The World Coastal Forum

Coastal ecosystems are biodiversity havens, but they are under intense pressure worldwide. Threats to coasts arise from lack of awareness of their value, poor access to evidence-based conservation approaches and lack of capacity to implement them, together with the fragmented governance typical of coastal ecosystems. In the face of sea-level rise as well as erosion of natural capital and a biodiversity extinction crisis, there is now a more urgent need than ever for concerted actions to conserve these ecosystems and their services, ensuring that any use of them is sustainable.

In response to these challenges, the World Coastal Forum has recently been established, and we are delighted to be an official supporter of this initiative. The WCF was officially launched in September 2023 in Yancheng, China, near the site of the country’s first coastal World Heritage area. This location is full of symbolism for coastal conservation because it protects critically important wetlands for migratory birds and represents a major commitment to long-term protection of tidal flats and other coastal ecosystems in China. More than 1000 people attended the launch, including high-level delegations from many countries and NGOs.

A series of task teams have been established to bring evidence to bear on coastal conservation issues. One of the first major products will be a “State of the World’s Coastal Ecosystems”, along with a conservation evidence toolkit. The emphasis is on getting actionable evidence on coastal conservation into the hands of policy-makers and managers. There are plenty of opportunities for researchers and managers working in coastal conservation to get involved in the WCF – check out http://www.worldcoastalforum.org or email me.

Martha Rojas Urrego, then Secretary General of Ramsar Convention on Wetlands, addresses the World Coastal Forum. Martha has recently been appointed Executive Secretary of the International Whaling Commission. Image © World Coastal Forum.