Climate change

A change in the average weather conditions, such as increase of air temperature and changes in precipitation and related changes in sea, land and ice sheets

Coastal resilience

Coastal resilience reflects how able coastal ecosystems and communities are to cope with and recover from different stresses and hazards

Coastal vulnerability

A weakened ability of coastal ecosystems and communities to cope with the consequences of different stresses and hazards, such as the consequences of inadequate development, climate change, and other stressors

Coastal zone

A strip of land and sea of varying width depending on the nature of the environment and management needs

Ecosystem

Biological community of interacting organisms (plants, animals and humans) and their physical environment

Governance

A range of systems (administrative, political, societal) that hold the power, authority and responsibility to take decisions, how decisions are taken, how effective, efficient and accountable they are. Public participation is an important element of the process.

Greening                                          

A process of becoming more active in protecting the environment by increasing green areas and making human activities more nature-friendly

ICZM

Integrated Coastal Zone Management is a process of implementing solutions for sustainable development of the coastal zone

ICZM Protocol

A regional (Mediterranean) legal instrument assisting people to find the path towards sustainable coastal development

Littoralisation

Transforming natural coastal zone into built up areas due to concentration of population and economic activities

MSP

Marine Spatial Planning is a process to allocate marine space for different uses (protected areas, navigation routes, fisheries and aquaculture, wind farms, oil and gas platforms, etc.) to avoid conflicts, while taking care of nature.

Setback zone                                    

Narrow zone by the sea where construction is prohibited so as to ensure safety of population and assets, preserve nature and secure public use

 

Sustainable development                 

Development that respects the environment using its resources carefully and creating minimum waste so that the future generations could enjoy liveable and healthy planet, too.