Coastlines – the interface between land and sea – lie at the frontline in the battle against climate change impacts.
Globally, almost 1 billion people now live within 10km of a coastline and the same number live in areas less than 10 metres above sea level. These populations face some of the world’s biggest climate hazards, such as coastal floods from rising sea levels and the effects of hurricanes and tropical storms, which are becoming more frequent and deadly. If there is a 2 metre increase in sea levels by 2100, this may lead to the forced migration of between 72 million and 187 million people.
However, coastlines vary substantially in their physical properties, and are found across all latitudes, environments and with a range of ecosystems and types of human activity. This means that coastline responses to climate change will vary from one place to another.
