Location

Situated on the Firth of Forth, one of the UK’s most significant engineering corridors, Edinburgh makes a fitting host for Breakwaters 2027. With 27km of coastline and a maritime history stretching back centuries through its Port of Leith, this Unesco world heritage city has long been shaped by its relationship with the sea.

Scotland’s capital faces a key challenge shared by coastal settlements worldwide: how to protect vulnerable communities and critical infrastructure from the risks associated with climate change – e.g. rising sea levels, increasingly severe weather and accelerating shoreline erosion. To address this, Edinburgh City Council has been developing an adaptation plan that it describes as “a strategic scheme to manage our coast”.

This challenge applies all around Scotland, where almost half the population lives within 8km of the sea. In contexts ranging from urban waterfronts and major ports to remote island communities reliant on resilient marine connectivity, coastal infrastructure plays a key socioeconomic role.

Scotland is also at the forefront of the blue economy and the global transition to low-carbon energy. In the outer Firth of Forth, wind farms such as Neart Na Gaoithe and the planned Berwick Bank array indicate the scale of ambition here. Meanwhile, the Port of Leith’s Renewables Hub is becoming a strategically important centre for offshore wind deployment and future energy supply chains.

The conference will take place just after the 10th anniversary of Edinburgh’s Queensferry Crossing. This cable-stayed bridge, together with the Forth Road Bridge and the world-famous Forth Bridge, forms a trio of structures symbolising generations of engineering ingenuity. As the marine environment surrounding these and many other assets toughens, Breakwaters 2027 is a timely opportunity for those working on coastal infrastructure to build on that proud legacy.