At Keeri Beach in Mannar, in Sri Lanka’s far north, about 250 people stood together under the scorching sun in blue gowns, lining the water’s edge with hands joined and arms raised toward the sea.
Who is responsible for climate change? Who will pay for the loss and damage? People from every walk of life kept asking as they took part in an installation by Indian artist Dr Subodh Kerkar for Greenpeace South Asia in the second week of October, ahead of the 31st Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP31).
A fish processor in Senegal described her family home shrinking from more than 20 rooms to 6, a fisherman in Mannar reported his catch falling from 300kg to 30kg, a campaigner from Papua New Guinea spoke of islands lost to the sea, a cab drivers’ association leader in Hyderabad highlighted drivers enduring hours of extreme heat without shade, and a Bangladeshi participant described hydration points set up in markets for vendors and rickshaw pullers.
Their homes and workplaces are thousands of kilometers apart, but the complaint was the same: those who did the least to cause the climate crisis are living with its effects every day, and those who caused the loss and damage must pay for it.
A house swallowed by the sea
For Mama Fatou Samba, a fish processor and community leader from Senegal, the sea’s advance is measured in meters and in relatives.
“Forty years ago, we had to swim more than 100 meters to reach the sea. Now, the sea has advanced by more than 100 meters.”
In her area, the coastline reportedly retreats 2 to 3 meters a year, and the water has reached the ground where her house stands.
The family home once had more than 20 rooms; now, only 6 remain as the sea advances, relatives are forced to leave, and a household that had lived together breaks up.
Mama Fatou Samba called that breakdown one of climate change’s most painful consequences, sometimes worse than the financial loss.
Fishing and farming can no longer support a family, she said, and thousands of young people take risky routes to reach Spain and Italy, many from her area.
“They are climate refugees.”
Vinzealhar Ainjo Nen, a participant from Morobe Province, Papua New Guinea, said a culture tied to land and sea by ancestors is now under strain from rising waters, erratic weather, food insecurity and floods.
“For generations, my people have lived with the land and the nature around us, but that has changed. Severe weather events, forest fires, and water scarcity are adversely affecting my community. It is not our actions that cause this, but the choices of those who do not recognize or care about the hardship we face. I came to Mannar because our voices must be heard, and listened to,” she said.
Mannar gave her something else.
“I’m not alone,” she said, describing how people tied to the land can feel stuck “in a bubble.”
Fewer fish, rising heat
Restituto del Rosario, a fisherman from the Philippines, speaking through a translator, delivered a short, grave message: it may already be too late, and the world could lose its fish and the food that comes with them.
“Because our livelihood depends on fishing, extreme heat is hitting us hard. We did not create this crisis, but we live with its cost. Standing here in Mannar with communities from across the world, our message is simple: the fossil fuel companies responsible for this must pay,” he said.
Qunson Marynathan, an independent climate researcher based in Mannar, said that after nearly 30 years at sea, his catch used to be 300 to 400kg, but now it is 30 to 40kg.
Qunson compared that day’s temperature of about 31 degrees Celsius with a 30-year October average of around 30 degrees, a rise of roughly 0.8 degrees.
These are his own readings, not an official record, but his larger point does not depend on them: Mannar sits among very shallow seas, and shallow water heats easily.
His grievance was with how outsiders study the place.
“What goes missing in the eyes of many reporters or researchers is the people,” he said.
Mannar hosts many migratory bird species and has been inhabited for some 2,000 years, appearing on Ptolemy’s maps.
“When you take us, the people, out of the equation, it’s not there. Come talk to me first,” he said.
He described heat as something the body feels.
“Go to the streets under the sun on a very heavy day. You try to negotiate with somebody who’s selling something, and they start shouting at you. This is not the culture of the people. This is also being caused by climate change.”
His children had been unwell for days.
“I didn’t heat up the sun. I didn’t heat up the ocean,” he said.
Dr S Wijeyamohan of the University of Vavuniya’s Department of Bio-Science said the ocean absorbs heat and carbon dioxide, stabilizing the climate, but that capacity is not unlimited.
Making a living in a hotter world
A Bangladeshi participant, Kouser Alam, described a response already underway on the streets.
With Greenpeace’s help, they set up hydration points in major markets over the past year, serving vendors, rickshaw pullers and construction workers.
