February 8, 2024 — As climate change affects the oceans, coastal communities—particularly those at the front lines of ocean warming and sea level rise—are facing pressures that could threaten their access to aquatic foods.
“Climate change and other economic shocks are impacting how people access seafood, and typically households that are most reliant on seafood, such as those in Pacific Island countries, are most at risk,” said Jacob Eurich, a research associate at UC Santa Barbara’s Marine Science Institute, and a fisheries scientist at the Environmental Defense Fund. Which is why, he added, it is necessary to increase food system resilience in the area, which entails—among other things—the ability to maintain high levels of seafood consumption.