- Resource System
- Coastal landscapes and seascapes, river networks and associated wetlands
- Resource Units
- Multiple: affordances for human habitation, leisure, fishing, agriculture, trade, freshwater, biodiversity, etc.
This case represents the collaborative effort of an international team focused on studying how coastal regions may respond to climate change as part of the Multi-Scale Adaptations to Climate Change and Social-Ecological Sustainability in Coastal Areas (MAGIC) research project funded by a Belmont grant. The study involved three sites: Cornwall, England; Languedoc-Roussillon, France; and Eden District, South Africa. The three study sites were selected based on their history of rapidly changing weather patterns and concomitant increased vulnerability of local populations to climate change-induced severe weather events. This section will provide a brief overview of the biophysical, social, and institutional characteristics of each study area, followed by an overview of the core similarities and interactions of each SES. Further detailed information on the SES dynamics in each region are outlined in separate cases in the SES Library. To go to those cases, follow the "Related Studies and Models" link below.
Coastal vulnerability in Cornwall, Languedoc, and Eden
Resource System
Resource system (natural infrastructure): Terrestrial (including coastal and riparian) land, the watershed and topography (shared).
Resource Users
There are two main subgroups that are important to this synthesis analysis:
- A heterogenous mix of urban and rural residents in all three regions, including farmers and seasonal property owners;
- A significant number of tourists in all three regions.
Public Infrastructure Providers
Public infrastructure providers in all three study sites include a variety of national, regional, county, metropolitan, and municipal-level government entities which provide funding and implement rules and regulations, including:
- Elected government representatives at the national, regional, and local government level.
- Government agencies entasked with watershed management and coastal zone development.
- Non-governmental organizations (NGOs)
- Other private and/or public entities and/or hybrids (e.g., British royalty, private operators of railway, and private water provider).
Public Infrastructure
Hard public infrastructure includes roads, bridges, railways, energy and water delivery systems.
Soft public infrastructure includes laws and regulations related to:
- Flood water management (at various governance levels)
- Watershed management (at various governance levels)
- Coastal zone development (at various governance levels)
Relationship 1
RU => R:
- Resource users extract land for a variety of competing consumptive and non-consumptive purposes (urban land development, large infrastructure projects, heritage sites, tourism, biodiversity protection).
- Ecologically sensitive areas are transformed for urban, agricultural, and other projects.
R => RU (potential disservices/negative feedback):
- Residents endure losses from extreme flooding and other weather events.
Relationship 2
RU => PIP:
- Residents in Britain and France participate in public forums (community flood forums and debat public). No such forum appears to exist in South Africa.
Relationship 3
PIP => PI (soft):
- The number and complexity of rules governing coastal development has caused a partitioning of actions without consideration of the effect of one rule on others regulating the same area.
- Lack of aggregation rules to coordinate decision-making authority causing confusion as to who is in charge.
Relationship 4
PIP (hard) => R:
- Hard human-made infrastructure projects are negatively impacting coastal and riparian ecosystems resulting in reduced buffering capacity and lowered biodiversity.
Relationship 5
PI (soft) => [RU => R]:
- Failure to monitor and enforce existing coastal development rules and regulations.
Relationship 6
RU => PI (soft):
- Community members in all three regions feel disempowered and without local control.
Exogenous Drivers 7 (Resource System)
Exogenous natural resource system drivers:
- Global climate change is expected to increase the occurrence of severe weather events, including flooding and sea surges.
Exogenous social drivers:
- Seasonal property owners are driving new urban development in areas prone to severe weather events.
Exogenous Drivers 7 (Public Infrastructure)
Exogenous natural resource system driver on hard infrastructure:
- Global climate change and related extreme weather events are generating uncertainty regarding the long-term viability of the public hard human-built infrastructure (roads, railways, energy and water transportation systems, etc.).
Exogenous policy drivers on soft infrastructure:
- Lack of coordination and resulting conflict between various laws dealing with coastal zone development, including international and EU policies.
Exogenous Drivers 8 (Resource Users)
Exogenous economic drivers:
- Significant poverty rates.
Exogenous social drivers:
- Dual socio-economic structures and social inequality.
-Dual economies and socioeconomic inequity.
-Community fragmentation between native populations and newcomers (Britain and France only).
-Devolution of authority from the national to the local level without concomitant financial support.
Exogenous Drivers 8 (Public Infrastructure Providers)
Exogenous economic drivers:
- Government focus on amenity industry (tourism) as driver of economic growth.
Exogenous political drivers:
- Austerity measures (Britain and France) and lack of government funding (South Africa).
- Decentralization policies
-Austerity measures.
Human Infrastructure, Private and Human-Made (Resource Users)
(none specified)Human Infrastructure, Private and Human-Made (Public Infrastructure Providers)
(none specified)Brady U, Arizona State University.
Anderies JM, Arizona State University.