Community-based adaptation to climate change: lessons from Tanna Island, Vanuatu

Tahlia Clarke; Karen E McNamara; Rachel Clissold; Patrick Nunn

doi:10.24043/isj.80

Back

Community-based adaptation to climate change: lessons from Tanna Island, Vanuatu

Journal article

Peer reviewed

Community-based adaptation to climate change: lessons from Tanna Island, Vanuatu

Tahlia Clarke, Karen E McNamara, Rachel Clissold and Patrick Nunn

Island Studies Journal, Vol.14(1), pp.59-80

2019

DOI: https://doi.org/10.24043/isj.80

Files and links (1)

url

https://doi.org/10.24043/isj.80View

Published Version

Abstract

Physical Geography and Environmental Geoscience

Applied Economics

Human Geography

adaptation

climate change

community-based resilience

Small Island Developing States (SIDS)

vulnerability

Community-based adaptation has gained significant international attention as a way for communities to respond to the increasing threats and complex pressures posed by climate change. This bottom-up strategy represents an alternative to the prolonged reliance on, and widespread ineffectiveness of, mitigation methods to halt climate change, in addition to the exacerbation of vulnerability resulting from top-down adaptation approaches. Yet despite the promises of this alternative approach, the efficacy of community-based adaptation remains unknown. Its potential to reduce vulnerability within communities remains a significant gap in knowledge, largely due to limited participatory evaluations with those directly affected by these initiatives, to determine the success and failure of project design, implementation, outcomes and long-term impact. This paper seeks to close this gap by undertaking an in-depth evaluation of multiple community-based adaptation projects in Tanna Island, Vanuatu and exploring community attitudes and behavioural changes. This study found that future community-based adaptation should integrate contextual specificities and gender equality frameworks into community-based adaptation design and implementation, as well as recognise and complement characteristics of local resilience and innovation. In doing this, the critical importance of looking beyond assumptions of Small Island Developing States (SIDS) as homogenous, primarily vulnerable to climate change and lacking resilience, was also recognised.

Details

Title: Community-based adaptation to climate change: lessons from Tanna Island, Vanuatu
Authors: Tahlia Clarke (Author) - The University of Queensland
Karen E McNamara (Corresponding Author) - The University of Queensland
Rachel Clissold (Author) - The University of Queensland
Patrick Nunn (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast - School of Social Sciences
Publication details: Island Studies Journal, Vol.14(1), pp.59-80
Publisher: University of Prince Edward Island, Institute of Island Studies
Date published: 2019
DOI: 10.24043/isj.80
ISSN: 1715-2593
Grants: Optimising community-based climate change adaptation in the Pacific Islands, LP160100941, Australian Research Council (Australia, Canberra) - ARC
Organisation Unit: Indigenous and Transcultural Research Centre; Australian Centre for Pacific Islands Research; School of Social Sciences - Legacy; School of Law and Society; Sustainability Research Cluster
Language: English
Record Identifier: 99450625002621
Output Type: Journal article

Metrics

514 Record Views

41 Times Cited - Web of Science

InCites Highlights

These are selected metrics from InCites Benchmarking & Analytics tool, related to this output

Collaboration types: Domestic collaboration
Web Of Science research areas: Geography; Social Sciences, Interdisciplinary

UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

This output has contributed to the advancement of the following goals:

Source: InCites