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Perception of Climate Change in Shrimp-farming Communities in Bangladesh: a Critical Assessment

Shaikh Mohammad Kais*
Department of Sociology, University of Rajshahi, Rajshahi 6205, Bangladesh

Md Saidul Islam
Division of Sociology, Nanyang Technological University Singapore, Singapore 639818, Singapore

Abstract/ Executive Summary:

Local contexts, as well as levels of exposure, play a substantial role in defining a community’s perception of climate and environmental vulnerabilities. In order to assess a community’s adaptation strategies, understanding how different groups in that community comprehend climate change is crucial. Public risk perception is important as it can induce or confine political, economic, and social actions dealing with particular hazards. Climate change adaptation is a well-established policy discourse in Bangladesh that has made its people more or less aware of it. Similarly, shrimp-farming communities in southwestern Bangladesh understand environmental and climate change in their own ways. In order to understand how the shrimp-farming communities in coastal Bangladesh perceive current climate instabilities, we conducted a qualitative study in shrimp-farming villages in coastal Bangladesh where about 80% of commercial shrimp of the country is cultivated. We compared farmers’ perceptions of local climate change with existing scientific knowledge and found remarkable similarities. Our assessment shows that at least two factors are critical for this outcome: coastal people’s exposure to and experience of frequent climate extremes; and a radical approach to defining climate regimes in Bangladesh by various stakeholders and the media, depicting anthropogenic global warming as a certainty for the country. Thus, a convergence of scientific construct and sociocultural construct construes the level of awareness of the general public about climate change.

Keywords: Popular discourse of climate change; Radical approach; Bangladesh; Industrial aquaculture

Location: Bangladesh

Start Date: 00-03-2014

End Date: 00-07-2014

Program Area: Socio-economic and Policy

Non-commodity: Climate change

Objectives:

This paper reports on a risk perception study that was carried out to gain an understanding of commercial shrimpers’ perception of climate change impacts on the industry in coastal Bangladesh. We also analyze the factors that contribute to a specific understanding of weather and climate in the research areas.

Methodology:

In order to examine local people’s understanding of the trends in global climate change in coastal Bangladesh, a field-level investigation in Bangladesh was conducted from March to July, 2014 and a follow-up study was conducted in 2017. We collected data through a triangulation method comprised of content analysis of secondary sources, ethnography, and qualitative interviews. We applied multiple methods in our study to gain a comprehensive insight into complex and diverse issues of climatic shifts and human perceptions. To get a full picture of the historical as well as current scenario of the climate change in Bangladesh, at first an ‘unobtrusive’ or ‘nonreactive’ [46] research based on content analysis of existing secondary documents in Bangladesh was conducted. In the next phase, we conducted short ethnographic studies staying two weeks in each of the sites in shrimping areas in three southwestern districts of Bangladesh namely Bagerhat (Mongla subdistrict), Khulna (Koyra subdistrict), and Satkhira (Shyamnagar subdistrict). We selected these districts because of some compelling reasons. First, these three districts comprise about 80% of total shrimp farms in Bangladesh [47,48]. Second, these areas are most vulnerable to climate change events like tropical cyclones, sea-level rise, salinity intrusion, and storm surges [13,23,49–51]. Finally, through their daily experiences, people of these areas are aware of the current shifts in climate in the locality. At the final stage, after having a clear understanding of the local dynamics through ethnography, we interviewed a section of people from various stakeholders (forty-five persons in total, see Table 1)—comprised of shrimp farmers, fry collectors, and shrimp and fry traders—in order to complement the ethnographic data. In order to conduct an in-depth qualitative study, we set specific selection criteria for the respondents that prioritized experienced participants who have a greater depth of understanding and knowledge of shrimp aquaculture and local climate change. Shrimp cultivators: (1) Residing in the village or locality since their birth, (2) Spent at least 15 years in shrimp farming, and (3) Experienced at least one major climate extreme in their lifetime. Shrimp fry (postlarvae) collectors: (1) Residing in the village or locality since their birth, (2) Spent at least 15 years in shrimp fry catching, and (3) Experienced at least one major climate extreme in their lifetime. Shrimp/PL trader: (1) Spent at least 15 years in shrimp or fry trading, and (2) Experienced at least one major climate extreme during their business years.

Source of Information: Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2019, 16, 672;

Article Link (Online Journal): doi:10.3390/ijerph16040672

Funding Source:

Budget:

Total Budget (Tk.) :

Achievement/Findings:

The evaluation of lay people’s perception is a popularly accepted method to study climate change at the local level and local stakeholders’ awareness of anticipated risks is a crucial contributor to making adaptive changes. The aim of the present research was to generate knowledge on the extent to which shrimp cultivators perceived changes in climate in Bangladesh. Local perception of obvious weather changes was associated with increasing frequency of climate extremes like cyclones and storm surges as well as with temperature increase that they feel and gauge in their own way without the help of any scientific instruments. Although aquaculturists are not much acquainted with the term SLR, they assess the changes by comparing the water level in nearby rivers at present with that of 10–15 years ago. They also perceive the increased level of water and soil salinity by observing the gradual loss of vegetation in the area. They understand changes in climate through perceived negative impacts that the changes might have on local ecosystems, human health, and overall livelihoods. Shrimp farmers are aware of how their lives are affected by the changing and erratic pattern of rainfall, temperature, salinity, and climate extremes. By examining coastal people’s understanding and knowledge, this study finds that the shrimpers’ perception of climate change substantially matches the established scientific data. It reveals several reasons behind this resemblance. Living in an exposed zone for several climate chaos and extremes, people of these areas base their attribution of hydroclimatic phenomena on their repeated personal experiences, on associated impacts on their lives and livelihoods, and on mediatization of global warming as absolute certainty in the country. Thus, a convergence of scientific construct and sociocultural construct construes this level of awareness of the general public. In a warmer regime, traditional sources of livelihood are seriously threatened and people’s quality of life is in danger of deterioration among vulnerable communities around the globe. In addition to scientific data and grand models, local stakeholders’ perceptions are crucial in determining the changes and variations in the local-level weather patterns in different agroecological zones. Appropriate policy and programmatic interventions for exposed communities can be formulated based on the findings of studies on climate change perceptions in those communities. This research is an addition to the systematic collection of such information from a climate hotspot.

Knowledge Management: Journal