The Canary Islands are one of Europe’s most climate-vulnerable island regions and are classified as an EU Outermost Region due to their geographical isolation and strong dependence on coastal ecosystems. Tourism, housing, ports, and critical infrastructure are heavily concentrated along the shoreline, making coastal zones highly exposed to sea-level rise, flooding, erosion, and extreme weather events. Within the BGG project, Gran Canaria was selected as the main case study because it reflects the wider governance challenges across the archipelago. Its coastal hotspots—such as Arinaga, Arucas, Guanarteme and Maspalomas—illustrate how climate risks directly affect both natural heritage and economic resilience.
Lead Aridane Gonzalez:
“BGG helps all levels of administration, NGOs, business and residents work together on the Canary Islands”
Problem statement
The main governance challenge in the Canary Islands is fragmentation across five administrative levels: European, national, regional, island (cabildo), and municipal. Responsibilities for climate adaptation and coastal management are spread across these layers, often resulting in overlapping mandates, excessive bureaucracy, and weak coordination. Decision-making is slow, while tourism development, urbanisation, and historical occupation of high-risk coastal zones continue to increase exposure to flooding and erosion. Scientific knowledge is not consistently integrated into policymaking, and citizen participation often remains consultative rather than influential. Limited staff capacity and unstable funding further weaken implementation.
Impact
The Canary Islands case shows that successful climate adaptation depends as much on governance reform as on technical coastal protection. The BGG project helps public administrations, researchers, NGOs, businesses, and residents work together around shared risks such as sea-level rise and beach loss. Stakeholders strongly agree that stronger inter-administrative coordination, better science-policy integration, and more meaningful citizen participation are urgently needed. Nature-based solutions such as dune and wetland restoration, supported by the regional Climate Change Law and strategic foresight tools, offer promising pathways for long-term resilience. The project aims to move from fragmented responses toward collaborative blue-green governance.
Workshops
Workshop 1
Exploring the Horizon:
Land-Sea Governance and Risk Mapping
Workshop 2
Vulnerability Assessment and Governance Reflection
