Those Who Stay: Weathering Climate Consequences in the Himalayas

On September 27, 2024, an unprecedented, post-monsoon storm raged through Nepal. It was the most rain that Nepal had experienced since 2002. The storm was followed by days of flooding, with a current death toll that is more than 200.

This reporting project, Those Who Stay, documents the storm's effect on the villages high in the mountains along the popular Annapurna Circuit Trail. It highlights the perspectives of farmers whose annual harvests were covered by snow, teahouse owners who maintain family businesses as their children move to the cities, and climbers who discussed the implications that a shifting snowline has on the mountaineering industry. In a region where livelihood is so intertwined with the climate, it is snowing and raining at the wrong times and in the wrong places. 

In the Manang District, home of the ethnic Gurung group, there is a shift that is representative of the effects of climate change worldwide—migration. As weather becomes more severe and unpredictable, younger generations in the mountains leave to pursue careers that don't depend on the now unreliable environment and subsequent tourism.

At what point are livelihoods, safety, and economic means impacted by climate changes to such an extent that people leave the towns that their families have existed in for generations?