I've just arrived in Nauru, and I'll have to draft something more detailed to provide some background, but the upshot is that Nauru is an isolated island in the Central Pacific just south of the equator. Nothing around for 400 miles in any direction. It was once rich, one of the richest countries in the world, on the sale of phosphate rock, and that mining operation destroyed most of the island. But now the phosphate is gone. The money was frittered away in bad investments. Their traditional, sustainable ways of life were long forgotten. And everything they built, the consumption-driven lifestyle created by their entrance into the global economy, has gone to seed. The hotel where I am staying for now, the Menen, was once one of the finest in the Pacific, with a great wine list and full convention facilities. Now it is simply disintegrating, although the rooms are still clean and comfortable, if increasingly shabby. But the sad reality here, and the environmental story I've come to tell, is the story of a place and a people spoiled then despoiled as a result of environmental (mis)management.

But I think it is going to be hard. There is electricity, even in the upscale hotel, for just a few hours a day. That goes for water, too. And fresh fruits and vegetables. And because petrol is so scarce, there is no public transport or taxis. You walk or hitch, which is what I have been doing all day. Nauruans don't seem to much like outsiders, so I have been getting the stink-eye all day. These Nauruans are in the process of finding a way, any way, to make their existence on the island sustainable. It has led to a number of embarassing financial misadventures. This, and the fact that it was outsiders (English and Australians) that first started the mining operation, make them weary of strangers, although I'm told they make great friends once they warm up to you.

Is Nauru a parable for the whole world? Maybe. Is it a vision of the future of other resource-dependent countries (Brunei, the Middle East, etc.)? Perhaps. That's what I've come here to find out and I have a sneaking suspicion it is going to be a long, hot couple of weeks. More background and a few pictures to come.

p.s. I've discovered the worst invention in the history of the world. There is a woman waiting to use a computer here in the one Internet office in Nauru, and she has two two-year-old children with her. One of them is wearing sandals that squeak and squeal like a doggie toy with every step. From now on, we will refer to this as Nauruan squeak torture.