Household Adaptation Strategies Research Articles

Defending against environmental threats: Unveiling household adaptation strategies and population heterogeneity

Humanity faces a variety of risks from pollution and environmental degradation. Societal advancement has equipped the public with numerous self-protection measures to mitigate these threats. However, the ways in which individuals deploy and balance self-defence mechanisms within this complex risk landscape and the resulting consequences remain largely unexplored. Drawing on a detailed survey of households’ self-defence practices, this study rigorously analyses the heterogeneity and driving factors behind household-level self-defence strategies. Through exploratory latent class modelling, we identified four distinct defence patterns: inaction, water-sensitive, air-sensitive, and multifaceted. These patterns reveal varied defence capabilities among the population. By integrating frameworks from economics and social psychology, significant disparities were found in the driving factors behind these patterns. Practices aimed at combating air pollution are primarily driven by the actual severity of pollution and perceived coping capabilities, whereas measures to enhance water quality are influenced more by perceived threats. This disparity arises from variations in information availability and health awareness. The study also highlights a misalignment between the distribution of defence capabilities and the levels of pollution. Given that income restricts self-defence options, this mismatch indicates that economically disadvantaged groups are disproportionately affected by severe health inequalities.

Determining factors and barriers to the uptake of climate change adaptation strategies of agriculture and aquaculture farm households in Myanmar

PurposeClimate change is an undeniable reality that threatens people’s livelihoods. Flooding and saltwater intrusion, along with the rising sea levels, are affecting agricultural and aquaculture livelihoods in Myanmar’s coastal areas. Although climate change adaptation is gaining popularity as a resilience strategy to cope with the negative effects of climate change, both agriculture- and aquaculture-farmers are more often deterred from implementing climate change adaptation strategies due to practical availability and socioeconomic barriers to adaptation. This study aims to evaluate the barriers and factors that influence farm household’ choice of climate change adaptation measures.Design/methodology/approachThis study was conducted with 599 farm households (484 rice-farmers and 115 fish farmers) based in the coastal areas of Myanmar during 2021–2022 to explore the farmer’s choice of climate change adaptation measures and the determining factors. The multinomial logit regression (MLR) model was used to examine the factors influencing the farmers’ choice of climate change adaptation strategies.FindingsThe study found out that farm households use a variety of adaptation methods at the farm level, with building embankment strategy (23.4%) in agriculture and net-fencing measure (33.9%) in fish farming being the most popular adaptation strategies. Farmers’ decisions to adopt climate change adaptation strategies are influenced by factors such as distance to market, education level of the household head, remittance income and the availability of early warning information, among others. The study also discovered that COVID-19 has had an impact on the employment opportunities of household members and the income from farming as well had a consequential effect on the adoption of climate change adaptation measures. Furthermore, lack of credit (42.4%), labor shortage (52.8%), pest and disease infestation (58.9%), high input costs (81%) and lower agricultural product prices (73%) were identified as major barriers to the adoption of climate change adaptation measures by both agriculture and aquaculture farm households.Originality/valueThis study demonstrates that the COVID-19 pandemic and farm-level barriers are the major factors influencing farm households’ choice of climate change adaptation measures, and that removing practical farm-level barriers and encouraging the adoption of adaptation techniques as potential COVID-19 recovery actions are required. This study also highlighted that the adaptive capacity of agriculture and aquaculture farm households should be strengthened through formal and informal training programs, awareness raising, the exchange of early warning information and the development of proper credit scheme programs.

Rural households' livelihood adaptation strategies in the face of changing climate: A case study from Pakistan

