The foreign minister of the small Oceania country of Tuvalu delivered a video speech Tuesday for COP26 that shows him standing knee-deep in the ocean to draw attention to how his country faces the dangers of rising sea levels.

Simon Kofe is seen wearing a suit and tie and standing at a lectern in the video speech. The display was a demonstration to highlight the historic sea rise of 0.2 inches per year for Pacific Island nations. Kofe said he was pleased that the video and images went viral and that they emphasized the challenges the country faces.

“[These islands] were the home of our ancestors. They are the home of our people today and we want them to remain the home of our people into the future,” Kofe said in his speech.

Tuvalu islands are located between Hawaii and Australia. The country has a population of about 11,000.

The plight of the South Pacific islands is greater than most. Without action, rising sea levels will entirely submerge the lands due to the global average yearly rise in sea level.

Pandemic-related restrictions prevented many representatives from the Pacific Island nations from attending COP26, the United Nations climate change conference in Glasgow. Only three leaders from Pacific Island nations attended the summit.

The climate change challenges for South Pacific islands come as large nations like China, the U.S., India, and Russia emitted the most carbon dioxide in 2018. Though U.N. member nations made a pledge to spend $100 billion to help lower-income nations prepare for climate change, the total number given is well under what was promised.

The Pacific's low-lying islands are among the countries worst affected by climate change, threatened by rising seas and increasingly extreme cyclones
The Pacific's low-lying islands are among the countries worst affected by climate change, threatened by rising seas and increasingly extreme cyclones NEW ZEALAND DEFENCE FORCE / STEVEN SAPHORE

Island nations are concerned about the loss of their homes. With the loss of their homes also comes the loss of traditions, cultures, languages, and more as members of these nations must relocate in order to survive. The disappearing of land means the disappearing of agriculture and these islands’ ability to sustain their own small populations. Estimates vary on when exactly each of these nations will submerge completely.

“That’s why we are here at COP26, to tell our story to the world. The world needs to take action now, not to defer it to later years,” said Tuvalu Finance Minister Seve Paeniu in an interview with Yahoo News.

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