Rising seas present an escalating and uneven threat to health and wellbeing for hundreds of millions of people living along low-lying coasts, according to a new Lancet Commission. The advancing waterline is reshaping daily life and driving new patterns of disease. It also accelerates displacement and erodes the social, cultural, and ecological foundations of health.
Sea-level rise is amplifying existing health inequities as its impacts and risks increase. The phenomenon is not just an environmental issue but a direct assault on human security. Communities face a loss of land and livelihoods alongside trauma and injury from coastal flooding and storm surges.