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Designing sustainable coastal futures

The most recent report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) presents unequivocal evidence of climate change. Coastal areas are projected to be exposed to increased risks of coastal erosion and flooding due to greater storminess and sea level rise. One challenge is to work out how coasts may alter in terms of flood and erosion risk. Quite another is to understand the associated economic, social, and environmental consequences so that meaningful adaptation measures can be developed and put in place well before the ‘future’ happens. This paper examines the shift in policy in coastal management in England, informed by the outcomes of various case studies involving participatory techniques designed to enable local communities to envisage ways of adapting to a changing coastline. A key stumbling block is that ‘future coasts’ are all but impossible to visualise; the evidence base is uncertain, and policy measures to ensure sustainable coastal futures are not in place; they have not yet been developed, never mind implemented. This means that scenarios for future coastlines are left hanging in the air: they are representational, but cannot yet effectively guide adaptation processes. There is no clear governance arrangement to drive the development of sustainable coasts for the next generation. New forms of community engagement, plus fresh approaches to governing institutions, will be necessary before sound progress can be made.