Why do coastal ecosystems matter?

The ocean is one of our most powerful climate solutions. And coastal ecosystems are one of its greatest tools to fight this crisis. They can absorb up to five times more carbon per acre than a forest on land, and act as natural physical barriers against waves and storm surge that can be more effective than concrete structures. (They’re often cheaper than building seawalls, too.) But with only a tiny fraction of our ocean fully protected (at least on paper) from human-driven damage, we have to take action now to protect these critical ecosystems.