There’s trouble in paradise. The Maldives — 1,200 tiny, low-lying islands in the Indian Ocean, 200 of them inhabited — is a favorite tourist retreat. But scientists warn that if ocean levels keep rising because of man-made climate change, the islands could disappear within a decade.
Jon Shenk’s documentary “The Island President” chronicles efforts to save the islands by the charismatic Mohamed Nasheed, who in 2008 became the Muslim nation’s first democratically elected president. He took over from the dictator Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, under whose reign Nasheed was jailed and tortured.
The film follows Nasheed as he travels the world making impassioned pleas for changes in carbon emissions. His stops include the United Nations and a 2009 Copenhagen summit on climate change. Viewers get an eye-opening look at behind-the-scene wrangling. Back home, media-savvy Nasheed holds an underwater cabinet meeting to publicize his campaign.
An unexpected setback occurred last month — after the film was completed — when Nasheed was ousted from the presidency in a coup. But this turn of events does little to lessen the impact of “The Island President.”