Faced with rising sea levels and an increase in extreme weather events, coastal cities are on the front line. With Sea’ties, local actors are getting together and committing themselves to face the risks that have become very real and to design solutions together.
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) says that by 2100, without a drastic reduction in emissions, sea levels could rise by up to one metre. The consequences of climate change on coastal regions will be violent. These phenomena will reshape all coastal areas, where the population is densest and continues to flow. For coastal cities and their territories, the stakes are colossal.
The Sea’ties initiative, supported by the Veolia Foundation, was born of this observation and the desire to work together to draw up a map of solutions. To achieve this, a vast study has been launched, fed by a structured exchange between medium-sized cities to both share knowledge and identify solutions. The objective is to study the risks linked to climate change and to analyse the responses and solutions that may already exist in order to propose an overview to the decision-makers and managers of these territories.
What are we talking about?
> Technical solutions, which aim directly at reducing the risk: removal, relocation, protective structures, nature and ecosystem-based solutions.
> Solutions related to the sharing of knowledge and information between actors.
Sea’ties is also present at national and international meetings on the theme of rising sea levels and resilience. In Brest, in February 2022, forty mayors signed the Sea’ties Declaration to commit themselves to the issue of rising sea levels. Aware of the threat, they called for accelerating the transformation of cities and their territories around four priority action strategies:
- Mobilisation of scientific knowledge and observation systems
- The integration of societal issues into adaptation plans
- Enhancing the value of adaptive and hybrid solutions
- Increasing public funding and private investment for adaptation.
Who is behind Sea’ties?
The Ocean and Climate Platform (OCP), created shortly before COP 21 to mobilise around ocean and climate issues. The organisation brings together more than 80 organisations - NGOs, foundations, research institutes, national and international institutions, etc. - The organisation brings together more than 80 organisations - NGOs, foundations, research institutes, national and international institutions, etc. - whose objective is to promote scientific expertise and to advocate on ocean-climate issues to political decision-makers and the general public.
Romain Troublé, Director General of the Tara Ocean Foundation, is the President, Françoise Gaill, Director of Scientific Research at the CNRS, is one of the Vice-Presidents, and Thierry Vandevelde, Executive Director of the Veolia Foundation, is a member.
MORE INFORMATION:
> More about the Sea'ties initiative, the Sea'ties Declaration and the list of signatories.
> Learn more about the Veolia Foundation's support for Sea'ties and for Ocean and Climate Platform