Abstract
This study analyses the environmental, socio-economic and institutional factors that influence community-based adaptation strategies in 16 municipalities in the rural Andes of Colombia. The study focuses specifically on the factors that influence whether communities decide to take measures to manage their water and micro-watersheds in response to water scarcity caused by climate variability and land-use changes. The research uses quantitative and qualitative methods incorporating data from surveys to 104 water user associations, precipitation and land-use data, municipal socio-economic information, and semistructured interviews with key informants. The results reveal 1) the links between environmental change and the type of adaptation that communities implement, and 2) how, in face of water scarcity changes, external funding facilitates adaptation. The findings of this study contributes to the common-pool resource and adaptation literatures by highlighting the important role that external actors may have in shaping collective action to adapt to environmental change.
Highlights
Water scarcity is a critical challenge to socio-ecological systems
In rural areas of the Fúquene watershed, located in the eastern Andes of Colombia, Water User Associations (WUAs) are adapting to increasing water scarcity due to land cover changes and rainfall variability (Murtinho et al 2013a)
Similar to previous studies of collective action for water management (Dayton-Johnson 2000; Fujiie et al 2005), this study finds that WUAs’ years of experience managing the resource and dealing with water problems influence the likelihood of adaptation
Summary
Water scarcity is a critical challenge to socio-ecological systems. In the Andes, global climate model predictions of changes in total rainfall remain highly uncertain. Climate models in the Andes predict an increase in rainfall variability and, as a consequence, an increase in the frequency and duration of periods with water scarcity (Vera et al 2006; Boulanger et al 2007; Buytaert et al 2009). In anticipation of these changes, governments and NGOs are working with communities, local management systems, and public utilities to promote adaptation strategies. We need to better understand the key factors that trigger adaptation (Engle 2011; Lemos et al 2013)
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