Expert is one of many women leading in disaster prevention in vulnerable El Salvador, where the effects of climate change are already being felt. Just over a week ago, this meme surfaced on the internet: The meme, titled “Weather Girls,” compares the physical appearances of women weather reporters from the United States, Mexico, China, and […]
Sugar Industry Resistant as Government Responds to Spill
Massive molasses spill showcases major gaps in rules safeguarding Salvadoran society in face of narrow industry interests. Update: A second large molasses spill ocurred on June 1, less than a month after the Magdalena spill in Chalchuapa, at a molasses storage facility north of San Salvador. The facility reportedly has a capacity of 2.5 million gallons, an unknown quantity of which […]
COP21: What does it mean for the Lower Lempa?
As the 21st United Nations Conference on Climate Change (COP21) winds down, we at EcoViva reflect on what these negotiations may mean, if anything, for the people most vulnerable to climate change – particularly those of El Salvador’s Lower Lempa. People of the Lower Lempa are experiencing the effects of climate change firsthand, suffering prolonged […]
Locals Mobilize to Help Flooded Communities
Heavy rains and high tides have once again caused major flooding across El Salvador, including several coastal communities of the Lower Lempa region. Since September 28, water has encroached on the communities of Salinas del Potrero, Sisiguayo, and Isla Montecristo, damaging homes and affecting hundreds of families. Some shrimp farming cooperatives are reporting damage to infrastructure and loss of […]
Remembering Katrina: A Global Lesson in Community Organizing and Adaptation
Today marks ten years since Hurricane Katrina devastated the city of New Orleans and surrounding communities, killing over 1,800 people while displacing countless more. Poorly-designed levees and inadequate disaster response were in large part to blame for the high toll exacted. Man-made hurricane protection systems failed fantastically. The disaster also highlighted how decades of one-track […]
