Ocean waves don't stop at the border — and neither should efforts to protect our coastal communities: That's the core message of a new report that outlines strategies for strengthening coastal resilience along the shared coastline between San Diego and Baja California. The report, produced through a partnership between California Sea Grant and the Climate Science Alliance, represents the first comprehensive blueprint for how these neighboring regions can work together to adapt to rising seas, stronger storms and other climate impacts.
"Our shared coastline presents both unique challenges and many opportunities for collaboration," says Meliza Le Alvarado, who took the lead in authoring the report as a Binational Climate Fellow, a position co-funded by California Sea Grant and the Climate Science Alliance.
From the scenic cliffs of San Onofre State Park to the beaches of Ensenada, this stretch of Pacific coast faces mounting pressures — including beach erosion, ocean acidification, marine heat waves and habitat loss. These challenges are magnified by the complex dynamics of a busy international border region marked by different governance systems and cultural contexts.
Cross-Border Collaboration: Four Core Priorities

The report emerged from extensive consultations with over 250 coastal professionals, including scientists, community leaders and Indigenous knowledge holders from both sides of the border. Through surveys, interviews and binational workshops, the team identified four key priorities: developing better coastal data sharing, building a skilled cross-border workforce, deepening community engagement and ensuring meaningful participation of Indigenous peoples who have stewarded these coastal lands since time immemorial.
Le Alvarado and the rest of the team focused on practical, actionable solutions. Rather than just highlighting problems, the report outlines specific strategies — from creating shared early warning systems for coastal hazards to expanding binational research partnerships and training programs. There's also a strong focus on equity, with recommendations for supporting Indigenous-led coastal stewardship and ensuring that marginalized communities have a voice in coastal planning decisions. As one workshop participant noted: We need “both community-based and government agency networks building strategies together — especially governmental agencies from the U.S. and Mexico supporting long-term strategies."
The path ahead isn't simple, but the report's authors believe their roadmap offers a foundation for transforming these challenges into opportunities for innovation. By learning from each other and leveraging diverse experiences on both sides of the border, they argue, the region can build a resilient coastal future.
About California Sea Grant
NOAA’s California Sea Grant College Program funds marine research, education and outreach throughout California. Headquartered at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at the University of California San Diego, California Sea Grant is one of 34 Sea Grant programs in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), U.S. Department of Commerce.