Hulhumale, Maldives

Very close to Male, the capital of the Maldives, Hulhumale did not even exist until a little over 20 years ago when the island was created by pumping sand up from the seabed. However, another key point to this man-made land mass – dubbed the ‘City of Hope’ – was to offer greater protection from rising sea levels. With the low-lying Maldives notoriously vulnerable to the impact climate change is having on the oceans, Hulhumale has been created at two-metres above sea level – twice the average for the country’s other islands.