No matter which computer model is used, it indicates the sea level will rise significantly within the next few decades – at the end of the 21st century it is estimated that the sea level will on average be about one hundred centimetres higher than today. In South-East Asia and the Pacific Territories, the increase will be much higher even. Worldwide, the consequences of this rise can already be felt. And water touches on all big issues of today: climate change, security, energy supply, poverty, population growth, agriculture, urbanisation and migration. Like Special Envoy for International Water Affairs for the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Henk Ovink, once said: “If we don’t do anything, we’ll drown.”

In his acclaimed photo series Where will we go?, Kadir van Lohuizen in 2013-2015 already recorded what this development means to the inhabitants of low-lying areas like the United Kingdom, Kiribati, Miami and Bangladesh. In Rising tide, he revisits the people and places that touched him then, and Van Lohuizen investigates how the rising tide affects the lives of people and what is being done to counter the threats. Together with a local ‘host’ he checks out the current situation, sees what is literally happening to protect the people and how creatively (and positively) people handle the worsening situation. In a clear manner, Van Lohuizen confronts the audience with climate issues. He takes photographs, participates and investigates. Combined with a strong, contemplative voice-over (story-teller) we will see the world of a rising tide through his eyes and, aided by the photographs Kadir takes, we will get a strong evocative image in which hope and fear alternate.