Palau and other island nations recently formed an expert advisory committee to bring the issue of rising sea levels to the United Nations. While others see climate change as an economic problem, “For us, it’s about survival,” President Johnson Toribiong said at a U.N. news conference. He also noted that waters had risen two or three times higher in Palau's region than anywhere else in the world. The 190-square-mile chain of eight main islands and more than 250 islets sits around 500 miles southeast of the Philippines. Geographically, it ranges from mountains to low-lying coral islands. Hopes are that the United Nations would be able to determine the legal ramifications of climate change via international law. Palau, which has roughly 20,000 citizens, is already active in other eco-arenas and is home to the world’s first national shark sanctuary.