Climate Change Impacts and Resilience in Pacific Island Marine Ecosystems
A special issue of Diversity (ISSN 1424-2818). This special issue belongs to the section "Marine Diversity".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 December 2025 | Viewed by 28
Special Issue Editor
Interests: network modelling; marine ecosystems; bayesian networks; socioecological systems; coral reefs
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Pacific Island nations are at the forefront of the climate crisis, with their marine ecosystems facing some of the most immediate and severe consequences of global change; therefore, this Special Issue invites contributions that explore the emerging impacts of climate change on Pacific Island marine environments and innovative pathways toward ecological and community resilience.
Key challenges include escalating coral bleaching, ocean acidification, rising sea levels, and intensifying cyclones—all contributing to habitat degradation, fisheries decline, and coastal vulnerability. Notably, climate-induced shifts in the distribution of economically important species (e.g., tuna) are challenging the governance of national fisheries and threatening regional food security.
Emerging marine issues of interest include the following:
- Changes in ocean circulation and stratification affecting nutrient dynamics and productivity;
- The role of invasive species and marine heatwaves in disrupting ecosystem balance;
- The climate-driven migration of pelagic stocks and the implications thereof for exclusive economic zones (EEZs);
- Compound stressors (e.g., climate + pollution + overfishing) affecting reef recovery.
This call for papers also welcomes research and perspectives on resilience strategies grounded in Pacific contexts, including the following topics:
- Locally Managed Marine Areas (LMMAs) and community-based adaptation;
- Ecosystem-based and culturally integrated marine management;
- Restoration approaches (e.g., coral propagation or mangrove rehabilitation);
- The use of traditional knowledge alongside emerging tools like dynamic ocean management, climate-informed fisheries, and spatial scenario planning.
We encourage interdisciplinary, transboundary, and practice-informed submissions—from ecological modeling to policy innovations—that contribute to sustaining Pacific Island marine systems under climate stress.
This Special Topic aims to showcase both the vulnerability and the leadership of Pacific communities in adapting to ocean climate change and offer globally relevant lessons from the region.
Dr. Stuart Kininmonth
Guest Editor
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Diversity is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2100 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- network modeling
- marine ecosystems
- Bayesian networks
- socioecological systems
- coral reefs
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