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Seeding Hope - Climate vulnerability summary

HOW CLIMATE CHANGE IS IMPACTING COASTAL COMMUNITIES IN THE SOUTH WEST INDIAN OCEAN AND HOW MANGROVE PROTECTION AND RESTORATION PRESENT ROBUST NATURE-BASED SOLUTIONS

Many of the approximately 55 million people who live along the South West Indian Ocean (SWIO) coastal region rely heavily on healthy ocean ecosystems for food, employment, livelihoods and resilience against climate stressors. Yet climate change and associated disasters increasingly place these vulnerable communities at risk, with women and girls being disproportionately affected
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Climate change affects food security, water security, agricultural production, livelihoods and other aspects of life across the SWIO region. These threats erode community resilience through various complex mechanisms, which interact in non-linear and often unpredictable ways. For example, rising sea levels threaten to inundate low-lying areas, displacing populations, eroding coastlines. In turn, this affects local economies that rely on tourism and fishing. Warming sea surface temperatures and ocean acidification lead to coral bleaching and outbreaks of disease, impacting food security and reducing the production potential of fisheries that depend on coral reefs.

The interconnected nature of these impacts means that a single event, such as a severe cyclone, can trigger cascading effects, such as saltwater intrusion into freshwater systems, which diminishes agricultural productivity. The resilience of coastal communities in the SWIO region hinges on a comprehensive understanding of these dynamic, interlinked risks and their impacts.

This summary report examines the vulnerability of coastal communities in the South West Indian Ocean (SWIO) region to climate and disaster risks and what climate adaptation and disaster risk initiatives and opportunities are in place (including nature-based solutions focusing on mangroves) at a local, national and regional level.

The summary report is based on a study commissioned by WWF that sought to:
● Assess climate change and disaster risks within the SWIO region, particularly the impact on vulnerable communities and coastal ecosystems (with an emphasis on mangroves)
● Map relevant coastal climate adaptation and disaster risk reduction initiatives, as well as related nature-based solutions work, including highlighting best practices, key challenges, gaps and recommendations
● Identify climate adaptation and disaster risk reduction tools relevant to mangroves.
 

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Seeding Hope - Climate Vulnérability summary

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