Sustainable Coastal and Estuary Management

Dear Colleagues,

Coasts and estuaries are complex, multifunctional, and highly biodiverse environments that have supported human generations from multiple ecosystem services over the centuries. Despite widespread international support for the special emphasis on these environments within the UN’s action plan on sustainability (Agenda 21) over thirty years ago, decades later, coasts and estuaries remain under increasing pressure.  Exacerbated by the potential impacts of climate change, risks are multiple, complex and frequently synergistic and accelerating.  Estuaries are particularly vulnerable, as they are not only hotspots but also conduits of human development and infrastructure, as well as frequently being transboundary and even peripheral in the mindsets of the increasingly urban societies residing along their shores.

This Special Issue is devoted to exploring insights into the sustainability of coasts and estuaries across the world, focusing on governance and management approaches to help deliver more resilient and adaptive coastal and estuary socioecological systems.  Original research articles and reviews are welcome, as are critical analyses of relevant case studies of best practice which have wider application.  

Research areas may include (but are not limited to) the following:

• Developments in and applications of theoretical and management frameworks to support and enable Sustainable Coastal and Estuary Management at a range of scales.
• Coastal and estuary governance, particularly approaches which address the complexity and interconnectivity of coastal and estuary socioecological systems, including methods and attempts linking coastal and estuary management with marine spatial planning and catchment management.
• Social aspects of coastal and estuary sustainability, including the influence of sense of place, perceptions, and values on the stewardship, well-being, and meaningful engagement of communities and stakeholders at relevant scales.
• Opportunities and challenges associated with sustainability and blue energy transitions for coastal and estuary socioecological systems and their management, including approaches informing no-regrets policies across a range of spatial scales. This topic could also include approaches that could deliver transformative change to address the potential inertia imposed by existing infrastructure, policy, and cultural attitudes.

I look forward to receiving your contributions,

Dr. Rhoda Ballinger
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

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• Coastal management
• Estuary management
• Governance
• Sustainability
• Socioecological systems
• Community engagement
• Blue energy transition