Study on Sustainable Livelihoods, Vulnerability and Adaptation to Climate Change in District Swat
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Date
2012
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
Abstract
Like any other developing country, Pakistan is confronting the problem of climate
change. The unprecedented flooding of 2010 and other subsequent events directs to the
fact that this region is most vulnerable to climatic hazards. Despite the fact and
importance, the public concerns and understandings of the issue in the region is not
studied yet.
This research is based on a case study carried out in District Swat of Khyber
Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. The main objectives covering the study were i) to
get insight of the public perceptions of climate change and adaptation in the study area
and ii) to assess the various impacts of climate change on livelihood sources of
indigenous communities. An attempt was made to utilize mixed methods approach to
get an in-depth investigation of the underlying factors and determinants influencing the
public understanding about climate change.
Using stratified sampling technique, 25 union councils (wards) were selected from the
nine tehsils (sub-districts) of the study area. Information was collected from 1066
households using structured questionnaire. The information was analyzed using SPSS
(version 20) and the association between the climate change knowledge and
demographic variables were explored using chi-square tests and Cramer’s V statistics.
The study revealed that majority (88.5%) of the respondents were aware of the climate
change in the area. Deforestation (37.2%), natural causes (29.7%) and combustion of
fossil fuels (14.7%) were the main reported causes of climate change. Natural hazards
such as floods (16.8%), dry spells (16.2%), vector borne diseases (10.8%), changes in
biodiversity (10.5%), lower agricultural productivity 10.1%) and heat waves (9.9%)
were among the major perceived impacts of climate change. A Significant relationship
(p < .05) was found between the demographic variables and climate knowledge in the
study area