Bangladesh: A Present-Day Water World

Jonas Bendiksen/National Geographic

Photographer Jonas Bendiksen made three separate trips to Bangladesh last year to document the wet season and the ways that rising waters are altering Bangladeshi life. National Geographic's May issue shows the impact of flooding in a densely-populated, low-lying country barraged by seasonal monsoons and cyclones, and situated in the Ganges Delta — the world's largest delta.

The photos portray an adaptability and resilience of the Bangladeshi people — who don't seem to ask if there will be floods during the wet season, but when and how often. The photos also visualize what other coastal populations could face with rising sea-levels.

On the phone, Bendiksen explains that floods in Bangladesh aren't always viewed as natural disasters. Some people will move 20 to 30 times in their lifetime due to flooding, so their homes and lives are mobile. Some convert flooded rice paddies into shrimp farms or floating gardens. Children are taught in mobile floating schools aboard boats; they invent new ways to survive.

Bendiksen asserts that "their solutions are not global fixes," but he says, "their approach gives me hope and inspiration."