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Energy, Climate change, Environment

Map of the Week – Coastline changes based on satellite data

News article |

Climate change poses big challenges for the ocean. It is changing coastlines and impacting marine ecosystems, with serious social and economic consequences for our society. Momentum around ocean–climate action will continue to grow at the UN Climate Change Conference - COP26, which started on 31 October 2021, is taking place in Glasgow and will last until 12 November 2021.

At the COP26 summit, political leaders and stakeholders are coming together to accelerate action towards the goals of the Paris Agreement and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. The Ocean is receiving a lot of attention notably through the COP26 Virtual Ocean Pavilion, dedicated to showcase why the ocean matters in climate negotiations and to all life on our planet. It aims to increase knowledge, commitment and action for the ocean-climate nexus. UNESCO's IOC at the Climate COP26 is presenting its latest advances in the work on climate, highlighting the following programmatic domains: Ocean Decade, climate research, ocean acidification, blue carbon, etc. The members of the Youth4Ocean Forum are also there to make the voice of the ocean and the youth heard.

Sea level rise and coastal erosion are some of the many impacts of climate change. The Map of the Week provides insight into how Europe’s coastlines are changing. It shows areas of landward migration (erosion or submergence), stability, and seaward migration (accretion or emergence) at different spatial scales. The monitoring of coastal areas in order to analyse the effects of erosion can support Integrated Coastal Zone Management (ICZM), which will be essential in mitigating and adapting to some of the impacts of climate change.

Access the map

The data in this map are provided by EMODnet.