Understanding and Improving Coastal Restoration: Considering Social Dimensions, Ecosystem Services, and Biodegradable Materials

Dear Colleagues,

Human activities fundamentally alter natural systems, threatening the sustained production of critical ecosystem services and future resilience of coupled human-natural systems. Restoration is one of the few human activities that benefits ecosystems. Through restoration, humans are inextricably linked to the natural systems they seek to renew. The natural system ideally responds to restoration through enhanced functionality, ecosystem services production, and resilience to perturbation. Furthermore, maximizing restoration impact also involves human behavioural changes or collective actions that generate adaptive capacity. As humanity changes its views on certain topics, restoration must follow. For example, many coastal restoration projects have recently received negative reviews from the public at large for the use of plastic materials in the construction of breakwaters, oyster reefs, etc. Hence, there is a push to develop and understand the success and any unintended consequences of comparable restoration materials produced from biodegradable materials.

The goal of this Special Issue is to bring together current research in the ecological, engineering, economic, and social dimensions of marine, coastal, and freshwater restoration, to globally share and improve our understanding of these important topics and increase our adaptive capacity.

We welcome contributions from a wide variety of scholars across multiple fields and across the globe. We have particular interest in creating a Special Issue that features diverse voices and teams working with diverse stakeholders, particularly those scholars/practitioners from (and those scholars/practitioners working with) underrepresented populations in science, technology, and society.

Dr. Linda J. Walters
Dr. Kelly M. Kibler
Dr. Lisa G. Chambers
Dr. Timothy L. Hawthorne
Dr. Giovanna McClenachan
Guest Editors

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