Decision Support Systems and Tools in Coastal Areas

Dear Colleagues,

The importance of coastal areas is well known since they provide resources and homes to humans and are among the most productive areas in the world, where a variety of ecosystems meet. Coastal ecosystems provide not only habitat for a wide range of marine plants and animals but numerous ecosystem services; their role in global climate is also critical.

However, continuous pressure on coastal and marine ecosystems due to the rapid growth of population density, the excessive exploitation of natural resources, as well as natural hazards and climate change is resulting in their degradation, with a considerable impact on coastal biodiversity and various economic aspects. In this framework, there is a need for appropriate tools and decision-support systems (DSSs) to analyze the vulnerability of coastal areas as well as the risks from potential threats and their impact. It is also necessary to identify and evaluate possible management options and scenarios in order to support policy makers in adopting robust decisions for sustainable coastal management and development.

In this Special Issue, we encourage the submission of papers related to the design and development of computerized information systems and tools that support decision-making activities in coastal areas using new technologies, data from various sources (i.e., satellites, UAVs, cruises), spatial databases, mapping and visualization techniques, spatial analysis methods, and/or appropriate modeling techniques.

Dr. Dimitra Kitsiou
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 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

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-anonymized peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Journal of Marine Science and Engineering is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly 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 2600 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.