Coastal wetlands provide opportunities for climate change mitigation and adaption

Catherine E. Lovelock, The University of Queensland

Coastal wetlands are features of coasts around the world. They provide a range of ecosystem services, including carbon sequestration in soils and vegetation, coastal stabilization, protection from extreme storm events, fisheries and improvements in water quality. They have been degraded and removed by human activities which have resulted in CO₂ emissions, loss of CO₂ sequestration capacity and reduced coastal protection in turn resulting in reduced resilience of coasts to climate change. Conserving and restoring coastal wetlands provides opportunities to enhance both CO₂ sequestration and climate change adaptation, as well as other tangible benefits for local communities. Prof Lovelock will present evidence and case studies to show how mitigation and adaptation can be achieved simultaneously through management of coastal wetlands, with benefits for coastal communities and for the planet.

Bio:  Professor Catherine Lovelock

Professor Lovelock is Australian Research Council Laureate Fellow and Professor in the School of Biological Sciences at The University of Queensland. Her research focuses on climate change and its impacts on coastal plant communities as well as the role of coastal wetlands in adaptation and climate change mitigation or Blue Carbon. She is a member of the International Scientific Blue Carbon Working Group of The Blue Carbon Initiative. She leads projects in Australia and internationally focused on climate change adaptation, carbon sequestration and restoration of mangroves. She was lead author for the Wetlands chapter for the 2019 refinement of the IPCC Guidelines for National Greenhouse Gas Inventories, and she advises governments on incorporating coastal wetlands within policies for climate change adaptation and mitigation.

Please note: If you have registered for the Zoom live stream the lecture link will be emailed to you closer to the lecture date. Also, please make sure your microphone and camera are turned off when you join the meeting. The lecture may be recorded as well.

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