Resistance and Resilience: Facing the Multidimensional Challenges in Coastal Areas

Coastal ecosystems are subject to recurrent natural disturbances that act as drivers of ecosystem dynamics. In addition, in recent years, human impact has exerted intense pressures on these ecosystems, altering the dynamics and reducing resistance and resilience. The former refers to the ability of a system to hold a force without any modification, while the latter is a measure of its the capacity to respond to the consequences of perturbation and return to its original status. How can we achieve coastal management actions so that coastal resistance and resilience are enhanced? This volume integrates a broad set of studies that analyse coastal resistance and resilience from different viewpoints, that include contrasting viewpoints that cover the natural environment (abiotic and biotic); social governance and networks; social dynamics; built infrastructure and a combination of the four. Indeed, a proper diagnosis of the status of the coast is required and adequate coastal management is necessary, so that risks to the population and environmental problems are minimized. Coastal managers, ecologists, engineers, decision makers and society in general are jointly responsible for the future of our dynamic coasts.