Carbon Habitats Are Valued for Rich Biodiversity and Carbon Storage, by The Irish Times (Ireland).

A Unique Marsh Could Vanish on SC-GA Border: ‘Nobody Is Going to Hold Back the Tide’, by The News & Observer (US).

Squeezing the Marsh, PBS North Carolina (US), and A Coastal Forest Almost 2,000 Years Old Is Disappearing, NC State News (US).

Vanishing Forests Tell a Tale of Rising Water, by Climate Central.

Impact on Businesses

The Industrial Infrastructure Catastrophe Looming Over America’s Gulf Coast, by The Bulletin of Atomic Scientists.

Beach Erosion Puts European Seaside Holidays at Risk and Climate Crisis Makes Beaches Disappear, by VoxEurop.

In Atlantic City, Rising Seas Threaten an Already Struggling Industry, by Press of Atlantic City and Climate Central (US).

Who Will Pay to Protect Tech Giants From Rising Seas? by National Public Radio (US).

Real Estate Values

On the Jersey Shore, Surf’s Up — Way Up, by Bloomberg (US).

​​Puerto Rico vive una acelerada aprobación de permisos e construcción en la costa (Puerto Rico Is Experiencing an Accelerated Approval of Construction Permits on the Coast), Centro de Periodismo Investigativo (Puerto Rico).

‘Now, It’s About Elevation’: Buying a South Florida Home in the Era of Sea Level Rise, by WGCU (US).

Sea Level Rise Is Accelerating In Maine, in York County, Hundreds of Millions in Property Value Is at Risk, by Maine Public Radio (US).

Loss of Affordable Housing

London’s Housing and Climate Crises Are on a Collision Course, by Bloomberg Green (UK).

Bloomberg Green mapped the potential vulnerability to flooding of London’s neighborhoods. Image: Screenshot

Gentrification Strikes Miami’s Little Haiti as Beach Residents Flee Rising Water, by Earthbeat (US).

Florida Sees Signals of a Climate-Driven Housing Crisis: by The New York Times (US).

‘This Process Has Been Hell’: Sea Level Rise Could Make It Even Harder to Find Affordable Housing, by WHRO Public Media (US).

Miami Beach’s Housing Crisis Worsened by Climate Change: by WLRN Miami (US).

Barely Above Water, by Climate Central and NJ Advance Media (US).

The Effects on Roads and Transportation Infrastructure

Rising Seas Threaten World’s Airports, by NikkeiAsia.

Screenshot: NIKKEI Asia

How Sea Level rise is Affecting your Commute to and around Atlantic City, by Climate Central and Press of Atlantic City (US).

Here’s How NYC Transit System Is Prepping For Sea Level Rise—And Why It May Not Be Enough, by The Gothamist (US).

At a Crossroads: Flooding Around Hampton Roads Is Making It Harder to Drive Kids to, from School, by WHRO Public Media (US).

Impact on Landfills and Other Low-Lying Public Facilities

Coastal Landfills Are No Match for Rising Seas, by The Nation (US).

Trapped in the Floods with Floodwaters Rising, Prisoners Wait for Help in Floating Feces, by The Intercept (US).

Nuclear Power Stations UK: The New and Existing Sites at Threat of Flooding From 2030 Amid Rising Sea Levels, by NationalWorld.

A Growing Problem Underground: Sea Level Rise Is Compromising Septic Systems: by WHRO, Virginia (US).

Where Rising Seas Threaten Drinking Water, Scientists Look for Affordable Solutions, by E&E News (US).

How Tidal Flooding Is Impacting Students, Caretakers and Education in Atlantic City, by Climate Central and The Press of Atlantic City (US).

Historic and Iconic Places

From Qaitbay to Deir Ah-Ahmar: Egypt’s Monuments in the Grip of Climate, by Masrawy.com (in Arabic).

Climate Ravages: Sea Swallows Parts of Senegal’s UNESCO World Heritage Site, by Al Jazeera.

Image: Screenshot

Lost to Sea: The Ivory Coast Villagers Saving Their Ancestors from Rising Waves, by Climate Home News.

Rising Seas Swamp Black, Spanish and Indigenous history in Northeast Florida, by Climate Central, ADAPT, and WJXT (US).

Historic Harriet Tubman Sites at Risk of Rising Seas on Eastern Shore, by NBC Washington and Climate Central (US).

Insurance Implications

Beautiful One Day, Uninsurable the Next? About the coast in Queensland, Australia, by ABC (Australia).

Image: Screenshot

Flood Insurance Premiums Are About to Rise Steeply for Thousands of Louisianans, by The Advocate (US).

Hundreds of Thousands of Canadians Are Buying Homes in High-Risk Flood Zones, by Vancouver is Awesome.

Critical Data Stories

An Unexpected Item Is Blocking Cities’ Climate Change Prep: Obsolete Rainfall Records, by National Public Radio (US).

Inequitable Patterns of US Flood Risk in the Anthropocene, by Nature.

New Data Reveals Hidden Flood Risk Across America, by The New York Times.

Indian Megacity Maps Environmental Memories, Deutsche Welle on recording stories from locals.

Adaptation Debates Emerging

What Can the Bay Area Do About Rising Seas? East Palo Alto Has a Few Great Answers, KQED special report (US).

Facing Dire Sea Level Rise Threat, Maldives Turns to Climate Change Solutions to Survive, by ABC News (US).

Rising Seas Expose Weakness in Federal Coastal Strategy, by E&E News (US).

Climate Change: Hong Kong Property Firms Are Assessing Risks and Improving Resilience, as Extreme Floods and Storms Loom on Horizon, by The South China Morning Post.

Additional Resources

GIJN’s Guide to Investigating Methane

Climate Crisis: Ideas for Investigative Journalists