Coastwards app for iPhone and iPad

Sea levels are projected to rise between 29 and 110 cm until the year 2100. Coastal regions will have to adapt to these changes, adaptation measures however cost money. Decisions on which coasts to protect and how to do so are often based on calculations of risk. These calculations are made by Integrated assessment models. They take in huge amounts of data on coastal zones defined by hundreds of parameters.

One of these parameters is the coast material. It determines how vulnerable a given coast is to erosion. Sandy beaches erode more easily than rocky cliffs; erosion raises the risk.

And here lies the problem. We don’t have sufficient data for this parameter. The only comprehensive global dataset on coast material to be found was created in the year 1958. (And it was stolen from the library by the professor to be quickly scanned and then returned. True story.)

“Global assessments of vulnerability to climate-change induced sea-level rise and of its associated impacts are impeded by the severe lack of information on coastal physical characteristics.” Prof. A. Vafeidis (University of Kiel, Germany)

So, this is where the App comes in. And you. Help us create a global database of coast material by sending us pictures of coasts. Take a picture (or more) whenever you stroll along a coast or browse through your pictures and upload those you already have. You dont need an account, just the App.

Many thanks in advance! You rock.
The Coastal Risk and Sea-level Research Group from the University of Kiel, Germany