About 50 kilometers southwest of Bangkok, the small fishing village of Khun Samut Chin stands as a stark symbol of how climate change is reshaping coastal life. Once a thriving settlement surrounded by mangroves and fertile land, the village is now being swallowed by the sea at an alarming rate.
Thailand’s coast is eroding by nearly a meter each year across hundreds of kilometers, but in Khun Samut Chin, the problem is far worse. The shoreline retreats by up to five meters annually, and the land itself is sinking by one to two centimeters every year. Since the 1990s, more than six square kilometers have vanished beneath the waves. Only one part of the original village remains visible a Buddhist temple now surrounded by water, earning the name “the floating temple.”
While climate change has worsened the crisis, human activities have compounded it. Dams built upstream have reduced sediment flow to the Chao Phraya River delta, starving the coast of natural protection. Shrimp farming has destroyed mangrove forests that once buffered waves, and excessive groundwater extraction has caused the ground to sink even faster.
As the sea advances, villagers have been forced to move inland four times, losing homes, land, and livelihoods. The government has provided neither compensation nor relocation aid. Younger residents have moved to Bangkok in search of jobs, leaving behind an aging community. The local school now has only four students the smallest in Thailand.
Khun Samut Chin is one of many places at the frontline of climate change. By 2100, around 410 million people most of them in tropical Asia could face similar threats of inundation. Yet adaptation remains slow and uneven. Official plans often exist on paper, but communities like Khun Samut Chin receive little real help. Temporary bamboo barriers have been erected to slow erosion, but villagers say they offer limited relief.
Frustrated by government inaction, residents have taken matters into their own hands. They launched a homestay program that welcomes visitors to experience life on the frontlines of climate change. For 600–700 Baht a night, tourists stay with families, eat local food, and help replant mangroves. Part of the income goes into a community fund to repair bamboo dykes and support erosion control. The effort doesn’t make anyone rich, but as village leader Wisanu says, “It lets us walk.”
The villagers’ resilience offers both hope and a warning. They are rebuilding with limited means, lobbying for a new health center, and fighting to keep their school open. Yet without meaningful government support, their fight may not last forever.
Khun Samut Chin shows the human side of sea level rise — a story of erosion, neglect, and endurance. As the water rises and governments hesitate, it is communities like this that stand as the world’s first line of defense — and its last reminder of what inaction will cost.