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Local Farmers’ Perceptions of Climate Change and Local Adaptive Strategies: A Case Study from the Middle Yarlung Zangbo River Valley, Tibet, China

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Abstract

Climate change affects the productivity of agricultural ecosystems. Farmers cope with climate change based on their perceptions of changing climate patterns. Using a case study from the Middle Yarlung Zangbo River Valley, we present a new research framework that uses questionnaire and interview methods to compare local farmers’ perceptions of climate change with the adaptive farming strategies they adopt. Most farmers in the valley believed that temperatures had increased in the last 30 years but did not note any changes in precipitation. Most farmers also reported sowing and harvesting hulless barley 10–15 days earlier than they were 20 years ago. In addition, farmers observed that plants were flowering and river ice was melting earlier in the season, but they did not perceive changes in plant germination, herbaceous vegetation growth, or other spring seasonal events. Most farmers noticed an extended fall season signified by delays in the freezing of rivers and an extended growing season for grassland vegetation. The study results showed that agricultural practices in the study area are still traditional; that is, local farmers’ perceptions of climate change and their strategies to mitigate its impacts were based on indigenous knowledge and their own experiences. Adaptive strategies included adjusting planting and harvesting dates, changing crop species, and improving irrigation infrastructure. However, the farmers’ decisions could not be fully attributed to their concerns about climate change. Local farming systems exhibit high adaptability to climate variability. Additionally, off-farm income has reduced the dependence of the farmers on agriculture, and an agricultural subsidy from the Chinese Central Government has mitigated the farmers’ vulnerability. Nevertheless, it remains necessary for local farmers to build a system of adaptive climate change strategies that combines traditional experience and indigenous knowledge with scientific research and government polices as key factors.

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Notes

  1. The data collected from Tibet Statistical Yearbook (1982–2011).

  2. Data collected from: http://www.chinatibetnews.com/caijing/2009-04/09/content_227655.htm.

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Acknowledgments

This study was supported by the National Key Basic Research Program: Respond Processes of Ecosystem and Social System in Tibetan Plateau to Climate Change and the Regional Adaptation (No. 2010CB951704) and Project 111 (B08037). Special thanks are given to the China Meteorological Data Sharing Service System for providing meteorological data and agricultural meteorological data and to the counties in the study area for assistance with the key informant interviews and data collection. The authors thank Professor Carla Bossard of Saint Mary’s College of California and Fulbright Scholar Mathhem Williams at Sichuan University for their assistance with language editing.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Environment, College of Architecture and Environment, Sichuan University, No. 24, South Section One, First Ring Road, Chengdu, 610065, Sichuan, China

    Chunyan Li, Ya Tang, Han Luo, Baofeng Di & Liyun Zhang

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  1. Chunyan Li
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  2. Ya Tang
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  3. Han Luo
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  4. Baofeng Di
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  5. Liyun Zhang
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Correspondence to Ya Tang.

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Li, C., Tang, Y., Luo, H. et al. Local Farmers’ Perceptions of Climate Change and Local Adaptive Strategies: A Case Study from the Middle Yarlung Zangbo River Valley, Tibet, China. Environmental Management 52, 894–906 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-013-0139-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-013-0139-0

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