Rivers to Dust: Climate change forces Bolivian farmers to abandon villages

Pachamama is thirsty

The indigenous goddess of Mother Earth has watched in dismay as climate change in Bolivia’s Altiplano contributes to glacier melt, disrupts weather patterns, and turns the highlands into barren wasteland.

As the land dries, farmers are leaving their countryside communities and migrating to nearby urban centers, which soon will face water shortages of their own.

Though Bolivians have little control over many of the factors contributing to global climate change, they’re forced to confront the reality of a world unbalanced.

Nicolás Ibargüen is an environmentalist and director of the Planet Initiative of the Americas Business Council Foundation, an organization that supports innovative social and environmental impact projects.

He is the environmental Correspondent for Fusion and Univision.

Nicolás organizes expeditions and events with world leaders to raise awareness about our relationship with the planet. He produced the award-winning documentary “Amazon Gold” and he is a board member of NRDC’s Voces Verdes and the Humane Society International. He was the Editor and Publisher of Poder Magazine.