Rural and agricultural communities' adaptation to climate change has gained significant attention owing to many countries' vulnerability to climate change risks. A similar trend has been witnessed in South Asia, a highly climate-vulnerable region, where research has grown dramatically considering the agriculture sector's vulnerability to climate-induced disasters. However, little attention has been paid to the adaptation of the livelihoods of rural households. This research, therefore, takes the case of Pakistan to explore livelihood adaptation strategies of rural households to climate change and investigate the factors that expedite or halt the adoption of livelihood diversification strategies. A multistage sampling design is used in this research, where 480 rural households from the Punjab province of Pakistan were selected and interviewed using stratified and random sampling approaches. A multivariate probit (MVP) regression model is employed to analyze the factors affecting households' adoption of livelihood adaptation strategies. The results show that besides adaptation of agronomic operations (agricultural adaptation strategies), rural households in the study area employed a wide range of strategies to adapt their livelihoods to climate change. These strategies include poultry and livestock farming, value addition of farm produce, trading of animals and farm commodities, small businesses (shops, etc.), daily wage labor, horticultural crop farming, and non-farming jobs. The estimates of the MVP model revealed that respondents' education, household size, income, access to a credit facility, access to farm advisory services, and access to climate forecasts have significantly influenced the choice of livelihood adaptation strategies. Based on these findings, this research recommends that the authorities should make efforts to improve farmers' understanding of the adaptation of climate change risks and educate them to adopt multiple livelihood options to improve the resilience of their livelihoods to climate-induced risks. This research has important policy implications for other countries with similar socio-economic features.

Adaptive pastoralists—Insights into local and regional patterns in livelihood adaptation choices among pastoralists in Kenya

Pastoralist adaptation strategies have to address multiple, overlapping, and often inter-related processes of socio-ecological change. The present study addresses the need for inter-regional comparative studies that account for different geographic, climate, and socio-economic contexts in order to understand how pastoralists adapt to changes in livelihood conditions. The paper uses data from a unique survey study of pastoralist households in four neighbouring counties in dryland Kenya. Taking our point of departure from an empirically based classification of the livelihood strategies available to pastoralists in the Horn of Africa, the survey offers novel insights into adaptation and fodder management strategies of pastoralist individuals and households. The results show that the use of migration as a strategy is more dependent on the ability to migrate than climate conditions. This is the case in localities where a substantial part of the land is subdivided, the population density is high, and where opportunities for migration are subsequently restricted. Diversification of livelihoods as a strategy is largely defined by opportunity. Intensification through active fodder management is mainly common in areas where there has been a proliferation of managed enclosures. Climate change will test the adaptive capacity of pastoralists in the studied region, and diversification and intensification strategies of both herd composition and livelihoods can be seen as strategies for increased climate resilience.

Climate Change Perceptions, Impacts and Adaptation Strategies of Farm Households in Potohar Region of Punjab, Pakistan

Climate Change Perceptions, Impacts and Adaptation Strategies of Farm Households in Potohar Region of Punjab, Pakistan

Livelihood Resilience Capacity and Adaptation Strategies of Rural Farm Households to Climate Variability-Induced Shocks in Damot Woyde District, Southern Ethiopia

Livelihood Resilience Capacity and Adaptation Strategies of Rural Farm Households to Climate Variability-Induced Shocks in Damot Woyde District, Southern Ethiopia

Adaptation Strategies of Chili Farmer Households in Dealing with Covid-19

This study aims to determine the adaptation strategies of chili farmers' households in dealing with the impact of Covid-19 and the reasons for choosing this strategy in East Lombok Regency. The method used in this research is descriptive method. The unit of analysis in this study is chili farmer households in East Lombok Regency. The data in this study was obtained using in-depth interviews and documentation techniques. The data analysis used in this study consisted of several stages, which are data tabulation, data presentation and conclusion drawing. The data obtained in this study were processed using a descriptive data analysis technique. The results of this study indicate that the adaptation strategies carried out by chili famers’ households in dealing with the impact of Covid-19 in East Lombok Regency, are active strategies, passive strategies and network strategies. In making decisions, farmers in this study have their own reasons for choosing each strategy.

