The Problem
Honduras, Nicaragua, and Guatemala are reeling from the devastation caused by Hurricane Eta, which ravaged their countries on November 3rd, leaving hundreds of thousands of people homeless. As the winds receded, grim reports emerged: over 200 people are believed dead, catastrophic flooding is affecting water and sanitation, and deadly mudslides have buried what little remained. The number of people suffering is overwhelming. Some remain trapped on their rooftops, while others have resorted to drinking salt water, waiting for help. The region is facing a triple threat of extreme weather, mass migration caused by economic instability and violence, and Covid-19. Scientists have declared Honduras, one of the poorest countries in the Western Hemisphere, as the country most affected by climate change. Though they are responsible for less than .1 of the carbon emissions today, the climate crisis has accelerated food scarcity, plagued water sanitation issues, and forced migration from a land where more than 60% of the community live below poverty. Their vulnerability is due to climate-related hazards that devastate crops and infrastructure, where more than 40% of the population work in agriculture. In Central America's Dry Corridor, an area that stretches from Costa Rica to the Mexican border, for the last five straight years, farmers have watched helplessly as drought has killed over half their crops, leaving more than 3.5 million people without food. Now, in a cruel turn of events, with the onslaught of the hurricane, their withered fields are covered by mudslides from the torrential rains.
