RACH GIA, Vietnam -- It's not hard to imagine the Mekong Delta under water.

Much of the region lies barely three feet above sea level. According to some projections, nearly half of the delta's farmland could be destroyed from rising sea levels due to global warming.

Yet most locals here know nothing of what's coming.

While many of the planet's well-off calculate their "food miles" and "carbon footprints," many of the world's poor have never heard of climate change or global warming. Even though many can sense that their climate is changing, they are largely ignorant about why it's happening or what it means in the long run. And local media in developing countries generally does a woeful job of explaining climate change matters to their audience.

The irony of this "communication deficit" is that poor communities around the world are likely to be first and hardest hit by a warming world -- particularly those living in low-lying developing countries like Egypt and Bangladesh. A World Bank study projects that Vietnam, with more than 1,800 miles of coastline, will be one of the five most affected countries in the world. Under the most extreme scenarios, it warns that the entire southern tip of Vietnam -- twice the size of New Jersey -- could be inundated.

Higher sea levels are likely to lead to more damaging storm surges, while saltwater intrusion could affect fresh water supplies and soil quality. In addition, rising temperatures could reduce crop yields, lead to more disease, and create more flooding and drought. The loss of beaches will translate to loss of millions in tourism dollars for many countries.

Yet local officials are skeptical and complacent.

"I have heard . . . about climate change and rising sea levels," Tran Xuan Nghi, vice chairman of the People's Committee in Kien Giang's Hon Dat district, told journalists recently. "In my opinion, I don't think that's correct information."

Nghi is the second-highest ranking official in Hon Dat, home to 150,000 people and one of the flattest, most productive rice-growing regions in the country.

Global sea levels have increased more than one inch since 1991, according to the U.N.'s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Levels could continue to rise by more than 18 inches by the end of the century, although projections vary wildly, with some scientists saying a rise of several feet cannot be ruled out.

Duong Trun Quoc, a lawmaker and historian, told a recent forum in Hanoi that he has tried to find out just how bad the problem is. "When I ask questions in the National Assembly, no one answers me," said Quoc. "I feel so sad. None of them knows anything."

Journalists must play an important role in raising awareness. While climate change is a page-one story in many countries, it has often been underplayed and ignored by the media in the developing world. But this can change.

"Climate change and global warming are gradually becoming popular words in Chinese media," says Min Huang, a researcher at George Mason University.

Several initiatives have already begun to give journalists the tools they need to cover climate change. At the U.N. Climate Summit in December, for instance, a newly formed Climate Change Media Partnership brought 37 journalists from the developing world to Bali to cover negotiations and get a hands-on immersion course in key issues. They ended up sending back over 660 print, radio, TV and online stories to their home audiences.

It's an important first step. Vulnerable communities like those in the Mekong Delta need to become much more aware of the potential impacts of climate change if they're to have any chance of adapting to them.

James Fahn is the executive director of Internews' Earth Journalism Network. Jeff Hodson is a journalist and media trainer. Both are based in Chiang Mai, Thailand.