Effect of land tenure security on the adaptation strategies of farm households to climate change in Togo

Effect of land tenure security on the adaptation strategies of farm households to climate change in Togo

Large-scale hydropower impacts and adaptation strategies on rural communities in the Amazonian floodplain of the Madeira River

Understanding social and environmental impacts and household adaptation strategies in the face of expansions in energy infrastructure projects is essential to inform mitigation and interventions programs that promote well-being. Here we conducted surveys in seven communities distributed across varying degrees of proximity to a hydropower dam complex in the Brazilian Amazon along about 250 km of the floodplain of the Madeira River. Based on interviews with 154 fishers from these communities, we examine how fishers perceived changes in fisheries yields, changes in the composition of fish species, and whether and how adaptation strategies had evolved 8–9 years after the dams' construction. Most respondents (91%) indicated declines in yields after the dams for both upstream and downstream zones. Multivariate analyses revealed statistically significant differences in the composition of species yields in pre-and post-dam periods for all communities and in both upstream and downstream zones (p < 0.001). The composition of yields diversified after the dams, with an apparent decline in yields of species of greatest market value (e.g., catfishes Brachyplatystoma spp., Pseudoplatystoma spp., and jatuarana Brycon spp.), and increases in yields of a set of other smaller bodied and faster growing species (e.g., ‘branquinhas’ Psectrogaster spp., Potamohinna spp., and sardines Triportheus spp.). Both downstream and upstream fishers indicated that fishing profits decreased since the dams' construction (76.8% and 67.9%, respectively). To cope with these changes, the majority of both upstream and downstream fishers (>70%) stated they have had to devote more time to fishing after the dams were built. The time fishers spend traveling to fishing locations also increased for upstream communities (77.1%), but not for downstream communities. Thirty-four percent of the interviewees changed the gear they use to fish after the dams construction, with twice as many mentioning uses of non-selective gear, such as gillnets, and declining use of traditional fishing gears such as castnets and a trap (“covi”). Fish consumption overall decreased: fish was consumed ‘everyday’ before the dams, but 1–2 times per week or rarely after the dams were built. Although the species that declined were those of high economic value, 53% of fishers stated fish prices have increased overall after the dams. These results shed light on the potential challenges faced by fishers and which adaptation strategies they have evolved to maintain livelihoods since the construction of the dams.

Household vulnerability and adaptive capacity on impacts of climate change and adaptability solution in Soroti District, Uganda

Abstract. Ogallo EA, Wambua BN, Mukhovi MS. 2022. Household vulnerability and adaptive capacity on impacts of climate change and adaptability solution in Soroti District, Uganda. Intl J Trop Drylands 6: 63-76. This study aimed to assess the vulnerabilities, impacts, and adaptation strategies of households in the Soroti District, Uganda. The data from household surveys, interviews with key informants, and focused group discussions were used to obtain data on climate change and variability impacts, adaptation strategies, and vulnerability. The rainfall and temperature data from Soroti meteorological station was also used to determine climate variability and change. The Microsoft Excel 2007 and Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) 16 program entered all the quantitative data. The results were then represented in tables, graphs, and charts. The temperature and rainfall analysis show that the area's climate has recently changed. These scenarios were confirmed by people's perception, along with increased drought, floods, and incidences of diseases and pests. That could have serious implications for agriculture, the major source of livelihood within the district. For instance, the delay of the 2013 March-April-May (MAM) rainfall onset and extended dry spell between the seasons led to subsequent poor harvests and serious crop failure. Other major impacts of climate change and variability on livelihoods include low fish catches, decreased water availability, lack of animal feeds, and decline in soil fertility. Although the entire district is vulnerable to the impact of climate change and variability, vulnerability is heightened for women, children, the poor, and the less educated. However, the residents have adopted certain coping and adaptation strategies to deal with the climate change impacts. The current coping strategies include selling household assets, wage labor, petty trading, and reducing consumption. Adaptation strategies include shifting planting dates, off-farm jobs, planting different crops, diversifying crops, and diversifying from farm to non–farm activities. However, these strategies are insufficient due to overarching stressors such as over-dependence on rainfed agriculture, poverty, and lack of information and technology. Moreover, there is an urgent need to alleviate poverty and unemployment within the district by creating employment opportunities for the locals and enhancing the micro-financing efficiency to improve resilience and adaptation to climate change and variability. There is also a need for robust contingency planning and the relevant institutions' involvement in early warning. Local knowledge integration in climate policies also could enhance resilience and improve adaptation.

