The UN Climate Change Conference (COP16) in held Cancun, Mexico, has just ended – and environmentalists are already turning their attention to next year’s conference, which will take place on South African shores. COP17 will be held in the city of Durban a coastal city vulnerable to the threat of rising sea levels caused by climate change. Any shipping agency Durban will be aware of the damaging effects that rising sea levels and flooding could have on the port city, where the subtropical climate will also lead to higher temperatures and increased rainfall as climate change progresses.