scholarly journals Household Vulnerability to Climate Change and Identification of Target Beneficiaries to Implement Household-Specific Adaptation Strategies: A Quantitative Assessment

Author(s):  
Swamikannu Nedumaran ◽  
◽  
Ravi Nandi ◽  
Jyosthnaa Padmanabhan ◽  
Srigiri Srinivasa Reddy ◽  
...  

This study investigated the climate change vulnerability of 6,214 households in the drought-prone districts of Telangana state in India. Principal component analysis (PCA) and cluster analysis were used to group farm households based on their level of vulnerability to climate change and to suggest a portfolio of adaptation strategies. The PCA revealed the presence of five components from 14 key variables: (1) access to irrigation; (2) credit access, landholding, and income from agriculture; (3) household size and income sources; (4) access to information and climate-smart adaptation practices; and (5) social capital. The first five components (eigenvalue ≥ 1) collectively accounted for 60.42 percent of the total variance. Three clusters emerged after the component scores were analyzed using K-means clustering: extremely vulnerable, moderately vulnerable, and resilient households. The results of the cluster analysis revealed that 79 percent of the households were extremely vulnerable, 11.20 percent were moderately vulnerable, and 9.65 percent were resilient. Moreover, 96 percent of marginal farmers and 94 percent of smallholder farmers were extremely vulnerable, while 19 percent of large farmers and 16 percent of medium farmers were moderately vulnerable. Interestingly, nearly 26 percent in the extremely vulnerable category and 19 percent in the moderately vulnerable category were large farmers, which contradicts previous assumptions. The findings of this study can guide development practitioners, policymakers, and donors in designing evidence-based programs focusing on households vulnerable to climate change.

Climate ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (12) ◽  
pp. 167
Author(s):  
Abu Reza Md. Towfiqul Islam ◽  
Md. Hasanuzzaman ◽  
Mahmud Jaman ◽  
Edris Alam ◽  
Javed Mallick ◽  
...  

The implementation of sustainable adaptation strategies (SASs) is crucial to mitigate climate change impact as well as reduce the loss of natural disasters and increase agricultural crop production. However, current policies and programs based on agricultural incentives are mostly inadequate to increase SASs practices at the farm level. Hence, a deeper understanding of farmers’ ‘perceived typologies to the environmental issue and climate change’ is necessary for implementing SASs to enhance farmers’ ability to adapt at the farm level. This research intends to demarcate farmers in various categories, according to their perceptions on environmental and climate change issues in the northern part of Bangladesh. Principal component analysis (PCA) and cluster analysis (CA) were employed to analyze the survey data collected from 501 households in the study area. Farmers were clustered into three types, ‘Ecocentric’, ‘Worried’, and ‘Anthropocentric’, based on their perceived knowledge regarding environmental issues and climate change, which guides the adoption of SASs. The ‘Worried’ cluster showed a high sense of perceived risk of climate change and a significant positive association with the adoption of SASs. By contrast, ‘Ecocentric’ and ‘Anthropocentric’ groups showed a low sense of awareness of climate change and a significant negative association with the adoption of SASs. The findings can assist policymakers in promoting the adoption of SASs based on the farmers’ cluster and thus enhance their resilience.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (17) ◽  
pp. 9622 ◽  
Author(s):  
Helen Teshome ◽  
Kindie Tesfaye ◽  
Nigussie Dechassa ◽  
Tamado Tana ◽  
Matthew Huber

Climate change and variability is affecting maize (Zea mays L.) production in eastern Ethiopia but how farmers perceive the challenge and respond to it is not well documented. A study was conducted to analyze smallholder maize farmers’ perception of climate change/variability and identify their adaptation approaches and barriers for adaptation in the eastern highlands of Ethiopia. Meteorological data were assessed to provide evidence of the perceived change. A survey was conducted in six major maize-producing kebeles with a total of 364 respondents. A multi-stage sampling method was employed for selecting the sample units for the study. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and a multinomial logit model. The results indicated that 78% of the sampled smallholder maize farmers perceived increasing temperatures while 83% perceived decreasing amounts of rainfall. About 75% of the farmers indicated that they became aware of climate change and variability from their own experience and perceived deforestation as the main cause. The farmers perceived that drought, diseases and pests, dwindling soil fertility, and declining crop yields were the major impacts of climate change that affected maize production. The farmers’ major adaptation practices include adjusting planting dates, using improved maize varieties, intercropping, recommended mineral fertilizers, supplementary irrigation, and soil and water conservation measures. Econometric analysis revealed that low educational level, shortage of land, large family sizes, age, lack of access to irrigation water, lack of access to credit, and lack of access to extension services were the most important barriers to climate change adaptation in the area. It is concluded that farmers cultivating maize in the study area have perceived climate change and use certain adaptation strategies to counter its negative impacts on maize production. This implies that policies should be geared towards strengthening farmers’ efforts to adapt to climate change and alleviate the existing barriers in promoting adaptation strategies for enhancing the productivity of maize.


2010 ◽  
Vol 54 (2) ◽  
pp. 159-183
Author(s):  
Kola Odeku ◽  
Edson Meyer

AbstractThis article examines how the South African government, realizing the country's vulnerability to climate change, deemed it necessary to strengthen adaptation and mitigation measures and put in place legal and institutional frameworks to ensure implementation and compliance. Government must take responsibility for industry's inaction by implementing policies on climate change and, more importantly, through a visible change in government policy to hold industry accountable. The stringent policies and strategies being put in place are reducing vulnerability and also enhancing a broad spectrum of capacity in responding to environmental, climatic, resource and economic perturbations. The article further reviews state of the art methods and tools available to strengthen mitigation and adaptation strategies and measures in the areas of the existing frameworks regarding climate change. It also considers various measures by Eskom in particular, and strategies embarked upon by South Africa's national and local governments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.


2006 ◽  
Vol 131 (6) ◽  
pp. 770-779 ◽  
Author(s):  
Santiago Pereira-Lorenzo ◽  
María Belén Díaz-Hernández ◽  
Ana María Ramos-Cabrer

Morphological characters (six traits) and isozymes (four systems, five loci) were used to discriminate between Spanish chestnut cultivars (Castanea sativa Mill.) from the Iberian Peninsula. A total of 701 accessions (representing 168 local cultivars) were analyzed from collections made between 1989 and 2003 in the main chestnut growing areas: 31 were from Andalucía (12 cultivars), 293 from Asturias (65 cultivars), 25 from Castilla-León (nine cultivars), four from Extremadura (two cultivars) and 348 from Galicia (80 cultivars). Data were synthesized using multivariate analysis, principal component analysis, and cluster analysis. A total of 152 Spanish cultivars were verified: 58 cultivars of major importance and 94 of minor importance, of which 18 had high intracultivar variation. Thirty-seven cultivars were clustered into 14 synonymous groups. Six of these were from Galicia, one from Castilla-León (El Bierzo), four from Asturias, one from Asturias and Castilla-León (El Bierzo), and two from Asturias, Castilla-León (El Bierzo), and Galicia. The chestnut cultivars from Galicia and Asturias were undifferentiated in genetic terms, indicating that they are not genetically isolated. Overall, chestnut cultivars from southern Spain showed the least variation. Many (58%) of Spanish cultivars produced more than 100 nuts/kg; removing this low market-value character will be a high priority. The data obtained will be of use in chestnut breeding programs in Spain and elsewhere.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document