Coasts emerge where land, water, and air meet. Coastal areas are often renowned for their particular cultural histories, resource abundance and economic wealth, their biological productivity and biodiversity, and scenic beauty. Coasts are also ecologically highly vulnerable. Multiple uses tied to a plethora of interests often generate conflict. Preserving the richness of coastal areas and their economic functions requires comprehensive management schemes. Coastal Management needs to be designed so as to enable ecologically sustainable coastal development, socioeconomic well-being, and social justice.

Coastal Management Revisited: Navigating Towards Sustainable Human-Nature Relations presents an account of twenty plus years of research on coasts, oceans and small islands, linking social and ecological systems, in close collaboration with natural scientists, managers, policy makers and the local populations involved. Integrated and sustainable coastal management is multi-facetted, greatly issue-dependent and has, during its history, followed different trends and paths. The authors address challenges to society - to coastal management in particular - that have been generated by human activity in both temperate and tropical environments. Ultimately, the book describes the maturation of a field.