For Guyana the potential wealth from oil development was irresistible — even as the country faces rising seas. Today on the show, host Emily Kwong talks to reporter Camila Domonoske about her 2021 trip to Guyana and how the country is grappling with its role as a victim of climate change while it moves forward with drilling more oil. (encore)
Want to more about how countries around the world are grappling with climate change? Write us at shortwave@npr.org to let us know — your suggestion might become a future episode!
Venezuela and Guyana are currently involved in a border dispute over a sparsely populated region the size of Florida with vast oil deposits off its shores.
The 61,600-square-mile territory accounts for two-thirds of Guyana and borders Brazil, which says it has "intensified its defense actions" and boosted its military presence because of the dispute.
Guyana, one of South America's poorest countries, is under severe threat by rising seas. That had made it a champion of climate action, but it all changed when ExxonMobil found oil off its waters.
Jackie Speier, U.S. Representative from California (D-14), was 28 years old when she accompanied her boss, California Congressman Leo Ryan, on a fact...
