The Global Centre for Risk and Innovation (GCRI)
Topics at Oceans and Coasts: the pages in this section are listed below, each with its own scope and status.
GCRI · In development · service level R0
The Oceans and Coasts topics are the eight subject dossiers of its field, among them sea level and coastal flood, marine ecosystems, and fisheries and livelihoods. Each dossier sets out how the risk develops, what is measured and in which units, the public sources and their licences, the methods, who decides and the limits of the evidence.
GCRI is a research, development and policy institution. It is not a regulator, and it does not certify, license or approve; its findings carry their methods and uncertainty.
The topics go from sea level and coastal floods through marine ecosystems, fisheries and ports to observation, the blue economy, islands and pollution.
Each term as this page uses it. Where a standard-setting body defines the term, the wording follows that body.
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Thermal expansion | The increase in seawater volume as it warms, a major contributor to sea-level rise. |
| Coral bleaching | Loss of the symbiotic algae from coral tissue, usually caused by prolonged heat stress. |
| Maximum sustainable yield | The largest average catch that can be taken from a stock over time without reducing its productivity. |
| Freeboard | The height of a structure above the water level, which shrinks as the sea rises. |
| Argo float | An autonomous instrument that drifts and profiles the upper ocean, reporting data by satellite. |
The bodies and documents this page is read against. Status and editions change; each link goes to the issuing body.
Shoreline exposure and changing sea levels.
TopicHabitats, trophic systems and ecosystem condition.
TopicFish stocks, food security and local economies.
TopicCoastal transport and continuity.
TopicMarine sensing and data limitations.
TopicDevelopment, access and ecological safeguards.
TopicIsland connectivity and energy, water, food systems.
TopicContaminants, plastics and ecosystem harm.
The current service level is R0: information and enquiries. An enquiry receives a reference and names the next step; applications, payments, compute allocations and registrations open only when their team, terms and review capacity exist.