IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/wly/natres/v40y2016i3p112-126.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Considering the locals: coastal construction and destruction in times of climate change on Anjouan, Comoros

Author

Listed:
  • Beate M.W. Ratter
  • Jan Petzold
  • Kamardine Sinane

Abstract

The current discussion of anticipated climate change impacts and future sea level rise is particularly relevant to small island states. An increase in natural hazards, such as floods and storm waves, is likely to have a devastating impact on small islands' coastlines, severely affecting targeted sustainable development. Coastal erosion, notably human‐induced erosion, has been an ongoing threat to small island biodiversity, resources, infrastructure, and settlements, as well as society at large. In the context of climate change, the problem of coastal erosion and the debate surrounding it is gaining momentum. Before attributing associated impacts to climate change, current human activities need to be analysed, focusing not only on geomorphological and climatological aspects, but also on political and traditional cultural frameworks. The objective of this paper is to demonstrate the importance of the social‐political‐ecological systems analysis for adaptation strategies, and thus for future sustainable development. Coastal use is based on human constructs of the coast, as well as local perceptions and values ascribed to the coast. We use the case study of Anjouan, Comoros to differentiate between constructive and destructive practices on the coast, from both a mental and technical perspective. Beach erosion is described as more than a resource problem that manifests itself locally rather than nationally. Divergent political scales of interest impact future development as much as local action. Local action is not least framed by mental contribution and attribution of coasts as places for living, recreation and resource use. The present case study demonstrates that mental constructs of coasts as valuable areas can, in some cases, lead to the protection and preservation of beaches by initiatives of collective action. At the same time, local communities see the negative impacts of sand mining as causes of coastal erosion and, therefore, it is difficult to mobilize them to adapt to climate change and sea level rise.

