From September 24th to 25th, the 2025 World Coastal Forum was held in Yancheng, Jiangsu Province, with the theme “Beautiful Coasts: Ecological Priority and Green Development.” Three hundred representatives from 36 countries and regions gathered for in-depth discussions and collaboration on ecological protection and sustainable development in coastal areas worldwide. The two-day forum featured over ten diverse events, including parallel forums, thematic seminars, featured events, and workshops.

The forum focused on core topics, including coastal ecosystem conservation and restoration, climate change response and adaptation, biodiversity finance and the blue economy, protecting Asian migratory bird flyways, and building partnerships for sustainable coastal management. The aim was to build a broad consensus and promote practical cooperation.

As China’s first coastal wetland designated as a World Heritage Site, the Yancheng Yellow Sea Wetlands, with its unique ecological environment and rich biodiversity, have become a global model for ecological conservation. Yancheng boasts two national wetland nature reserves, two internationally important wetlands, and a World Heritage Site, encompassing 769,600 hectares of wetlands with a conservation rate of 50.9%. From an aerial perspective, the Yellow Sea Wetlands, Asia’s largest coastal wetland, stretch out like a fan, its tides nurturing the ever-expanding mudflats, providing a habitat for migratory birds and wild deer.

In September 2023, the Jiangsu Provincial People’s Government, the Ministry of Natural Resources, and the National Forestry and Grassland Administration jointly successfully held the first World Coastal Forum and released the “World Coastal Forum Partnership Initiative,” which received high attention and wide acclaim from the international community. Since the inception of the Forum, ICLEI, as one of the founding members of the Forum’s International Coordinating Committee, has actively supported the preparation and implementation of the Forum, along with World Coastal Forum partners such as the World Conservation Union, BirdLife International, the East Asian-Australasian Flyway Partnership, the Royal Society of Birds, Tianhe Charity Foundation, the Paulson Institute, Wetlands International, the University of Cambridge, the International Crane Foundation, The Nature Conservancy, the Yancheng Wetland and World Natural Heritage Conservation and Management Center, and the Ghana Environmental Protection Agency.

The World Coastal Forum draws on Chinese wisdom to foster international consensus and advance a green development agenda. This original vision and its achievements have attracted more partners to join the “Coastal Protection Action.”

A ceremony was held at the opening of the forum to welcome new partners to the World Coastal Forum. With the official addition of new partners, the number of forum partners has increased from the initial 15 to 25, covering 14 countries and regions across five continents worldwide, including diverse entities such as government departments, international organizations, universities, and research institutes.

As one of the forum’s key events, the plenary meeting of the World Coastal Forum’s International Coordinating Committee was held on the evening of September 24th. Chen Danhong, Director of the Department of International Cooperation of the Ministry of Natural Resources, Yan Hanping, Mayor of the Yancheng Municipal People’s Government, as well as members of the International Coordinating Committee and key partners, attended the meeting. Zhang Xinsheng, Chairman of the World Coastal Forum’s International Coordinating Committee, presided over the meeting.

Kobie Brand, Deputy Secretary-General of ICLEI, delivered a video address on behalf of the Local Government Engagement Working Group. She highlighted the key achievements since the launch of the World Coastal Forum Partnership Initiative and commended the Forum’s pivotal role in advancing global coastal conservation. Brand emphasized the significance of local action in achieving global goals and expressed confidence that ICLEI would continue to champion the World Coastal Forum’s agenda through its global network, influential platforms such as the CitiesWithNature Platform, and its unique position as a coordinator for local governments in major international environmental conventions and processes, including the Convention on Biological Diversity, the Convention on Migratory Species, and the Convention on Wetlands. She concluded by congratulating the Forum on its successful outcome.