Bangladesh stands on the frontline of climate change, and places like Shyamnagar, Gabura, Assasuni (coastal regions), and Tahirpur (wetlands) suffer from severe water, sanitation, and hygiene crisis, where the impacts are real and measurable. These powerful visuals are just a reminder that climate change hurts the poorest people the most. Global powers must pave the way for effective actions of commitments to stand with the world’s vulnerable communities.
Long precarious walks for water
Location: Tahirpur, Bangladesh
Every day during the rush hours of morning and noon, a long line of community members appear with water pitchers in front of the well. As most women and girls in the community bear the responsibility of collecting and carrying the water from the well, they keep moving up and down through the rocky path from their households to the Tila.
Sound of cyclone
Location: Assasuni, Bangladesh
“See, I’m blind, but I’m not deaf. When I hear the thundering storm or the cyclones, I’m scared for my life. I hear people screaming, things falling apart. I know something terrible is happening, I can’t see it but I’m living it.”
The flaws of water
Location: Tahirpur, Bangladesh
"Flash floods ravage our paddy fields and induce a huge yield loss every year. I had to sell my cows to make up for the loss incurred in past times. Many fellow farmers gave up farming facing such losses; some started picking coal from the local Jadukata River, and some migrated to the towns to look for day labour jobs. For many of us, this burden of loan and liabilities probably would last for rest of our lives.”
Water walks - The unseen burden
Location: Sreeula, Bangladesh
“We lost everything that night. Walls and roofs of our houses were broken; there was no safe water to drink; no food in hand; no sanitation facility and no place to stay. The entire surface of the land went underwater,” said Abdur Rajjak Molla.
The face of climate and survival
Location: Gabura, Bangladesh
“That was the last year I attended school. We lost most of our land, and our house broke down. It was a calamitous blow to our entire community. We became poorer than before but kept carrying on with endurance. Since then, we are living by the riverbank and have no other place to go."
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