Coping with and adapting to urban floods: experiences of flood community-dwelling households in Aboabo, Ghana

ABSTRACT Many Ghanaian cities are increasingly becoming hotspots for floods with rising household vulnerabilities. However, research to understand the coping mechanisms of these households remains limited. This paper examines flood coping and adaptation strategies of flood community-dwelling households (n = 45) using a qualitative approach. Data gathering involved in-depth interviews using an interview guide. Data were analysed using the thematic analytical framework. The study revealed that households employed different coping and adaptation strategies to reduce the impact of floods and reduce their vulnerabilities to floods. While the coping strategies provided temporary relief, the over-reliance on structural methods of adaptation did not protect the participants well enough against the shocks of subsequent floods. A balanced use of structural and non-structural flood control mechanisms for effective adaptation is required.

The influence of socioeconomic factors on individual and household adaptation strategies to climate change risks in Port Harcourt, Nigeria

ABSTRACT Increasing temperatures and sea levels, changing precipitation patterns and more extreme weather pose severe threats for vulnerable communities, ecosystems, and livelihoods in cities of developing countries. Realizing these threats has heightened scholarly inquiry on future risk trends of climate change and adaptation strategies in the countries of Global South and North. However, most studies are based on data of North America, Europe, and Asia. There is minimal documentation of adaptation strategies to mitigate the risk of extreme weather in cities of Sub-Saharan Africa. Hence, this study addresses this need by examining the factors influencing individual and household adaptation strategies to climate risk in Port Harcourt Metropolis, Nigeria. Data was collected from 384 randomly selected household heads in different residential densities of the city. Household socioeconomic and demographic attributes, awareness of climate change and factors influencing their adaptation strategies to climate risk were assessed using descriptive and inferential statistics. The study showed that adaptation strategies adopted were reactive rather than anticipatory and varied in magnitude according to the different residential densities. Recommendations emanating from the study include integrating and implementing climate change adaptation policies and embarking on a rigorous awareness campaign to ease households’ vulnerability and augment their climate change absorptive, adaptive, and transformative abilities in the city.

FACTORS INFLUENCING USE OF CONTRACEPTIVES AMONG SEXUALLY ACTIVE ADOLESCENTS IN INFORMAL SETTLEMENTS IN NAIROBI. A CRITICAL LITERATURE REVIEW

Purpose: Although knowledge on climate variability is vital in addressing livelihood vulnerability to climate shocks, studies that link climate variability to rural livelihood responses and changes are few. The general objective of the study was to understand perception of climate variability and livelihood response strategies among the communities in the northern part of Kenya.&#x0D; Methodology: The paper used a desk study review methodology where relevant empirical literature was reviewed to identify main themes and to extract knowledge gaps.&#x0D; Findings: There is need for concerted efforts to build not only on adopted household adaptation strategies but also help them reduce current vulnerability as well as build future resilience.&#x0D; Unique Contribution to Theory and Practice: There is need to engage communities to understand their levels of vulnerability and design their own sustainable adaptation action plans. This can be done through adoption of the Community Managed Disaster Risk Reduction (CMDRR) model which among other measures involve capacity building of community members and development partners to participate in and help local people adapt to their livelihood strategies accordingly.&#x0D; Keywords: Climate change impacts, adaptation, livelihood adaptation strategies, climate variability, household

CLIMATE VARIABILITY AND RESPONSE STRATEGIES AMONG COMMUNITIES IN THE NORTHERN PARTS OF KENYA. A CRITICAL LITERATURE REVIEW

Purpose: Although knowledge on climate variability is vital in addressing livelihood vulnerability to climate shocks, studies that link climate variability to rural livelihood responses and changes are few. The general objective of the study was to understand perception of climate variability and livelihood response strategies among the communities in the northern part of Kenya.&#x0D; Methodology: The paper used a desk study review methodology where relevant empirical literature was reviewed to identify main themes and to extract knowledge gaps.&#x0D; Findings: There is need for concerted efforts to build not only on adopted household adaptation strategies but also help them reduce current vulnerability as well as build future resilience.&#x0D; Unique Contribution to Theory and Practice: There is need to engage communities to understand their levels of vulnerability and design their own sustainable adaptation action plans. This can be done through adoption of the Community Managed Disaster Risk Reduction (CMDRR) model which among other measures involve capacity building of community members and development partners to participate in and help local people adapt to their livelihood strategies accordingly.&#x0D; Keywords: Climate change impacts, adaptation, livelihood adaptation strategies, climate variability, household

