Using ecosystems to address climate change: ecosystem based adaptation
This paper addresses climate change threat to marine and coastal ecosystems around the world, such as sea-level rise, erosion, the increased severity of storms, flooding, ocean acidification and coral bleaching, and the need to manage ecosystems so that they continue to serve to people that depend on the services provided by them (food security, clean drinking water, medicines or recreational values) and help coastal communities adapt to the impacts they face from climate change.
It (i) describes the "Ecosystem-based Adaptation" (EbA) approach that values and uses ecological services and biodiversity; (ii) gives some policy recommendations for governments to consider ecosystem-based adaptation options as an integral component of disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation strategies; and (iii) describes the benefits of ecosystem-based adaptation through case studies in Mexico, Jamaica, South Africa, Vietnam.