Unlike its neighbours in the surrounding valleys, Caleta gets little relief from nearby rivers carrying water from the Andes to the sea.

ECONOMIST: Silver lining

But the residents of Caleta Chungungo, a mountain village in one of the driest regions of northern Chile, have found a way of doing it.

ECONOMIST: Silver lining

Caleta was drying up and emptying out until a coalition of Chilean environmental groups, Canadian researchers and international funding agencies decided to make use of the town's most valuable asset: Chamanchaca, a low-lying cloud that passes over the place almost every night.

ECONOMIST: Silver lining

As a result, Caleta's 350 villagers have had to rely on truckloads of water from elsewhere to keep them going water that comes at too high a price for most of the farmers who are trying to eke out a living from the place.

ECONOMIST: Silver lining