Kiribati houses

Kiribati is an atoll nation in the Pacific, more or less at the intersection of the equator and the international date line. (The ti is pronounced s, so say ki-ri-bas). The land area of Kiribati is extremely small while the country as a whole covers the same area as the US. Its 100,000 people live in the main atoll chain in the west, formerly know as the Gilbert islands. The main island ("capital") is Bairiki, while the commercial center is the neighboring island of Betio. Life is very simple; most people fish and very little grows in the coral ground. The photo shows a typical scene that can be observed on many of the islands. Kiribati is vulnerable to climate change and sea level rise; many of the islands experience increased coastal erosion, and one island north of Betio is already inundated most of the time. Photo taken in 1992

Yap Council

Group of men in front of the municipal council chambers in Yap State, Federated States of Micronesia. They had just finished a meeting with us on the development prospects of the state. Photo taken in 1995.

Nepali village

A Nepali village precariously situated on a ridge at about 2,800 meters altitude. Life is hard in these villages, with a shortage of arable land and a harsh climate. This village lies about two days walking from the nearest road. Photo taken in October 1997, a the onset of winter.

Bali temple face

The literal face at an old temple complex somewhere on Bali. I have forgotten where it is exactly. The whole complex was carved out of rock in ancient times. This struck me because the nose was missing.......... Photo taken in 2006.

Mekong Sunset

Sunset scene on the banks of the Mekong in Vientiane (Laos). The other side of the river is Thailand. The Mekong river knows large seasonal variations, with flooding in November and droughts in January-April. This year, the river is at record lows, in part caused by drought in Southern China and Laos itself. This follows record floods in November 2008. Photo taken in November 2009.

Manila market

Street scene in Manila, Philippines.This photo was taken in December 1982, and many areas of Manila still look exactly like this. Progress has not improved the lives of many of the poor in this country.