Why Climate Change Adaptation is Elusive: The Lived Reality of Farming Households in the Central Dry Zone of Myanmar

Abstract

Farming households in the Global South are vulnerable to climate change because of their livelihoods’ direct link to the natural environment. Farm households adapt to climate through altering their farming practices and by diversifying their livelihoods through the non-farm sector and migration. However, previous research has suggested that most of these adaptations are incremental, meaning they may not address the root cause of climate change vulnerability in the long term. The aim of this thesis is to assess these claims using the experiences of farm households in Myanmar’s Central Dry Zone, a highly climate-stressed region. According to fieldwork conducted in the Central Dry Zone, farmers’ responses to climate change vary considerably. In many cases, although farmers may be aware of the effects of climate change, their livelihood adaptations are motivated by a wider array of concerns, which mitigate or even subvert their capacities to respond to climate challenges. These mixed responses, and the notable reluctance of many farmers in the Central Dry Zone to take adaptive measures to the clear and present risks of climate change, forms the central problem this research seeks to resolve. The thesis argues that these outcomes can be explained through the adoption of a broad-based livelihoods approach which acknowledges that although climate change is an important factor influencing famers’ decision making, other factors are also involved, and these are often prioritized over climate risks. This highlights the position of climate change on farmers' daily lives by emphasising the significance of geographical context and local traditions in relation to making decisions about rural livelihoods, farming, non-farm activities and migration. These findings underscore the need to recognise and comprehend how multiple stresses interact with climate effects to exacerbate the vulnerability of rural households and spotlight the importance of understanding the underlying causes of vulnerability. This perspective is crucial for understanding how farmers and agriculture-dependent communities respond to climate risks. Using the Central Dry Zone of Myanmar as a case study, the research generates an analytical framework that explains why farming households respond to climate change incrementally while being aware of it.