Livelihood Adaptation To Climate Variability And Change In Drought Prone Areas Of Bangladesh

The impacts of increasing climatic variability and change are global concerns but in Bangladesh, where large numbers of people are chronically exposed and vulnerable to a range of natural hazards, they are particularly critical. This resource book, Climate variability and change: adaptation to drought in Bangladesh, has been tested and prepared as a reference and guide for further training and capacity building of agricultural extension workers and development professionals to deal with climate change impacts and adaptation, using the example of drought-prone areas of Bangladesh. It also presents suggestions for a three-day training course that would be readily adaptable for any areas of Bangladesh affected by climate-related risks. The information presented on climate change adaptation would enable participants to prepare, demonstrate and implement location-specific adaptation practices and, thus, to improve the adaptive capacity of rural livelihoods to climate change in agriculture and allied sectors.

Bangladesh, due to its geo-physical position and socio-economic context, is highly prone to regular natural hazards and the impacts of climate change. In 2005, the FAO initiated a project designed to improve the adaptive capacities of rural populations and their resilience to drought and other climate change impacts. This report provides a summary of the working approach developed and tested to promote community-based adaptation within agriculture. It presents lessons learned from the implementation process as well as the details of good practice options for drought risk management in the context of climate change.

The book outlines the climate change adaptation (CCA) actions in Bangladesh drawing examples and lessons from different projects and programs in the country. The content is based on a selection of available documents, a consultative workshop with the academicians from different universities undertaking higher education on disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation, and the editors’ own knowledge and experience in the field. The book has four parts. Part I gives the details of climate change impacts, providing the scenarios, negotiations, and specific impacts on sea-level rise and the health sectors. Part II focuses on climate change strategy and action plans. Part III covers socio-economic impacts in terms of economic and environmental costs. Part IV focuses on adaptive actions for agriculture, livelihoods, and integrated approaches in agriculture and fisheries. Part V deals with climate-change governance issues. The primary target groups for this book are students and researchers in the fields of environment, disaster risk reduction, and climate change studies. The book will provide them with a good idea of the current trend of research in the field and will furnish basic knowledge on this important topic in Bangladesh. Another target group comprises practitioners and policy makers, who will be able to apply collective knowledge to policy and decision making.

The impacts of climate variability and change are global concerns but in Bangladesh they are particularly critical. FAO and the Asian Disaster Preparedness Centre are guiding a project to assess livelihood adaptation to climate variability and change in the drought-prone areas of Northwest Bangladesh. It covers: the characterisation of livelihood systems; profiling of vulnerable groups; assessment of past and current climate impacts; and understanding of local perceptions of climate impacts, local coping capacities and existing adaptation strategies. It also is developing a good practice adaptation option menu, evaluating and field testing locally selected options, and introducing long-lead climate forecasting, capacity building and training of Department of Agricultural Extension staff and community representatives. This report summarises the project methodology and discusses interim findings and recommendations.

The aim of this book is to provide information to scientists and local government to help them better understand the particularities of the local climate. Climate change is one of the biggest challenges to society. It can lead to serious impacts on production, life and environment on a global scale. Higher temperatures and sea level rise will cause flooding and water salinity problems which bring about negative effects on agriculture and high risks to industry and socio-economic systems in the future. Climate change leads to many changes in global development and security, especially energy, water, food, society, job, diplomacy, culture, economy and trade. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) defines climate change as: “Any change in climate over time, whether due to natural variability or as a result of human activity.” Global climate change has emerged as a key issue in both political and economic arenas. It is an increasingly questioned phenomenon, and progressive national governments around the world have started taking action to respond to these environmental concerns.

This volume aims to develop a framework for disaster and climate risk resilient livelihood system in Bangladesh using a policy oriented approach. It highlights the possible impacts of climate change on groundwater based irrigation in the country. Climate change is one of biggest challenges to society. It can lead to serious impacts on production, life and environment on a global scale. Higher temperatures and sea level rise will cause flooding and water salinity problems which will bring about negative effects on agriculture and high risks to industry and socio-economic systems in the future. Climate change will lead to many changes in global development and security especially energy, water, food, society, job, diplomacy, culture, economy and trade. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) defines climate change as: “Any change in climate over time, whether due to natural variability or as a result of human activity.” Global climate change has emerged as a key issue in both political and economic arenas. It is an increasingly questioned phenomenon, and progressive national governments around the world have started taking action to respond to these environmental concerns.

This paper reports on findings from 30 focus group discussions and 30 key informant interviews conducted in 12 districts of Bangladesh in May 2012. The discussions and interviews draw attention to perceptions of climate change and how climate-related trends influence people’s lives, both directly and indirectly. The findings also identify how people adapt to and cope with these changes. This paper aims to improve our understanding of local people’s perceptions of these changes, explore the ways they are affected by them, and how well they are adapting to them. In order for policymakers to plan responses to climate change in Bangladesh, it is essential to understand how people understand and cope with these trends.

Arguably among the regions of the world most vulnerable to climate change, Asia has different mechanisms for Climate Change Adaptation (CCA) and Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) activities. This title provides 19 case studies, from 13 countries and regions in Asia, that highlight different aspects of CCA-DRR entry points.