The Human Cost of Climate Change

It started with a confused look on her face. She wasn't sure what I was going for. I tossed the hacky sack in her direction and watched it fall as her expression switched to mildly amused. I realized this is the first time she's playing catch.

After a hearty lunch served by the wonderful Quechua people, I was ready to explore and get to know this pristine lifestyle better. Living around altitudes of five to six thousand meters, these shepherding communities are untouched by the modern world. Raising Alpacas and Llamas and using every part of the animal for survival in the extremely cold temperatures is the way of life here.

The community as they set up a market for our group to browse their hand-woven clothing and accessories

This particular community draws its water from the glacier meltwater. As climate change exacerbates the melting of these glaciers, communities that depend on them will face disastrous flooding and severe droughts right after. These populations are extremely vulnerable and without market mechanisms in place, are restricted to trade and subsistence farming and agriculture for their livelihoods which limits their ability to mitigate and adapt against the effects of the globally changing climate. 

The girl ran towards the ball and picked it up. She seemed to understand now and threw it back to me. In a dramatic catching motion using both my hands to allow her to copy me, I caught the little sack. It must've felt familiar to her owing to its woven construction. I gestured that I'm about to throw it back to her and to my delight, her hands formed a secure cup. Soon, we were into an exciting game of catch and a bunch of my fellow students joined us, as did other kids from the community. 

We enjoyed a quick lesson on the Quechua culture by Francis, our amazing guide and on how the changing climate affects mountain communities like these from Professor Ganguly. Francis then led us to a herd of Alpacas for us to observe. I had been waiting the whole week to hug an Alpaca and  this was my chance!

I can't believe I actually hugged a baby Alpaca!

As we walked back, I saw the little girl around again. She couldn't have been older than 6. I had the hacky sack in my hand and I remembered how happy she looked playing with it. I approached her and handed her the rainbow-colored trinket. 

I captured a beautiful moment here - she seems to love it!

Our day at this community was especially memorable for me. I still remember her face and that's the human cost of climate change for me - our biggest challenge yet.