Sub-Saharan Africa Freshwater Fisheries under Climate Change: A Review of Impacts, Adaptation, and Mitigation Measures

Sub-Saharan Africa’s freshwater fisheries contribute significantly to the livelihoods and food security of millions of people within the region. However, freshwater fisheries are experiencing multiple anthropogenic stressors such as overfishing, illegal fishing, pollution, and climate change. There is a substantial body of literature on the effects of climate change on freshwater fisheries in Sub-Saharan Africa. This study reviews the existing literature and highlights the effects of climate change on freshwater fisheries, the adaptation strategies of fishery-dependent households in response to the effects, and fisheries’ management and mitigation efforts in the face of climate change. The general effects of climate change on freshwater environments include warming water temperatures, increased stratification, modified hydrological processes, and increased pollutants. These effects adversely affect the physiological processes of fish and the overall wellbeing of fishery-dependent people. To cope with the effects of fluctuating fishery resources due to climate change, fishery-dependent people have adopted several adaptation strategies including livelihood diversification, changing their fishing gear, increasing their fishing efforts, and targeting new species. Several management attempts have been made to enhance the sustainability of fishery resources, from local to regional levels. This study recommends the participation of the resource users in the formulation of policies aimed at promoting climate change adaptation and the resilience of freshwater fisheries for sustainable development.

Climate Change and Farmers' Adaptation Strategies: The Case of Rice Producers in Nghe An Province, Vietnam

This research aimed at assessing climate trends and adaptation strategies to the impacts of climate change on rice producers in Nghe An province. For the first objective, multiple graphs, the Mann–Kendall test, and Sen’s Slope test were employed to analyze the secondary data of rainfall, temperature, and rice yield in Nghe An from 1995 to 2019. The results showed that the rice productivity of Nghe An increased over the 25-year period, annual rainfall decreased in the winter-spring season, and annual temperature increased in the summer-autumn season. For the second objective, primary data were collected by conducting household surveys of 396 households in Nghe An province. Sixty-two percent of farmers did not adopt any adaptive strategies, while other strategies included changing the planting schedule, growing stress-tolerant crops, improving irrigation practices, and utilizing fertilizer and other good practices. Multivariate probit regression (MVP) was employed to analyze the factors affecting the adaptation strategies of households in the study area. The results of MVP showed that age, education, gender, household size, farm size, cooperative, farmer organization, extension services, access to credit, access to irrigation, rainfall, and living in Quynh Luu or Dien Chau significantly affected the farmers’ choice. The results implied that farmers can obtain advanced technology, social learning, and community practices by participating in farmer organizations and cooperatives. In specified area, local authorities should invest in improving irrigation systems, practicing land consolidation, practicing special farming techniques, and providing timely weather forecasts for enhancing farmers’ resilience.

Predicting Change in Adaptation Strategies of Households to Geological Hazards in the Longmenshan Area, China Using Machine Learning and GIS

Hydrological changes combined with earthquakes easily trigger secondary disasters, including geological hazards. The secondary hazard of precipitation is the main disaster type in the Longmenshan Area (China). The 2008 Wenchuan earthquake caused more than 60,000 landslides, severely affecting rural households. This study aimed to answer two questions: (1) How did households adapt to the landslide-prone post-earthquake environment? (2) How will the households’ adaptation strategies change if landslide frequency changes? Different post-disaster adaptation strategies of households in Longmenshan Town, Sichuan, China were identified through a questionnaire survey and then clustered into groups based on similarity using a K-means algorithm. Afterward, a gradient boosting decision tree (GBDT) was used to predict change in adaptation strategies if there was a change in the frequency of landslides. The results show that there are three types of landslide adaptation strategies in the study area: (1) autonomous adaptation; (2) policy-dependent adaptation; and (3) hybrid adaptation, which is a mixture of the first two types. If the frequency of landslides is increased, then around 5% of households previously under the autonomous adaptation type would be converted to policy-dependent and hybrid adaptation types. If the frequency of landslides is reduced, then around 5% of households with policy-dependent adaptation strategies would be converted to the autonomous adaptation type. This exploratory study provides a glimpse of how machine learning can be utilized to predict how adaptation strategies would be modified if hazard frequency changed. A follow-up long-term study in Longmenshan Town is needed to confirm whether the predictions are indeed correct.

