risk communication for adapting to climate change

Development Alternatives

Risk Communication for Adapting to Climate Change

India Team

Indira, Udit. Soma, Sonal, Anish

December 27, 2008

The Project


Adaptation strategy to cope with climate change

• Communicate risk of not adapting to climate change to policy makers and vulnerable community

• To influence policy makers and community for modifying policies related to agriculture and water resources

• The focus was on Bundelkhand region of Madhya Pradesh covering 12 villages

• The project started with a field visit to 4 villages to study the community on the aspects of agriculture, water resources and heritage

Integrated findings


Climate Change is already happening and will further happen in the coming decades

Agriculture, the main source of livelihood is at a great risk; reduced yields by upto 50%

Communities in Tikamgarh have a very low capacity to cope with the existing and potential climatic changes and their impacts

Very low risk awareness on Climate Change impact on water and agriculture. More concerned about ‘Other problems’ like survival and income

Villagers trust government representatives

Strategic Approach to Risk Awareness


No stand alone communication. Always in tandem / as part of activity

Synergy in communication to different stakeholders – without necessarily being the same to all

PARTICI-PATORY

APPROACH

DOABLEADAPTATION

(PHASED)

LOCALISEDAPPROACH

CHANGE AGENTS

Core concept: Ownership

Core Communication

Principles

Strategic Approach to Risk Awareness and Adaptation


Target Groups (T.G)

1. Panchayat2. Agriculture department 3. Local research Institutions

4. State Government

5. Rural Community

Start from Communication of risk of climate change leading to the benefits which the villages

(community) will reap in long term. This change can only come with

their involvement and interventions.

Start from communication of desirable adaptations

that the community (village) will reap leading to awareness of climate change.

Testing Risk Communication Strategy


• Identify the key decision makers and the technical group• District Magistrate• CEO, Zila Parishad• District Rural Development Agency• Dept of Farmer Welfare & Agri Devp• Department of Irrigation• Department of Horticulture• District Forest Officer• Krishi Vigyan Kendra• Indian Grassland & Fodder Research Institute• National Research Centre for Agroforestry• Central Soil and Water Research Institute• Bundelkhand University

Testing Risk Communication Strategy - Policy


Risk Communication Efforts•Brochure prepared in English and Hindi•Interactions with individual representatives •Workshop conducted

To communicate concept of climate change, findings of the study done by DA and discuss way forward

Discussions and Outcomes•Anticipatory strategies rather than response measures•Need for awareness generation among communities•Agriculture, water & forestry need attention•Type of information that may be communicated•Core group to be formed

Risk Communication Strategy - Policy


Strategy for communication to policy makers & researchers• Identify the key decision makers and the technical group

• Need to show that• We are well organised• List of things that we will do• We have not come to add extra work – we are a winning team • We will offer him an audience that will listen to him

• Panchayats• Wants evidence and a community that wishes to change

• Research Institutions• Need to sell them their part of the win• Engage at a senior level and show an opportunity to bring out good

research outputs

Testing Risk Communication Strategy - Communities


Risk Communication Efforts

•Awareness events being organised•Street Plays•Posters, banners

•Community exercises

•Community Radio

Hoardings & Posters


Risk Communication Efforts• Awareness events being organised

• Street Plays• Posters, banners• Community exercises• Community Radio

Street Play + Community Exercise


Testing Risk Communication Strategy - Communities


Risk Communication Efforts

•Awareness events being organised•Street Plays•Posters, banners

•Community exercises

•Community Radio

The Nautanki


Conveyed message through a musical play about climate change, to be prepared as well as adapt to the new climatic conditions.

The program was organised at three villages of Tikamgarh district in Madhyapradesh. They were Ladpura, Jamunia and Utora.

Attended by people of all age groupsConsidered as a medium of entertainment; however people take interest and listened attentively

Play- Melodious musical play calling people to:• Save water and conserve natural resources• Grow less-water consuming and draught- resistant crops• Adopt non- agricultural work along cultivation for sustainable livelihood

The play was based on a story of a couple Dhaniram and Janaki, who lived in a draught- prone village, and suffered because of frequent crop failures and lack of rainfall.

Its Impact • Most of the respondents who had seen the

nautanki recalled the messages clearly• People talked about it with each other. They

recalled it as an entertainment- “gana bajana huya tha”

• To some people message was conveyed with ease however the importance of each message was divided- “kheti baadi ke baare mein kuch bata rahe the, paani bachao bol rahe the”

• Nautanki as an activity, was focussed on the messages and was successful in delivering them

The Chart• Useful for people who could read easily

• Women did not read the chart due to observance of veil in presence of menfolk

• Learning:The chart was too small in size to invite attention

Impact of Chart

• Conveyed the message easily to those who were educated, they read the chart after the nautanki

• Respondents said that the coordinator should have explained the chart

• Some people recalled that something was hanging but nobody knew it’s role

• Some people remembered the chart but did not remember the message “bahut kuch likha tha kheti baadi ke baare mein par ab yaad nahin hai”

The meeting after nautanki • An interactive session after the nautanki was called “The

meeting”• A coordinator answered questions related to agriculture • Many people came forward with their grievances related

to lack of implementation of schemes by government & political parties’ behavior after elections

Impact of Meeting• People who attended the session wanted more of

it “bahut acha hai, humein jankari milti hai”• When asked what more “jankari” do they need ?

similar answers came “kheti baadi ke baare mein”• NB. Learning:

– Such activities help in increasing awareness and in attitude change; however behavior change will need significant amount of resources

– A wide range of issues were discussed at the meeting which made us deviate from the actual issue of climate change

– Community should be informed in advance about the programme

Observation • Climate change for the community means

“baarish kam ho rahi hai”, they are still not conscious of untimely rainfall which might also happen due to climate change

• Adaptation to Climate Change does not appear to be an issue if resources are provided to them

• Financial security being the main concern, practices leading to those are easily accepted and can be incorporated

ConclusionThe nautanki had a more dominant impact as compared to the other two media i.e. the chart and the meeting

The response to the chart can be improved if the chart is of a bigger size and more pictorial in nature and located permanently at a prominent site Meeting can make a strong impact if people are informed in advance and the agenda is kept focused

People would need to be taken into the next stage of information, participation and involvement regarding Adaptation practices

Risk Communication Strategy - Communities


Initiating Pilot Adaptation Measures


• Funds leveraged from SDC• Farmers Adaptation Cluster• Women managed energy service clusters• Eco-buildings by artisans

• Includes significant components of capacity building and leveraging subsidies and financial investments for adaptation

• Baseline surveys being currently conducted

Way Forward


Making the core group functional to• Chalk out long and short term goals• Create evidence• Form action areas

Status: • DM has nominated ADM• Ag Dept also nominated a member for the core group. • Inventory of all policies, schemes currently running in the district.

Community level• Testing various media of risk communication (done)• Methodology for measuring effectiveness of risk communication• Applying the methodology (3-4 Dec)

Final Workshop at Bundelkhand level to disseminate the project results and discuss way forward

It’s time for us to get together and act….and show Bundelkhand that

we care

risk communication for adapting to climate change

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