Samenvatting

This dissertation is about the Wadden Sea Area in times of change. Conditions that predetermined
the very existence of this distinct sea are now threatened by the sea level projected in
the forthcoming 50-100 years. Therefore, this puts pressure on the water management to protect
the area behind the dikes where people live. The current management paradigm is no
longer "fighting water" but "living with water"; however this ideal has not become a practised
custom yet.

This dissertation studied how intuitions currently cope with climate adaptation in the Dutch
Wadden Sea Area. In particular this thesis studied (i) the status quo on institutional adaptation
plans (appendix 6) and (ii) how the revealed adaptation plans interact with the current
management of the Wadden Sea Area (table 2). Furthermore, the results of the current situation
of adaptation were put into broader contexts of climate change timeline, history of water
management in the Netherlands and its most recent developments.