Coastal Land Use Transitions and Their Cascading Impacts on Ecosystem Resilience: A Global Bibliometric Review

Chengwei Li; Shubo Fang

doi:10.53941/rem.2026.100007

Abstract

Coastal zones act as dynamic socio-ecological interfaces facing compounded pressures from climate change, urban growth, and land-use transformation. Despite abundant literature, research often remains compartmentalized, addressing biophysical and socioeconomic drivers separately. This study systematically examines the evolution of coastal land-use and resilience research using CiteSpace, a bibliometric analysis tool. Results identify nine major clusters, with land-use dynamics, climate impacts, and management forming the field’s core structure. Three dominant evolutionary trajectories emerged: (1) the integration of land-use and ecosystem dynamics as foundational resilience drivers; (2) a shift toward climate risk, variability, and adaptation-oriented analysis; and (3) the rise of governance and community-focused perspectives prioritizing socio-ecological resilience. However, significant structural biases remain, especially regarding data availability in the Global South. This review underscores the need for coherent frameworks that reconceptualize coastal systems as coupled socio-ecological interfaces. To advance long-term sustainability, future research must bridge methodological gaps by integrating multi-scale monitoring, from regional trends to neighborhood-level human expansion, with inclusive, justice-oriented adaptation strategies.

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