Maldives president Mohamed Nasheed will visit Iceland today and Saturday.
Nasheed will be acquainting himself with Iceland’s renewable energy and fishing practices, and giving a lecture on climate change and rising sea levels. The Maldives, being a series of islands that lay on or just a few meters above sea level, is especially vulnerable to climate change.
His visit will begin with meeting Icelandic president Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson, then Prime Minister Jóhanna Sigurðardóttir, and other government ministers.
On Saturday at 13:15, in the hall Askja at the University of Iceland, Nasheed will give his lecture. Open to the general public, it bears the title “Maldives: Fighting climate change from the frontline”.
Nasheed has a long history of political activism, having been arrested and jailed several times for criticising the policies of previous Maldives president Maumoon Abdul Gayoom. More recently, he has been known for being an outspoken defender of inhabitants of low-lying islands, who see and feel the effects of climate change very acutely.
(Photo: National Geographic)