“We are not just raising our voice against these issues. We are trying to solve the issue also,” Kouser said.
Shaik Salahuddin, a cab drivers’ association leader from Hyderabad, said drivers and delivery workers move between air-conditioned cars and punishing outdoor heat all day, a strain on body and mind.
He said platform companies advertise concern for gig workers, “but that is only from PR.”
At Hyderabad’s international airport, drivers wait 4 to 5 hours in a car park with 4,000 to 5,000 vehicles, no trees and little shade.
Platforms pay ₹10 extra when it rains, he said, but nothing when the heat turns dangerous.
“The platform companies are also not accountable and transparent,” he said.
Guidelines exist, but “only on paper, not in real realities.”
Meenakshi, a street vegetable seller from India, described a squeeze from both sides. Vendors buy extra water to sprinkle on produce and wet sacks to cover it. Costs rise while earnings fall because fewer customers want to shop in the heat.
Amanullah Porag, a youth climate activist from Bangladesh, said: “Where I live, rising water is not a prediction — it is already taking land, homes and livelihoods. Families are being pushed to move, again and again. This is not a natural disaster; it is the result of decisions made far away from us, by companies that have profited while we lose everything. We came to Mannar to stand in solidarity with global south communities as accountability cannot wait any longer.”
Climate justice: putting the planet before profit
Why in Mannar? When asked, Binu Jacob, executive director of Greenpeace South Asia, said: “Mannar is unique in many ways, with its rich biodiversity, its connection to the ocean and communities that have depended on the sea for centuries. But what is happening here is not just a story about Mannar. It reflects the experiences of fishing and farming communities across South Asia and around the world.”
“Those who contribute least to climate change are often paying a heavy price for the lifestyles and economic activities of others. Climate accountability means asking why these communities must bear the consequences while industries and countries continue to profit from carbon-emitting activities and pollute the environment,” he said.
“We have only one planet. Communities worldwide are already raising these concerns, and we are joining their efforts to share their experiences with a wider audience. Our aim is to help people see the connections between climate change, livelihoods and responsibility,” said Binu, who joined Mannar with a team of volunteers by cycling more than 300 kilometers from Colombo.
Dr Subodh Kerkar, a doctor who became an ocean artist, called the installation “a protest and a prayer.”
“Art is not a slogan. Art is a whisper. Art has to be subtle. We don't have to shout, ‘I love the ocean’ or ‘I want to protect the ocean.’ Standing together in the water and raising our hands is itself an act of protection, an act of connection and an act of love for the ocean,” he said about his artwork at Mannar.
“The life of a fisherman and the life of the ocean cannot be separated. The ocean is very much a part of a fisherman's life, and that inseparability is what I try to express through my work,” he said.
When asked why they chose Mannar, Subodh said: “Mannar is only an example, a metaphor. What we have done here is not just for Mannar; it is for the globe. These things are happening worldwide, not just in Mannar. The sea is rising, the heat is rising, and the people are also rising.”
Nepal: the Himalayas feel it too
The demand doesn't stop at the coast; as Bal Krishna Sah, senior correspondent at The Himalayan Times, pointed out, Nepal has been living through this.
“What Nepal has been experiencing since August 26 is evidence enough of the suffering that climate change can inflict on people who had little say in causing it, and who often do not know what is driving such a devastating disaster. If incidents like these do not make people change their ways, what will?”
Asked about the recent Nepal disaster, Subodh said investigations continue, but the people who died “had no role to play in that chunk of ice falling down.”
What the beach asks for
Climate change harms people with the least say and the least protection most, whether that’s a family in Senegal losing its home to the sea, fishermen in Mannar hauling in a tenth of their old catch, or outdoor workers in Hyderabad and Dhaka enduring dangerous heat.
Their demands are consistent: pair community observations with scientific evidence so polluters can be held accountable; fund adaptation, not just mitigation; provide shade, water, rest areas and fair pay for outdoor workers; and consult the people affected.
The speakers were careful not to overclaim. Local problems rarely have a single cause, and showing harm is not the same as proving who is to blame, so credible climate justice needs both the evidence and the accountability.
Asked what message he would leave, Subodh returned to the oldest argument.
“We have not inherited the earth from our parents or grandparents. We have borrowed it from our children. We need to give our earth back to the children in a good state. They deserve a better earth.”