Resilient Coasts & Communities

A case study investigation of community perspectives for adaptation to climate change

Coastal saltmarshes and seagrass beds are important ecosystems as they are among the most valuable natural environments for storing carbon, supporting biodiversity, improving water quality and buffering the coast against flooding and erosion. Coastal lagoons are important transition zones between freshwater and the sea and are among the most productive ecosystems in the world. These key coastal margin ecosystems are already under pressure from human activities and are becoming increasingly exposed to climate challenges such as sea-level rise. There is now an urgent need to develop adaptation strategies that can effectively address sea-level rise to ensure a sustainable future for these characteristic coastal ecosystems and the many benefits they provide.

This study addresses the need for tools and strategies that can improve the resilience of coastal margin ecosystems (saltmarsh, seagrass and coastal lagoons) to sea-level rise. This project will explore the role of local knowledge, contexts and perspectives on barriers and enabling factors using a case study approach based in the Marlborough region of Aotearoa New Zealand. It is designed to inform and complement the development of climate change adaptation strategies by government agencies, community organizations and iwi in the region.

The overarching objective of this study is to inform the development of transdisciplinary techniques that combine knowledge, mātauranga, local and historical knowledge, lived experience and science to help foster resilient coastal ecosystems that can adapt to sea-level rise while supporting community values.

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For more information, please feel welcome to make contact with me any time.

Regular updates on the research programme will be available here on this blog with links below, including opportunities to get involved when they arise. Look out for further information on the participatory research activities events which will include a combination of online surveys, workshops, hui and wānanga.

If you are worried you will miss these send me an e-mail or subscribe to this blog and I will include you on the mailing list to keep you informed about any events well ahead of time.