In a matter of decades Tuvalu, a low-lying Pacific nation, will disappear due to rising sea levels.  Along with the devastating loss of land, Tuvalu is at risk of losing its status as a country. 

International law currently dictates that without a defined physical territory, a country cannot exist. Tuvalu’s maritime borders, international voting rights and place on the world stage will all be lost.  

Working with the Tuvaluan government, we launched a radical plan for survival: Tuvalu will become the First Digital Nation.  

As well a practical plan for survival, The Digital Nation was a provocation for action, designed to drive urgent conversation around climate action and climate mitigation. The Minister’s heart-breaking announcement spread quickly, reaching 2.1 billion people with $0 spent on media.

The news was covered by 359 global publications, including The New York Times and The Guardian, and the news trended on Tiktok and Twitter. The website received global traffic from 160 countries – 118 in less than 48 hours – and an impressive 23% of visitors wrote a letter to their local MP supporting climate change action.

All this reach turned to action when, days after the announcement, a historic loss and damage fund for nations like Tuvalu was established at COP27.

Most importantly, nine different nations have already agreed to officially recognise Tuvalu’s digital statehood – creating a legal pathway to protect Tuvalu’s maritime boundaries, international voting rights, and place on the world stage.