WEATHER FROM THE LAND OF MANY WATERS

Art, indigenous insights, our imaginations, and recent developments in science can help us read and understand the language of nature and our changing world. At the Sophia Point weather station, we are exploring how these factors can come together, and how understanding them can inform the global response to the ecological emergency. 

Guyana is part of the Guiana Shield, 130 million hectares of some of the most intact rainforest in the world. Known as the ‘Guardian of the Amazon’, the Guiana Shield plays a critical role in the region’s climate stability and stores millions of tons of carbon, whilst safeguarding an incredible array of biodiversity. Despite low levels of deforestation, the Guyanese climate is changing rapidly. Sea levels are rising faster than the global average and the record for the hottest year has been broken multiple times in the last 5 years. Total rainfall has fallen, while the frequency of extreme weather events has increased.

Indigenous peoples in Guyana have protected, studied and worked in harmony with their environment for thousands of years. Their efforts have ensured that Guyana's forest loss remains minimal. Amerindians have barely contributed to the world’s ever-rising carbon emissions, but now they are suffering the consequences. 

At Sophia Point, we understand that climate justice can’t be achieved without racial justice. Through our two projects, we amplify the voices of the Afro, Indo and Amerindian Guyanese, who live near the Sophia Point Rainforest Research Centre.

Recording local knowledge

The communities living near Sophia Point speak a combination of English and Guyanese Creole. Their livelihoods, based on the river's edge, are closely tied to the weather. As a result, how the weather is articulated is often related to its immediate utility. Does the weather facilitate fishing, farming, building and travelling or does it make you stay at home awaiting the deluge? Will excessive rains cause flooding? Or does the lack of rain result in a ruined crop? Might the shifting impact of the seasons alter the availability of fish, limiting food and livelihoods?

By capturing these local reflections on weather from Guyana, a country at the forefront of the climate crisis where most people live at or below sea level, the project presents and explores a microcosm of the challenges faced globally.

Recording local descriptions and stories of the weather, over the period of a year, and then pairing these with meteorological data collected at Sophia Point, the project will explore the existence of patterns or divergences between quantified weather data and the anecdotal accounts of living and working with the weather. A final report will combine recorded audio, transcribed discussion and meteorological data to provide a picture of one of the most important and pristine sites of biodiversity left on the planet.

‘Land of Many Waters Film’ 

17-year-old British-Guyanese Joshua Lammy has created a short film focussing on the changing experience of the Guyanese rainforest’s Amerindian custodians. Watch the film and read more here. 

‘Will it rain?/Rain bai’

The communities living near Sophia Point speak a combination of English and Guyanese Creole. Their livelihoods, based on the river's edge, are closely tied to the weather. As a result, how the weather is articulated is often related to its immediate utility. Does the weather facilitate fishing, farming, building and travelling or does it make you stay at home awaiting the deluge? Will excessive rains cause flooding? Or does the lack of rain result in a ruined crop? Might the shifting impact of the seasons alter the availability of fish, limiting food and livelihoods?

By capturing these local reflections on weather from Guyana, a country at the forefront of the climate crisis where most people live at or below sea level, our second project presents and explores a microcosm of the challenges faced globally.

Recording local descriptions and stories of the weather, over the period of a year, and then pairing these with meteorological data collected at Sophia Point, the project will explore the existence of patterns or divergences between quantified weather data and the anecdotal accounts of living and working with the weather. A final report will combine recorded audio, transcribed discussion and meteorological data to provide a picture of one of the most important and pristine sites of biodiversity left on the planet.

Participating Artists: Nicola Green, Sam Airey & Miranda Bragan-Turner.

SOPHIA POINT RAINFOREST RESEARCH CENTRE

Sophia Point is building a first-of-its-kind, truly accessible wildlife and rainforest research centre in Guyana, South America. Our mission is to transform research, education and conservation of one of the last and most pristine biodiversity hotspots on the planet. 

Sophia Point puts Guyana first. By partnering with indigenous and local communities, we are integrating local environmental expertise with cutting-edge science, to secure the protection of the rainforest and deliver a sustainable more equitable future for all. Sophia Point is ensuring that Guyanese researchers and students have access to better study, understand, record and champion the biodiversity of their rainforest. We are bringing leading science and conservation to a vitally important and overlooked ecosystem. 

Sophia Point was established by David Lammy, a UK Member of Parliament, and Nicola Green, artist and social historian. Sophia Point has a long-term partnership with the University of Guyana and was inaugurated by President Irfaan Ali and Tony Blair in August 2023.

Our work has already captured the attention of conservation NGOs, research institutions and education platforms, including Conservation International and TED. Our funding partners include Panthera, One Earth, Inherent Foundation and Oak Foundation.