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Published VersionCC BY-NC-ND V4.0, Open Access
Journal article
Coastal stakeholders’ perspectives on nature-based solutions for coastal adaptation: A comparative study between Ghana and Taiwan
Nature-Based Solutions, Vol.9, pp.1-14
2026
Abstract
Nature-based solutions (NbS) offer significant potential for adaptation to coastal hazards globally by integrating coastal protection with key ecosystem service benefits. Nevertheless, significant variations exist in their adoption. This paper explores the drivers and barriers to the wide-spread adoption of NbS for coastal adaptation in the context of Ghana and Taiwan. While both countries have initiated small-scale NbS projects, these solutions are not yet widely implemented. To highlight geographical differences, we examined the uptake of NbS for coastal adaptation by comparing two case studies. In both contexts, data was derived from a comprehensive analysis of policies, scientific literature, in-depth interviews, focus group discussions, and email-based surveys. Questions were structured to capture the main driving forces for adopting NbS as well as enablers and impediments to the implementation of NbS, to compare different socio-ecological contexts. Main barriers for wider uptake in Taiwan include the lack of economic benefits and community-based input, and in Ghana lack of technical expertise and distrust of nature-based solutions. Overall, the absence of policy, inadequate funding, and lack of government support for NbS are some of the findings that reoccur in both contexts. Furthermore, the results indicate that in both Ghana and Taiwan, the primary driving forces behind the adoption of NbS were a desire to achieve ecosystem restoration, safeguarding ecosystems against further degradation, and fostering economic benefits for local communities. While ad hoc implementations of NbS exist in developing nations, failure to address systemic impediments could exacerbate coastal vulnerability.
Details
- Title
- Coastal stakeholders’ perspectives on nature-based solutions for coastal adaptation: A comparative study between Ghana and Taiwan
- Authors
- Blessing Charuka (Corresponding Author) - Rhodes UniversityViola M van Onselen (Corresponding Author) - National Taiwan Normal UniversityTim F Smith - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Sustainability Research ClusterTsung-Yi Lin - National Taiwan Normal UniversityDonatus Bapentire Angnuureng - University of Cape Coast
- Publication details
- Nature-Based Solutions, Vol.9, pp.1-14
- Publisher
- Elseiver Inc.
- Date published
- 2026
- DOI
- 10.1016/j.nbsj.2026.100307
- ISSN
- 2772-4115
- Copyright note
- © 2026 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Inc. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/bync-nd/4.0/).
- Data Availability
- The datasets used and analysed during the current study are available from the corresponding authors.
- Grant note
- The following grants have supported the data collection for this study: - MOST 111-2116-M-003-011: Morphodynamics and Evolution of Coastal Sand Dunes at Caota, Taoyuan and Its Application (III) - NSTC112-2625-M-003-004:Application of Nature-based Solutions in Coastal Hazard Mitigation under Climate Change - World Bank, Africa Centre of Excellence in Coastal Resilience (ACECoR) Project, Grant Number: 6389-GH.
- Organisation Unit
- Sustainability Research Cluster
- Language
- English
- Record Identifier
- 991209779402621
- Output Type
- Journal article
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