At Karuna, we work with partner organisations to support marginalised communities across South Asia – such as our work alongside our partners at Pragya Solutions, overcoming the effects of climate change in India, Nepal and Bangladesh. Together with Pragya, we support climate-vulnerable communities in these countries to adapt to climate change and build generational resilience to the challenges that they face due to increased natural disasters, flooding, monsoons and other climate-related emergencies.
In this blog post, we’ll discuss the impact of climate change on vulnerable communities living in South Asia who rely on agriculture to make a living. We’ll explore the types of climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction that we’ve found are the most effective in the places most vulnerable to climate change, the disaster preparedness measures being put in place to keep communities safe and share more about how we’re working with locals to spread awareness about climate adaptation skills, ensuring communities can sustain their livelihoods for future generations.
Climate Vulnerability in the Ganges-Brahmaputra-Meghna Basin
The Ganges-Brahmaputra-Meghna (GBM) Basin and river system is shared by five countries and is home to 10% of the world’s population, making it one of the largest and most populated river basins in the world. The GBM Basin is rich in biodiversity making it a large and fragile ecosystem upon which the smallholder farmers who live there rely for both food and income. The majority of the families living in the GBM Basin rely solely on agriculture to make a living.
The GBM Basin has been identified as one of the regions most vulnerable to climate change, severely affected by flooding, monsoons and landslides that wipe out land, infrastructure and homes – and even claim lives. The effects that climate change has on the communities that live in the GBM Basin, including the 630 million people living across India, Nepal and Bangladesh, are devastating and disproportionately affect the marginalised communities who live there in poverty.
Action needs to be taken to support the farming communities and families who live in the most climate-vulnerable countries, supporting them to prepare for climate-related natural disasters and adapt their farming practices to become more resilient for generations to come.
Understanding Climate Vulnerability in South Asia
What is Climate Vulnerability?
Climate vulnerability describes how susceptible our natural surroundings, buildings and communities are to the harmful effects of climate change. This includes their likelihood of facing challenges from changing weather patterns and extreme events like hurricanes, floods or droughts. How vulnerable they are depends on how sensitive these areas are to these changes and how well they can adapt to overcome these challenges.
The places most vulnerable to climate change are not just locations where shifting weather patterns or extreme events take place but also regions where the effects are the most devastating on the communities living there. In the GBM Basin the majority of the families who live there live in extreme poverty relying on farming as their sole source of income. A monsoon, flood or landslide has the potential to not only endanger lives but also wipe out the homes and livelihoods of an entire community. Climate vulnerability and poverty are closely linked, with those most severely impacted by the effects of climate change often left with the least economic resources to rebuild after disasters, meaning that communities cannot build resilience in the face of future challenges.
An increased number of floods, due to reduced river gradients, higher rainfall in the Ganges-Meghna-Brahmaputra river basins, and the melting of glaciers in the Himalayas, is considered the major reason for migration in the context of climate change in Bangladesh over all. Bangladesh sits at the head of the Bay of Bengal, astride the largest river delta on Earth, formed by the junction of the Brahmaputra, Ganges, and Meghna rivers. Nearly one-quarter of Bangladesh is less than seven feet about sea level; two-thirds of the country is less than 15 feet above sea level. Most Bangladeshis live along coastal areas where alluvial delta soils provide some of the best farmland in the country. Sea surface temperatures in the shallow Bay of Bengal have significantly increased, which, scientists believe, has caused Bangladesh to suffer some of the fastest recorded sea level rises in the world. Storm surges from more frequent and stronger cyclones push walls of water 50 to 60 miles up the Deltas rivers. At the same time, melting of glaciers and snowpack in the Himalayas, which hold the third largest body of snow on Earth, has swollen the rivers that flow into Bangladesh from Tibet, Nepal, Bhutan, and India. So too have Indias water policies. India diverts large quantities of water for irrigation during the dry season and releases most water during the monsoon season.
How does Climate Change Affect Vulnerable Communities?
The GBM Basin region and the families who live there are vulnerable to climate change in a variety of ways. As global temperatures increase, glacial melts have caused water levels to rise and intensified monsoon seasons leading to flash floods and landslides which endanger lives and destroy homes and agricultural land. Climate change has also caused weather patterns to become erratic throughout the year, meaning that the farmers who rely on regular patterns to harvest their crops successfully are facing threats to their livelihoods. Without the security of reliable income and food, the communities who live in the GBM Basin region of India, Nepal and Bangladesh are some of the most vulnerable to climate change, especially as they are often already excluded from basic services such as healthcare and education.
Disaster Risk Reduction: Building Resilience Through Preparedness
Our Approach to Disaster Preparedness
Working with Pragya, we support communities in preparing for climate-related emergencies by setting out a disaster preparedness program for their local area. This involves evacuation planning, identifying areas of safety in the region and equipping locals with mobile phones and technology to improve communication in the event of an emergency. This kind of disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation is essential in saving lives when an emergency strikes, ensuring that everyone in the area knows in advance what to do and where to go to stay safe. We work with local leaders and community members to plan for the most frequent emergencies in the GBM Basin – floods, landslides and monsoons. Community-based adaptation to climate change and emergency preparedness like this reduces the loss of lives during disasters.
