Africa Adapting to Climate Change
While most people in the Northern hemisphere are still debating and worrying about how climate change will or will not affect them, some of the world's poorest communities are way ahead of us. It is amongst the rural communities in Africa (as well as Asia and Latin-America) that we find the frontline of climate change. Not only have they been living with climate change for years, but they are already effectively implementing strategies in order to adapt to the changing conditions.
On the following pages, people from all over Africa share their experiences on how everyday life can be deeply affected by a changing climate.
A Glimpse of the Future
A majority of Africans live in rural areas and are directly or indirectly dependent on agriculture for food and income. The accounts collected here paint a worrying picture of climatic changes seriously affecting African farmers. The stories are of great importance because, not only do they reveal the extent of the problems facing many Africans today as a result of climate change, they also serve as a grave warning of how these difficulties will increase in the years to come.
Africans Have Found Successful Adaptation Methods
In order to survive, these farmers have already had to change their way of life and the way they farm. Many of the adaptation methods they have implemented are proving to be highly successful, and their experiences can be put to good use in neighbouring villages and regions - or even be attempted in other countries and on other continents. As the need for adaptation becomes more pressing with worsening climate change, the lessons learned today can reduce suffering tomorrow.
African Farmers Cannot Combat Climate Change Alone
Even though many of the measures being undertaken are small-scale and relatively inexpensive, they are usually dependent on outside support; either financial support, technical knowledge, organisational skills or political influence. Local and national governments and international bodies should recognise that the adaptation methods implemented so successfully in local African communities are important ways forward in the global struggle to reduce the harmful effects of climate change. These methods can be scaled up and spread further afield. The greatest challenge is not knowing how to adapt to climate change, but gathering enough support for working methods to be put into action.
The Key is Diversification
The problems facing poor rural African communities are complex and so are the causes and effects of climate changes on a local level. Because the reality is complex, local communities need a wide range of solutions and coping strategies. Each of the following stories highlights a relevant method or strategy for adapting. Some strategies will focus on management of water and wood resources, others on agricultural improvements, while some people will have to change their livelihoods altogether. However, a combination of several methods is necessary in order to strengthen vulnerable communities. As many of our accounts reveal, diversification is a key factor in successful climate change adaptation.
Climate Change Adaptation is Also Reducing Poverty
No one should be under the impression that there is a quick fix that can eradicate the consequences of climate change. The only lasting solution is to reduce global emissions and this can only happen if there are political changes on an international level. However, the concrete steps undertaken by the men and women in these accounts do more than just temporarily adapt to climate change; they also ensure long-term sustainability and reduce poverty. It is, therefore, of the utmost importance to scale up successful adaptation projects like these in accordance with local needs and conditions.
"Africa is one of the most vulnerable continents to climate change and climate variability, a situation aggravated by the interaction of ‘multiple stresses', occurring at various levels, and low adaptive capacity."
Source: Contribution of Working Group II to the Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, page 435.
Climate Change
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Greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, one of them being carbon dioxide (CO2), assist in keeping the Earth warm and stabilising surface temperatures, thus creating the conditions which allow plant and animal life, including humans, to flourish. Our modern society has developed within a relatively short period of very stable climate. Modern agriculture in particular is dependent on predictable seasons, temperatures, rainfall and sunlight. Since the onset of the Industrial Revolution, the Earth’s average temperature has risen by 0.76°C. The rise in temperatures is caused by excessive consumption, especially in industrialised countries, of fossil fuels like coal, gas and oil, which release CO2. According to the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), global temperatures will rise a further 1.8–4°C unless greenhouse gas emissions (mostly CO2) are significantly reduced. If global temperature rise exceeds 4°C above pre-industrial levels, irreversible and catastrophic climate change will be more likely. The IPCC has stated that “warming of the climate system is unequivocal”, and confirms that most of that warming is “very likely” due to the increase in greenhouse gas emissions from human activity. Source: IPCC Summary for Policymakers 2007
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