ABSTRACT

Adaptive capacity is critical for understanding the climate resilience of social-ecological systems. A gendered lens is of particular importance as women are simultaneously one of the most vulnerable social groups to climate change and carry a significant adaptation burden. Individuals’ adaptive capacity is partially determined by learning and cognition, specifically one’s ability to process, assess and react to a changing climate. Formal education experience is thought to increase the learning and cognitive aspects of adaptive capacity. This study uses a novel method, Participatory Adaptation Scenario and Mapping Activity (PASMA) to explore the influence formal education may have on the decision-making processes of pastoral women as they adapt to drought in Samburu, Kenya. Our results indicate participants with formal education may be more risk-averse following drought, but initially assess and react to signs of drought similarly to peers without formal education experience. We argue that increased risk perception might be explained by formal education’s influence on the learning component of adaptive capacity. We also contend that formal education may fail to influence the agency of pastoral women as a result of systemic issues, and therefore limiting the potential of formal education to improve adaptive capacity.

摘要

适应能力对于了解社会生态系统的气候复原力至关重要。性别视角尤为重要，因为女性同时是最易受气候变化影响的社会群体之一，并承担着重大的适应负担。个人的适应能力部分取决于学习和认知，特别是个人处理、评估和应对气候变化的能力。正规教育经验被认为可以增加适应能力的学习和认知方面。本研究使用一种新颖的方法，即参与式适应情景和绘图活动 (PASMA) 来探索正规教育可能对肯尼亚桑布鲁的牧民妇女适应干旱的决策过程产生的影响。我们的结果表明，受过正规教育的参与者在干旱后可能会更加规避风险，但最初评估和应对干旱迹象的方式与没有正规教育经验的同龄人类似。我们认为，风险认知的增加可能是因为正规教育对适应能力的学习部分的影响。我们还认为，由于系统性问题，正规教育可能无法影响牧区妇女的能动性，因此限制了正规教育提高适应能力的潜力。