Adapting to climate change: Women's livelihood strategies in uMkhanyakude District Municipality

IF 4.7 2区环境科学与生态学 Q2 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES

Environmental Development Pub Date : 2025-02-22 DOI:10.1016/j.envdev.2025.101185

Nomfundo Patricia Sibiya , Mulala Danny Simatele

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Climate change has a profound effect on the livelihoods of women in rural areas, worsening existing inequalities and vulnerabilities. However, women are not passive; they actively look for ways to adapt to the effects of climate change. This article aims to explore the resources, strategies, and assets women employ to sustain their livelihoods and achieve livelihood outcomes amid changing climatic conditions. A mixed-method research approach was used to gather data from 74 women in the uMkhanyakude District Municipality in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Data was collected in 2021 using an online survey. The qualitative data obtained were analysed through thematic analysis, while the quantitative data were processed using IBM SPSS Statistics software and Microsoft Excel. Droughts have been identified as the most common form of extreme weather in the area, although floods occur as well. These extreme weather conditions result in water shortages, livestock loss, home destruction, agricultural job losses, decreased food affordability, and aggravated health problems. Women were observed to employ strategies that are primarily associated with social assets and financial resources to improve resilience. The research indicates that while the district municipality enhances women's capacity to protect their livelihoods amid climate change, it concurrently excludes them from participating in decision-making and educational initiatives. This exclusion underscores a significant gap in the adaptation strategies being developed. Although enhancing women's capabilities is advantageous, the study stresses the importance of combining this with inclusive decision-making and educational programmes.

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来源期刊

Environmental Development Social Sciences-Geography, Planning and Development

CiteScore

8.40

自引率

1.90%

发文量

审稿时长

74 days

期刊介绍： Environmental Development provides a future oriented, pro-active, authoritative source of information and learning for researchers, postgraduate students, policymakers, and managers, and bridges the gap between fundamental research and the application in management and policy practices. It stimulates the exchange and coupling of traditional scientific knowledge on the environment, with the experiential knowledge among decision makers and other stakeholders and also connects natural sciences and social and behavioral sciences. Environmental Development includes and promotes scientific work from the non-western world, and also strengthens the collaboration between the developed and developing world. Further it links environmental research to broader issues of economic and social-cultural developments, and is intended to shorten the delays between research and publication, while ensuring thorough peer review. Environmental Development also creates a forum for transnational communication, discussion and global action. Environmental Development is open to a broad range of disciplines and authors. The journal welcomes, in particular, contributions from a younger generation of researchers, and papers expanding the frontiers of environmental sciences, pointing at new directions and innovative answers. All submissions to Environmental Development are reviewed using the general criteria of quality, originality, precision, importance of topic and insights, clarity of exposition, which are in keeping with the journal''s aims and scope.