With an increasing number of coastal issues associated with human pressure and exacerbated by climate change, this study examines how residents of coastal communities perceive their living environment and how they perceive risks in this environment and more particularly coastal risks (marine erosion and flooding). An international (Canada-France) questionnaire study was conducted among 190 people, approximately half of whom lived on New Brunswick’s Acadian Coast and half on France’s west coast. The results highlight, on the one hand, the residents’ strong relationship with their coastal living environment and, on the other, a representation of coastal risks as an important area of concern for them. That said, the worry concerning these risks varied among the participants. The local and cultural context (media coverage of this issue and the country-specific risk management strategies) may explain the differences in attitude between the two countries.