Flying drones and chasing data, Indigenous women in Guyana join fight against climate change
In efforts to monitor and mitigate climate change, a group of Indigenous women in Northern Guyana are merging traditional knowledge and scientific research. Equipped with drones, they are scanning remote mangrove forests for illegal cutting and will soon begin collecting soil samples for carbon storage measurements. Trained by 22-year old marine biologist Sarah Singh, the women are furthering the protection of natural buffers crucial to safeguarding the Guyanese coastline and livelihoods. The data provided will help create better policies and protect coastal agricultural and urban areas that are expected to suffer harshly from climate change impacts, including sea level rise and storm surge that already threaten Guyana’s low-lying territories. As Guyana experiences a concerning oil boom, this monitoring work can boost environmental protection and lead to programs such as the low-carbon development strategy, launched in 2009, to protect Guyana’s forests.