Suggested Citation

  • Beate M.W. Ratter & Jan Petzold & Kamardine Sinane, 2016. "Considering the locals: coastal construction and destruction in times of climate change on Anjouan, Comoros," Natural Resources Forum, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 40(3), pages 112-126, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:wly:natres:v:40:y:2016:i:3:p:112-126
    DOI: 10.1111/1477-8947.12102
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1111/1477-8947.12102
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1111/1477-8947.12102?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. W. Neil Adger, 2003. "Social Capital, Collective Action, and Adaptation to Climate Change," Economic Geography, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 79(4), pages 387-404, October.
    2. Jessica Mercer & Ilan Kelman & Björn Alfthan & Tiina Kurvits, 2012. "Ecosystem-Based Adaptation to Climate Change in Caribbean Small Island Developing States: Integrating Local and External Knowledge," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 4(8), pages 1-25, August.
    3. J. Barnett & S. Graham & C. Mortreux & R. Fincher & E. Waters & A. Hurlimann, 2014. "A local coastal adaptation pathway," Nature Climate Change, Nature, vol. 4(12), pages 1103-1108, December.
    4. W. Neil Adger & Jon Barnett & Katrina Brown & Nadine Marshall & Karen O'Brien, 2013. "Cultural dimensions of climate change impacts and adaptation," Nature Climate Change, Nature, vol. 3(2), pages 112-117, February.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Stacy‐ann Robinson, 2020. "Climate change adaptation in SIDS: A systematic review of the literature pre and post the IPCC Fifth Assessment Report," Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Climate Change, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 11(4), July.
    2. Meenakshi Shankar Poti & Jean Huge & Kartik Shanker & Nico Koedam & Farid Dahdouh-Guebas, 2022. "Learning from small islands in the Western Indian Ocean (WIO): A systematic review of responses to environmental change," ULB Institutional Repository 2013/346937, ULB -- Universite Libre de Bruxelles.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Rachel Harcourt & Wändi Bruine de Bruin & Suraje Dessai & Andrea Taylor, 2021. "Envisioning Climate Change Adaptation Futures Using Storytelling Workshops," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(12), pages 1-16, June.
    2. Daniela Salite, 2019. "Explaining the uncertainty: understanding small-scale farmers’ cultural beliefs and reasoning of drought causes in Gaza Province, Southern Mozambique," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 36(3), pages 427-441, September.
    3. Graham, Sonia & Barnett, Jon & Mortreux, Colette & Hurlimann, Anna & Fincher, Ruth, 2018. "Local values and fairness in climate change adaptation: Insights from marginal rural Australian communities," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 108(C), pages 332-343.
    4. Nadzirah Hosen & Hitoshi Nakamura & Amran Hamzah, 2020. "Adaptation to Climate Change: Does Traditional Ecological Knowledge Hold the Key?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(2), pages 1-18, January.
    5. Sierra-Correa, Paula Cristina & Cantera Kintz, Jaime Ricardo, 2015. "Ecosystem-based adaptation for improving coastal planning for sea-level rise: A systematic review for mangrove coasts," Marine Policy, Elsevier, vol. 51(C), pages 385-393.
    6. Shiva Salehi & Ali Ardalan & Gholamreza Garmaroudi & Abbas Ostadtaghizadeh & Abbas Rahimiforoushani & Armin Zareiyan, 2019. "Climate change adaptation: a systematic review on domains and indicators," Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, Springer;International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, vol. 96(1), pages 521-550, March.
    7. Derric B. Jacobs & Lori A. Cramer, 2020. "The relationships between social capital and concerns for climate change with increasing wildfire risks in rural communities in Central Oregon," Journal of Environmental Studies and Sciences, Springer;Association of Environmental Studies and Sciences, vol. 10(1), pages 12-30, March.
    8. Petra Tschakert & Jon Barnett & Neville Ellis & Carmen Lawrence & Nancy Tuana & Mark New & Carmen Elrick‐Barr & Ram Pandit & David Pannell, 2017. "Climate change and loss, as if people mattered: values, places, and experiences," Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Climate Change, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 8(5), September.
    9. Ghanian, Mansour & M. Ghoochani, Omid & Dehghanpour, Mojtaba & Taqipour, Milad & Taheri, Fatemeh & Cotton, Matthew, 2020. "Understanding farmers’ climate adaptation intention in Iran: A protection-motivation extended model," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 94(C).
    10. Anh M. Ly & Michael R. Cope, 2023. "New Conceptual Model of Social Sustainability: Review from Past Concepts and Ideas," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(7), pages 1-20, March.
    11. Fischer, Alexandra Paige, 2018. "Pathways of adaptation to external stressors in coastal natural-resource-dependent communities: Implications for climate change," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 108(C), pages 235-248.
    12. Md Aboul Fazal Younus & Md Alamgir Kabir, 2018. "Climate Change Vulnerability Assessment and Adaptation of Bangladesh: Mechanisms, Notions and Solutions," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(11), pages 1-17, November.
    13. Alex Y. Lo & Alice S. Y. Chow & Shuwen Liu & Lewis T. O. Cheung, 2019. "Community business resilience: adaptation practice of micro- and small enterprises around the Pearl River Estuary," Climatic Change, Springer, vol. 157(3), pages 565-585, December.
    14. Fraschini, Filippo & Hunt, Alistair & Zoboli, Roberto, 2022. "Decision tools for adaptation to climate change: Portfolio analysis of tea plantation investments in Rwanda," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 200(C).
    15. Heather McMillen & Lindsay K. Campbell & Erika S. Svendsen & Renae Reynolds, 2016. "Recognizing Stewardship Practices as Indicators of Social Resilience: In Living Memorials and in a Community Garden," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 8(8), pages 1-26, August.
    16. Ana Raquel Nunes, 2021. "Exploring the interactions between vulnerability, resilience and adaptation to extreme temperatures," Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, Springer;International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, vol. 109(3), pages 2261-2293, December.
    17. Tapio Riepponen & Mikko Moilanen & Jaakko Simonen, 2023. "Themes of resilience in the economics literature: A topic modeling approach," Regional Science Policy & Practice, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 15(2), pages 326-356, April.
    18. Douglas K. Bardsley & Annette M. Bardsley & Marco Conedera, 2023. "The dispersion of climate change impacts from viticulture in Ticino, Switzerland," Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change, Springer, vol. 28(3), pages 1-25, March.
    19. Jeetendra Prakash Aryal & Tek B. Sapkota & Ritika Khurana & Arun Khatri-Chhetri & Dil Bahadur Rahut & M. L. Jat, 2020. "Climate change and agriculture in South Asia: adaptation options in smallholder production systems," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 22(6), pages 5045-5075, August.
    20. Friedman, Rachel S. & Guerrero, Angela M. & McAllister, Ryan R.J. & Rhodes, Jonathan R. & Santika, Truly & Budiharta, Sugeng & Indrawan, Tito & Hutabarat, Joseph A. & Kusworo, Ahmad & Yogaswara, Herry, 2020. "Beyond the community in participatory forest management: A governance network perspective," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 97(C).

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:wly:natres:v:40:y:2016:i:3:p:112-126. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://doi.org/10.1111/(ISSN)1477-8947 .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.