Community Perspectives on

Research to Support Adaptation

to Climate Change
Panel Discussion
Presentation by:
ActionAid International Kenya
 Climate Change (1)
• Climate change is making weather less
predictable. In some cases the rains are less
uncertain and heavy storm rainfalls are more
likely;
• The unpredictability of rainfall is shown both by
observations such as large fluctuations in the
levels of some lakes in this region (e.g. Victoria,)
as well as by the experiences of long term urban
slum residents, who report much more frequent
storms producing floods since 1990.
 Climate Change (2)
• Climate change works in an indirect way to
aggravate urban flooding. Droughts and floods in
rural areas have left many rural people in such
difficulties that they have migrated to towns and
cities, often adding large new populations to the
existing slum communities (AAI Study).
• The migrants from the rural impacts further
increase the built-up areas and add to the urban
activities that increase the speed of flow of the
rainwater to rivers and thus the intensity of local
flooding.
 Some of the activities contributing
to climate change
• Deforestation
• Burning wood for fuel
• Human migration
• Burning fossil fuel
• Land management practices
• Modern agriculture (conventional
agricultural practices e.g. methane in rice
fields)
 SECTORAL EFFECTS OF CLIMATE
CHANGE, EXAMPLE OF EL NINO
Roads & Transport Infrastructure:
• Several bridges and about 100,000 km of both
rural and urban roads extensively destroyed;
• Aviation and shipping industries disrupted;
• Docking facilities at the port either sub-merged
or destroyed;
• Telecommunications and power supply channels
destroyed;
• Boost to hydro-electric power generation;
NB. Damage was estimated at USD 777 million
 SECTORAL EFFECTS OF CLIMATE
CHANGE,…(2)
Water
• Increased soil erosion and landslides in hilly
areas (N);
• Massive destruction of property (N);
• General surface and ground water pollution,
damage to storage dams including
sedimentation and siltation of water reservoirs
(N);
• Increased soil nutrients/moisture content (P)
• Water level increased in a number of water
reservoirs and hydro-electric dams (P);
 SECTORAL EFFECTS OF CLIMATE
CHANGE,…(3)
Health
• Contamination of water resources leading to
spread of infectious diseases;
• Overflow of sewages and open drains, stagnant
water ponds in surroundings favouring the
breeding of mosquitoes and other disease
causing pathogens.
NB. As many as 300,000 families were severely
affected as a result of rise in morbidity and
mortality rates. Total estimated cost was USD 56
million.
 SECTORAL EFFECTS OF CLIMATE
CHANGE,…(4)
Agriculture
• Livestock and crop diseases lowered agricultural output;
• Water logging and open drains affected farming and
livestock herding areas;
• Drowning of livestock;
• Favoured dry lands leading to improved herding zones
for livestock;
• Soil moisture content increased;
• Improved farming practices and water conservation
including tree planting;
NB. There was a general drop in total agricultural output
with estimated loss being USD 256 million.
 Ameliorating Climate Change in
Agriculture
• Concerns - modern agriculture has a lot to answer for in
terms of contributing to climate change.
• Associated with increased emissions of nitrous oxide and
methane, potent greenhouse gasses, fossil fuel energy
intensive and contributes to the loss of soil carbon to the
atmosphere: (soils are an important sink for atmospheric
CO2
• Sustainable agricultural practices helps counteract
climate change. Recognizes value of traditional
knowledge, farmers’ experience & innovation and of
farmer- led participatory agricultural research.
Pressing priorities for research to ensure
poor communities are able to adapt to
climate change
• Traditional/indigenous knowledge –communities’
skills in production and ways of identifying or
assessing an impending disaster/risk & how
they dealt with such problems (ref. flooding, pro-
longed drought, famine etc.);
• Desk research on existing best case scenarios
where climate change adaptation and disaster
risk management have been successfully linked
to ensure sustainable poverty reduction;
Pressing priorities for research to ensure
poor communities ….(2)
• Research into alternative livelihoods for the
pastoral communities;
• Research into technologies that are gender
friendly taking into account women’s priorities
and constraints;
• GMOs & potential contribution to climate
change;
• Ways of improving accuracy of data and
information (EWS) derived from the
Meteorological Depts and utilization of the same;
What researchers must do to ensure communities
are involved in, and benefit from research on
adaptation!
• Action research through use of participatory
tools such as:
– Participatory Vulnerability Assessment (PVAs),
– PRA & RMA tools (non-exhaustive)
• Embrace a bottom-up approach and work with
the existing grass-root structures (depending on
the nature of the problem);
• involve and empower particularly the weakest &
most vulnerable members of the community
(e.g. women) to participate;
• Come up with resolutions that promote use and
application of locally available resources