Drought perception and field-level adaptation strategies of farming households in drought-prone areas of Afghanistan

Droughts affect more people than any other natural hazard and Afghanistan is the hotbed of droughts with millions of lives affected annually. Therefore, this research was carried out to assess farmers' perceptions of climate change and droughts, drought severity, impact of droughts on crop productivity, and farmers' adaptation strategies to buffer the effect of drought using primary data collected through farmer survey, and climate change analysis using the secondary data. Finally, farmers' perceptions of climate and drought were compared with meteorological data using data from both primary and secondary sources. The primary data were gathered using a pretested and structured questionnaire from 120 sampled farmers in the rainfed and irrigated areas of Bamyan Province of Afghanistan. The secondary data regarding climatic variables were used for climate change analysis. The study findings revealed farmers’ perceptions of an increase in average temperature and a decline in average precipitation during 1998–2017, which was corroborated by climate change analysis using actual meteorological data. The perceptual drought severity also matched closely with climate data, though the rainfed area experienced a significantly higher drought frequency and severity compared with the irrigated area. The findings disclosed a significantly lower drought-induced crop productivity in both areas, though the decline was substantially higher in the rainfed area. The drought adaptation strategies included various on-farm and off-farm strategies, which differed significantly in the rainfed and irrigated areas. The on-farm adaptations encompassed early sowing, crop diversification, sowing of drought-tolerant varieties, and leaving fallow land. The off-farm strategies included handicrafts, wage labor, migration, and income diversification. The differences found in adaptation strategies across physical environments highlight the necessity of localized adaption strategies. This study provides evidence-based policy inputs for drought mitigation management in Afghanistan.

Choice of Adaptation Strategies of Agricultural Households to Climate Shocks in Togo

Choice of Adaptation Strategies of Agricultural Households to Climate Shocks in Togo

How households adapt to heat wave for livable habitat? A case of medium-sized city in Bangladesh

Heatwave is now becoming an alarming climate-induced shock in Bangladesh. Several investigations mainly focus on the impacts of heatwave and mitigation strategies on megacity and urban heat islands. However, understanding adaptation strategies for livable habitat to the heatwave in a medium-sized city like Rajshahi, located north-western region of Bangladesh, are not well articulated. Therefore, how city dwellers can be adapted to the heatwave in a medium-sized city is crucial to academia, GO's, and NGO's policymakers. The main objective of this paper is to investigate the household adaptation strategies for livable habitat to the heatwave in Rajshahi city corporation (RCC) areas where the overall livelihood of the city dwellers has been severely affected due to heatwave. The findings are based on empirical data collected through field observation, household surveys, and key informant interviews (KII) with a semi-structured questionnaire in RCC. A pre-tested questionnaire was developed to collect primary data from 300 respondents in Rajshahi. Sample sizes were chosen by using the purposive sampling technique. The study found three types of adaptation strategies: 1) structural: designed cooling facilities, uses of air conditioner and cooler; 2) non-structural: drinking plenty of water, staying indoors, taking a bath, sitting beside water bodies; and (3) community innovations based: sitting under big tree and riverside, keeping water reservoir in the room, opening multiple windows, roof and courtyard gardening, wall painting by white color. The community innovation-based adaptation strategies have shown high effectiveness among all types of adaptation strategies for making livable habitats for the heatwave at the household level. Therefore, it can be a significant component of adopting a policy to address the adverse impacts of the heatwave in the medium-sized city of Bangladesh besides structural and non-structural adaptation strategies.