Kiribati

In Kiribati, sand is not just something beautiful along the coast. It makes up almost all the land above sea level.

Kiribati consists almost entirely of low coral atolls. There are no great continental rock masses from which these islands have been carved. Much of the ground above sea level is made of sand and gravel produced from coral, shells and other organisms living on and around the reefs.

Waves and currents break this material loose, sort it and move it across the reef. Grain by grain, enough accumulates above the waterline to form an island.

Beneath the sand lies reef limestone. But much of the land people live on is built from the same small grains that are still being moved around its shores.