Ocean and Coastal Management xxx (xxxx) xxx Please cite this article as: Stewart Angus, James D. Hansom, Ocean and Coastal Management, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ocecoaman.2020.105414 0964-5691/© 2020 Published by Elsevier Ltd. Enhancing the resilience of high-vulnerability, low-elevation coastal zones Stewart Angus a, * , James D. Hansom b a NatureScot, Great Glen House, Leachkin Road, Inverness, Scotland, IV3 8NW, United Kingdom b University of Glasgow, School of Geographical & Earth Sciences, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, Scotland, G12 8QQ, United Kingdom A R T I C L E INFO Keywords: Climate change Adaptation Outer Hebrides Uist Machair Flooding Biodiversity Connectivity Meta-ecosystems ABSTRACT This paper aims to explore how resilience to climate change can be achieved and optimised within an example of a complex, high-vulnerability and low-elevation coastal zone. In Uist, Outer Hebrides, Scotland, a completed INTERREG project provided a framework for resilience planning in a complex, multifaceted environment, where offcial bodies, NGOs, academics and the community already work together productively. A range of approaches to coping with climate change in Uist is reviewed, some of these originating from within the community, and the local situation is discussed in the context of the extent to which resilience theory and national policy intertwine. These approaches identify and combine nature-based solutions and compatible engineering-based solutions, demonstrating how resilience can be achieved and enhanced in a vulnerable area via sustained engagement with local communities backed by peer-reviewed research and complying with the policy context. 1. Introduction This paper aims to identify how resilience to climate change can be achieved and optimised within high-vulnerability and low-elevation coastal zones, such as occur in the Outer Hebrides (Western Isles) of Scotland. Low Elevation Coastal Zones (LECZs) (defned as coastal land below 10 m elevation) are identifed to be at particular risk to climate change impacts by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Fifth Assessment Report (AR5) on coastal systems (Wong et al., 2014). In Scotland, such vulnerable LECZ coastlines include many islands characterised by soft sedimentary coasts that are exposed to high wave energies and backed by an extensive and low-lying hinterland, such as Sanday (Orkney), Uist (Outer Hebrides) and Tiree (Inner Heb- rides). All lie within areas of the North Atlantic seaboard that are impacted by high wave energies and sea level rise, with some areas compounded by isostatic land subsidence. The study area was selected partly because it has a wide range of complex inter-related features that allow for onward use in other LECZs but also because of concerns raised by residents and their Local Au- thority. Other LECZs could include not only coasts in Orkney and the Inner Hebrides in Scotland (see above) but internationally, given that 2% of the world’s land area has been classifed as LECZ. This imparts this topic with a sense of urgency, not only in the context of global climate change, but also in relation to the fact that Least Developed Countries have a higher proportion (14%) of their populations in LECZs than OECD countries (10%) (McGranahan et al., 2007; Vafeidis et al., 2011). The inherent vulnerability to climate change impact in Scottish LECZs is manifest in high rates of coastal erosion, especially on the extensive sandy beach and dune coasts that are common to these islands as well as impacting coastal habitats. Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH, now rebranded as NatureScot), as the statutory advisory body on natural heritage in Scotland, has targeted research on the vulnerability of the low-lying areas of Uist to climate impacts as an exemplar of how any research outcomes might be applied more widely. These studies (Angus and Hansom 2004; Angus et al., 2011; Angus 2014, 2017a, 2018a, 2018b; Angus and Rennie 2014) have been developed and discussed with local communities in meetings and presentations, initially within the INTERREG CoastAdapt project (Muir et al., 2014) and subsequently via meetings convened by local organisations, all of which generated useful and practical feedback. Community awareness of the implications of climate change for Uist is extremely high, particularly following the experience of a severe storm in 2005 (Dawson et al., 2007; Angus and Rennie 2014). Subsequent frequent interaction with academics has helped enhance this community awareness, accompanied by a high level of realism, that provides an effective template for the local development and adoption of resilience strategies. National studies on coastal change and related coastal risk in Scot- land feature detailed reports on the Outer Hebrides within the Dynamic Coast project (Hansom et al. 2017a, 2017b) while the Local Authority (LA), Comhairle nan Eilean Siar (2016), has clear obligations under the * Corresponding author. E-mail addresses: stewart.angus@nature.scot (S. Angus), jim.hansom@glasgow.ac.uk (J.D. Hansom). Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Ocean and Coastal Management journal homepage: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/ocecoaman https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ocecoaman.2020.105414 Received 16 May 2020; Received in revised form 10 October 2020; Accepted 12 October 2020