A Participatory Approach: Climate Change Perceptions and Adaptation Strategies of Small-holder Farmers in Bangladesh

Abstract

One of the global challenges to sustainability in this age of climate change is how to sustain the growing population by providing services to increase food production from farmland. The purpose of this study was to investigate farmers' perceptions of agriculture adaptation strategies, acceptance of tuber crops as adoption in adverse climatic conditions and the constraints on them in relation to climate change. Finding from the study research will bring advantages for small-holder farmers with the community-based approach (PRA method) which may develop action plan, perception about the climate change in the case of 150 Upazila in 60 districts of Bangladesh. It is also demonstrated the farmers insights of climate change and agriculture adaptation tactics and their limitations on them in relation to climate change. Most of the participants didn't read or perceive {literacy rate in project area was 68.4% (MSVSB 2019, BBS)} such as climate change, global climate change, temperature change etc. as an issue or development and adaptation problem and expected given the restricted knowledge base community members had concerning climate change. About average percentage of the participant was thirty-three of men and twenty of women in a group from 150 Upazila in 60 districts who were concern about the board range of challenges that were summarized into six broad unranked categories. Key finding exposed that from PRA analysis, few of the farmers do understand climate to be dynamical issues, however, mostly participants did cultivation with different varieties with their seasonal patterns (i.e., longer and warmer dry seasons and shorter and a lot of intense rainy seasons) and ready to cultivate tuber crops in adverse climatically condition. It is evaluated and ranked the different ways to observed the cultivation of tuber crops which can contribution to climate change adaptation (scale ranging based on climate change adaptation and from very low to high potential). Mitigation and adaptation strategies and constraints, cropping systems incorporating risks and adaptations possibility assessment is a simultaneous study effort as climate change-resilient farming and cropping systems that undergo continuous changes with the changing environment, farming culture, and technological innovations. This study stated that farmer perception of global climate change was surveyed and compared to the actual acquaintance to observe that they might not much influence adaptation. Research outcome would be contributing to our inclusive understanding of climate change and adaptation among vulnerable in project area.