They emphasize the natural variability of the beaches, which is important to recognise in the context of an endangered species dependent on beach ecosystems. Policymakers may be more concerned with the economic impacts of species decline and beach loss on coastal communities. Mycoo and Gobin explore the potential for convergence of science and policy through

a case study at Grande Riviere, on the northeast coast of Trinidad. This site has the highest density of nesting leatherback turtles in the world, with 3,000 or more nesting on an 800 m length of beach. Although economic activity associated Selleck Bioactive Compound Library with turtle watching has not declined to date, Mycoo and Gobin suggest that SN-38 such changes are possible if climate change and sea-level rise lead to alteration of beach habitat. They find that while community awareness of sea-level rise is relatively high, knowledge and awareness of climate change in general is low. Hills and co-authors (A social and ecological imperative

for ecosystem-based adaptation to climate change in Pacific islands) define ecosystem-based adaptation (EbA) approaches as the use of biodiversity and ecosystem services in an overall strategy for adaptation to adverse effects of climate change. They argue that EbA is an appropriate policy response to the range and sometimes severe impacts of climate change on Pacific island ecosystems. However they highlight a current divergence between the conceptual rationale for EbA and its application in practice. There are two dominant approaches to the application of EbA. Targeted actions (based on the appraisal of various adaptation options and their

relative capacity to reduce societal vulnerability) will generally have more sophisticated data and analytical requirements than general approaches (based on the Lazertinib ic50 expected delivery of a wide range of ecosystem services, including those likely to reduce societal vulnerability). The latter are more appropriate in Amine dehydrogenase situations where the emphasis is on increasing resilience but there is high uncertainty about the local climate future, limited analytical capacity and/or limited resources for design, implementation and/or maintenance. The authors show that a number of characteristics make adaptation approaches utilising the benefits of ecosystems a compelling and viable alternative to other adaptation approaches. But without improved guidance for early-stage planning that allows practical ‘whole-of-system’ comparisons between EbA and non-EbA solutions, there has been little full integration of the former in national adaptation programs. A broad lack of awareness of the benefits of EbA is a challenge to its use in a region where ‘bottom-up’ approaches to prioritisation play an important role in policy and decision-making.