Climate Change and Ecology

Climate change is one of the most important issues of our time, with global effects that are becoming clearer every year. Concern is growing, including for the vulnerable Wadden Sea area.In 2009, the Wadden Academy presented its agenda Kennis voor een duurzame toekomst van de Wadden[Knowledge for a Sustainable Future for the Wadden Area]. That publication examined the consequences of climate change for the ecology of the Wadden Sea area. Ten years on, the question arises as to how things stand now. Does science provide tools that policymakers can use?

This question has prompted the Wadden Academy and the Stakeholder Council of the Wadden Sea Region (the recently established advisory body for the Policy Board of the Wadden Sea Region in the Netherlands) to to ask science journalist Rob Buiter to survey the situation by interviewing a number of experts, describing the latest scenarios for the Wadden Sea, their ecological consequences and the perspectives for action. In a concluding chapter, Piet Hoekstra and Katja Philippart respond to these results in a synthesis on behalf of the Wadden Academy

The report is intended for the parties that are members of the Stakeholder Council of the Wadden Sea Region and will also be of great interest to administrators and other interested parties.

One question comes up again and again: how viable is the EU’s policy on nature conservation and nature remediation where the Wadden Sea is concerned? The report does not provide an answer; rather, it represents the start of a search for answers.

Authors: Piet Hoekstra en Katja Pilippart

Position Paper 2021-01

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Climate Change and Ecology (pdf 4,3 Mb)