'Call of the Island': A Guna Community Confronts Climate-Driven Relocation

Call of the Island is a 26-minute documentary directed by Reporting Fellow Kelly Liu, which follows the lives of Indigenous Guna families as they navigate one of the world's first community-wide relocations driven by climate change and overpopulation.

On Panama's Caribbean coast, the island of Carti Sugdub has become increasingly vulnerable to rising seas, overcrowding, and deteriorating living conditions, prompting more than 1,000 residents to move to the newly built mainland settlement of Isber Yala.

Through the intimate stories of a fisherman determined to preserve his island home, a mother seeking new opportunities for her children, and community members working to protect their traditions, this film explores what is gained and what is left behind when an entire community is relocated. Rather than focusing solely on environmental crisis, Call of the Island examines how climate change reshapes identity, memory, and belonging across generations.

Filmed over several months with unprecedented access to the community, this documentary offers a deeply personal portrait of resilience amid global climate displacement. The Guna people's experience provides an urgent glimpse into a future that many others may soon face while highlighting the importance of preserving cultural heritage in the face of profound environmental change.