The Role of Climate Resilience Champions
As part of these disaster preparedness measures Pragya trains local farmers and young people to become ‘Climate Resilience Champions’ (CRCs) within their community. CRCs are paid for their work which involves being responsible for identifying the early warning signs of a climate emergency and raising the alarm as well as spreading awareness about climate change and climate adaptation measures to the wider community. CRCs are a vital aspect of community outreach and education promoting local strategies for disaster management and keeping people safe.
Climate Change Adaptation for Farmers in the GBM Basin
Adaptive Agriculture Solutions
Pragya is working with farmers across the GBM Basin to introduce science-based solutions to improve yields and productivity in their agricultural practices. Pragya is bringing in agricultural experts to test the soil on individual farmers’ plots to provide bespoke plans so they can adapt their crops to their local environments. This will help farmers combat the effects of droughts and floods caused by climate change and improve their climate resilience.
How do farmers adapt to climate change in the GBM Basin?
Some of the types of climate change adaptation strategies the farmers we work with have adopted include introducing:
- Salt-resistant crops in the coastal regions of Bangladesh and India.
- Deep-rooted crops to prevent landslides in Nepal.
- Regenerative, climate-smart agricultural techniques that will improve soil quality, increase yields and reduce vulnerability.
Empowering Women Farmers
Climate change is a significant contributor to migration, causing many men to leave home searching for work. This means that women are left behind to manage farms, the family and household alone. We support over 3,000 female farmers across our projects.
Nature-based Solutions: Restoring Ecosystems
Tree Planting and Ecosystem Restoration
Part of our work with Pragya in the GBM Basin involves tree planting to support the local environment and restore vital ecosystems, which helps to reduce the risk of landslides, floods and other natural disasters in climate-vulnerable areas. This, when combined with disaster preparedness measures, CRCs and agricultural adaptive solutions, ensures climate change mitigation, adaptation and resilience. This in turn means local communities can take the lead when it comes to building climate resilience independently.
The Role of Local Communities in Land Stewardship
By involving local communities in the management and protection of their land, through tree planting, adapting farming practices, evacuation planning and employing CRCs from within their own community, the impact of these solutions is far longer lasting and more sustainable. The skills and techniques learned from working with our teams can be transferred between community members and passed on to future generations. Pragya also ensures that local governments are involved in these projects, ensuring that the best practices of land stewardship are supported and managed to benefit the local community.
Climate Change Mitigation and Clean Energy
Sustainable Living and Clean Energy Initiatives
We’re also working with Pragya on a pilot program to introduce clean energy technologies to isolated villages in the GBM Basin, aimed at improving sustainability in the region. Not only will this provide a power source for local farmers, but clean energy solutions can reduce harmful emissions and promote sustainable livelihoods, working towards climate mitigation and climate resilience at the same time.
Barriers to Climate Change Adaptation
For many of the village communities in the GBM Basin region of India, Nepal and Bangladesh, there are several barriers to successful climate change adaptation. These include geographic isolation due to being in remote, isolated areas, the economic challenges of living below the poverty line without the resources to make changes to agricultural practices or prepare for disasters without external support or a lack of access to services, such as healthcare and education.
Our work with our partners at Pragya aims to overcome these barriers by focusing on community-driven governance. By training local community members to become CRCs and prepare for and look out for natural disasters, as well as partnering with local governments and advisory services to support the community in land stewardship and ecosystem restoration, local farmers can take back control of their farms, livelihoods and safety.
A Path Forward for Climate-Vulnerable Communities
The urgent need for action in the GBM Basin cannot be overstated. The lives and livelihoods of millions of farming families in India, Nepal and Bangladesh hinge on our collective efforts to bolster their resilience against the devastating impacts of climate change. At Karuna, alongside our trusted partners at Pragya, we are working to implement effective climate adaptation and disaster risk reduction strategies that protect these communities and their futures. Our initiatives focus on practical measures – from training local Climate Resilience Champions, to pioneering adaptive agricultural practices and promoting sustainable energy solutions.
However, the path towards a sustainable future for these vulnerable populations is fraught with challenges, such as geographic isolation, economic deprivation and limited access to essential services. Overcoming these barriers requires a concerted effort from all stakeholders involved, including local governments, NGOs and the communities themselves.
As we continue to support these climate-vulnerable communities, we ask you to join us. Already, thanks to our work with Pragya, 75% of people living in our project areas have reported that they feel safer. Your support can help us expand our reach and continue these initiatives, ensuring that thousands of families in the GBM Basin can succeed despite the climate challenges they face. Together, we can work towards a future where these communities are not only surviving but thriving, passing on resilience and sustainable practices to future generations.
Please consider contributing to our efforts. Every donation goes directly towards making a significant difference in the lives of those who are most affected by climate change in India, Nepal and Bangladesh. Your involvement will transform futures and save lives.
