Some say that global warming does not exist, or that climate change we have seen lately is no big deal, but some countries on the South Pacific islands have many reasons to disagree. The nations of Fiji, Tuvalu, Kiribati, Vanuatu, Marshall Islands, and many others could completely disappear from the map in about 50 years because of rising sea levels and other weather phenomena.

In recent years, cyclones, floods, droughts and other natural disasters have become increasingly common in this region of Oceania, which has several other nations spread across countless islands and archipelagos. If the waters continue to rise, all of these territories will be completely submerged in a short time, according to a United Nations report released in December 2015 during the COP21 climate conference in Paris.

According to Christopher deBrum, chief of staff of the president of the Marshall Islands, as soon as these territories recover from one extreme weather event, they are already hit by another. In March last year, a cyclone left more than 3, 300 people homeless in Port Vila on Vanuatu Island. Droughts and floods have already caused several communities to relocate to different regions of the islands, and entire plantations have been devastated, causing many deaths due to food shortages.

The South Pacific Islands may disappear completely in half a century due to climate change on the planet.

The conference provided these nations with an opportunity to show the rest of the world that the climate situation on the planet is far more critical than many think, and control actions are needed immediately. Fearing the worst, the governments of some of these island countries are already developing measures to completely relocate their populations. Kiribati has already bought land in Fiji, more than 2, 000 miles away, should the island become completely uninhabitable.

In Fiji, however, the current situation in the country is also complicated, as homes in the coastal region are constantly flooded by high tides. Saltwater has destroyed several sugarcane plantations - one of the small country's main economic activities - and has spread disease, affecting virtually all levels of society, according to a doctor from the Fiji Ministry of Health.

Tourism, another major source of income for the country, has also been undermined by rising sea levels. Resorts have invested in projects to elevate the beaches where they are located, or are at risk of being completely swallowed by the waters. An entire village in Fiji had to be completely relocated to one of the highest areas of the mountainous island, and residents had to relocate about two miles from where their homes used to be.

Seaside resorts are seeing beaches where they are being swallowed by rising seawater

In the Marshall Islands, the government declared a state of emergency in 2013 after a drought that lasted for months and caused water rationing and severe damage to that year's agricultural production. Less than a year later, the tide rose so high that it invaded the country's capital, Majuro, causing more than 600 people to rush out of the region.

In July last year, the same city was hit by a typhoon that broke up houses and left half of the island without electricity. And, according to the report presented by the United Nations during the COP21, the intensity and frequency of these catastrophic climate phenomena in that region will only worsen in the coming years.

What do you think can be done to reverse the situation of the South Pacific islands, which could disappear in 50 years? Comment on the Mega Curious Forum