Mangroves are some of the most diverse habitats
on the planet.
These coastal forests which have adapted to live in
constantly changing saltwater tides are home to sharks,
manatees and tigers.
But people depend on mangroves too.
So far, the protection offered to coastal areas
hasn't been enough of an incentive
to save this precious ecosystem.
In the decade up to 2020, the area of mangroves decreased
by over one million hectares globally.
This is especially troubling in West Africa,
where 80% of the population live on the Atlantic Coast.
Rising sea levels have caused widespread erosion
and flooding in low lying areas.
While rising temperatures and drought
accelerate the evaporation of water and increase salinity,
killing off mangroves.
Senegal has been hit particularly hard,
losing a third of its mangrove forest
between 1950 and the early 2000s.
In a village at the mouth of the Senegal River,
1,500 people have already been moved inland
to makeshift camps.
Authorities have warned that at least 15,000 people
are at risk of being displaced
as rising sea levels flood homes,
mosques and agricultural land.
In a village called Djiffer, inhabitants have already seen
most of their mangrove forest disappear
while the coast continues to erode.
In an effort to avoid more flooding,
inhabitants of Djiffer are taking drastic measures
such as rolling giant boulders into the sea
to act as barriers against the rising sea levels.
Some communities are taking other action too
and replanting their lost mangrove forests.
They could store up to 7 times more carbon
than terrestrial forests, reducing climate change
and protect villages from coastal erosion and flooding.
They could also offer residents greater economic benefits
than they've ever had before.
Mangroves are food factories.
The roots provide a surface that oysters
and other mollusks can colonize and grow on.
And the complex structure of meandering channels
offers a sanctuary to many different kinds of fish.
For centuries, in villages like Dassilame Serere,
people had relied on the mangroves
to harvest oysters and other seafood.
As the forest disappeared, so too did this way of life.
But following a grant from the United Nations,
the community have been able to replant their forests
and begin farming again.
Slowly but surely, the forests have grown back.
And the community also made other changes
to make sure both mangroves and oysters would thrive.
The workers put stakes with thin ropes in the mud
for the oysters to latch onto.
This reduces pressure on the remaining mangroves,
and lets the oysters grow bigger.
Farmers can now sell fresh oysters to local seaside resorts
or can them for a much higher profit
than they ever could before.
All around the young mangroves,
the villagers have seen the return of fish,
crabs and other species that had disappeared.
It's something that could be replicated all over the world
as a tool to help communities
while global efforts are made to fight climate change.