TY - JOUR
T1 - Understanding the local implications of climate change
T2 - Unpacking the experiences of smallholder farmers in Thulamela Municipality, Vhembe District, Limpopo Province, South Africa
AU - Kori, Dumisani Shoko
AU - Musakwa, Walter
AU - Kelso, Clare
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2024 Shoko Kori et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
PY - 2024/10
Y1 - 2024/10
N2 - Climate change is experienced locally. However, climate change impact assessments are often done at the international, regional and national levels. Local level impacts are less prolific. When international, regional and national level predictions are applied to the local level, they are out of context. Therefore, it is important to understand the local impact of climate change to enhance formulation of suitable adaptation strategies. This study aimed to understand the local impacts of climate change on smallholder farmers in Thulamela Municipality, Vhembe District, Limpopo Province, South Africa. The actual experiences of smallholder farmers were unpacked. Face-to-face interviews with farmers in the region were conducted to solicit data on the climatic changes experienced, the impacts on crop and livestock production and social wellbeing. Data on the intensity of the impacts was also solicited. Results show that the experienced climatic changes emanated from temperature changes and shifts in rainfall patterns. The impacts on crop and livestock production as well as social wellbeing are all negative. Farmers indicated that the impacts were mostly average to high. It is concluded that smallholder farmers are aware that climate change impacts are negatively affecting their livelihoods. Investments towards building the capacity of smallholder farmers are pertinent.
AB - Climate change is experienced locally. However, climate change impact assessments are often done at the international, regional and national levels. Local level impacts are less prolific. When international, regional and national level predictions are applied to the local level, they are out of context. Therefore, it is important to understand the local impact of climate change to enhance formulation of suitable adaptation strategies. This study aimed to understand the local impacts of climate change on smallholder farmers in Thulamela Municipality, Vhembe District, Limpopo Province, South Africa. The actual experiences of smallholder farmers were unpacked. Face-to-face interviews with farmers in the region were conducted to solicit data on the climatic changes experienced, the impacts on crop and livestock production and social wellbeing. Data on the intensity of the impacts was also solicited. Results show that the experienced climatic changes emanated from temperature changes and shifts in rainfall patterns. The impacts on crop and livestock production as well as social wellbeing are all negative. Farmers indicated that the impacts were mostly average to high. It is concluded that smallholder farmers are aware that climate change impacts are negatively affecting their livelihoods. Investments towards building the capacity of smallholder farmers are pertinent.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85214577743&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1371/journal.pclm.0000500
DO - 10.1371/journal.pclm.0000500
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85214577743
SN - 2767-3200
VL - 3
JO - PLOS Climate
JF - PLOS Climate
IS - 10
M1 - e0000500
ER -