Coastal Futures

Coastal Futures explores the profound transformation of our relationship with the world’s coasts, as nearly 40 percent of humanity now lives within 100 kilometers of the sea.

Moving beyond the traditional view of coasts as simple boundaries between land and water, this book reveals the coast as a diverse, networked landscape shaped by intertidal ecologies, sprawling infrastructures, and everyday practices that reach far beyond the shore. By uncovering the “coastalization” of society, the book highlights the growing significance of shores in understanding contemporary life and environmental change. Drawing on rich ethnographic research, the volume challenges traditional notions of the coast as simply a physical object or maritime boundary. Instead, it closely examines the diverse material forms and infrastructural connections that define coastal spaces, envisioning new futures for these vital zones.

Coastal Futures argues that a scientific inquiry into the dynamic interplay of society and coastlines is both urgent and essential, encouraging more responsible and imaginative ways of living with and on the coast. Ultimately, the book redeems the coast as a geo-ontological force-one that shapes, enables, and constrains the transformative energies of global assemblages, rather than serving as a passive backdrop to human activity.

Author Biography

Lukas Ley is an environmental anthropologist and head of the research group S.AND at the Max Planck Institute for Social Anthropology.