There is an emergent and serious need to understand and communicate the social and economic implications of the biophysical outcomes that will be driven by climate change on the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) and how these will affect regional economies on the Queensland seaboard. This paper is the first of a two part series on this topic. The primary focus of this first paper is to evaluate global climate change predictions and the contemporary biophysical research findings with an evaluation of the methods used to determine the socio-economic impacts of coral bleaching and lost reef productivity. The second paper will deal with the results of extensive research measuring the socio economic impacts of climate change on the Recreational Fishing, Commercial Fishing and Tourism Industries in three nodes of Cairns, Townsville and Mackay regions. Specifically, this paper presents a discussion of global climate change, particularly with respect to identifying key implications for both Australia and the GBR. An in-depth explanation of the biology of coral bleaching and its consequences is explored, including changes in coral species, reef fish assemblages and reef productivity. The paper then describes the different socio-economic values associated with a functioning reef community and provides an assessment of tools used to value the market and non-market functions of coral reefs. Details of previous socio-economic valuation studies undertaken for coral reefs are discussed. Finally, the paper closes with suggested approaches to, and limitations on, the measurement of key socio-economic impacts resulting from climate change and consequent coral bleaching on the GBR.