This important book gives an overview of the state-of-the-art
understanding on the drivers, state, and responses to the coastal
environmental changes in the Asia and Pacific region. The region is home
to the world's largest concentration of coral reefs and mangroves. It
accommodates fully two-thirds of the world's human population and its
economic activities have the highest growth rate in the world. This book
provides important perspectives on what is and will be going on in the
region's coastal zones. The Asia-Pacific also forms part of the
Pacific's so-called 'Rim of Fire' and is, therefore, vulnerable to
earthquakes and tsunamis. Threats of global environmental change such as
climate change and sea-level rise will superpose on such problems. It is
thus vital that appropriate policies and measures are needed for coastal
management in the region, in the context of both local and global
trends. This book is a highly important addition to the debate.