The Challenge of Communicating Research on Climate Change Related Risks to Family Farmers: The Experience of Using a Didactic Booklet in the Brazilian Semiarid Northeast

Authors

  • Gabriela Litre Centro de Desenvolvimento Sustentável, Universidade de Brasília (UnB)
  • Melissa Curi Centro de Desenvolvimento Sustentável, Universidade de Brasília (UnB)
  • Patricia S. Mesquita Centro de Desenvolvimento Sustentável, Universidade de Brasília (UnB)
  • Stéphanie Nasuti Centro de Desenvolvimento Sustentável, Universidade de Brasília (UnB)
  • Gledson Rocha Faculdade São Francisco de Barreiras (FASB)

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5380/dma.v40i0.49069

Keywords:

climatic change, scientific communication and feedback, semiarid Brazil, family farming

Abstract

With a focus on the perceptions of smallholder / family farmers from the North-eastern Semiarid region of Brazil - one of the most climate change-vulnerable populations of the country-, this article describes the collaborative creation and dissemination process of a didactic booklet (cartilha educativa, in Portuguese) aimed at sharing visions of climate change-related risks and adaptation strategies of smallholder farmers from the region. The research team, member of the subnet on Climate Change and Regional Development  (MCDR/Rede CLIMA), applied 1.140 semi-structured questionnaires in four selected areas: Seridó Potiguar-RN, Gilbués-PI, Juazeiro-BA and Chapada do Araripe-CE. The survey focused on, among others, family farmers’ perceptions on climatic risks and adaptation options, as well as their cultural values and expectations regarding the future of their rural livelihoods.  Based on those perceptions and expectations, a didactic booklet was chosen as the best instrument to co-create knowledge about climatic change impact and adaptation strategies in the region. By prioritizing dialogue and the exchange of viewpoints – or, in Habermas’ words, “the negotiation of common definitions of situations”-, the team assumed that potential users are more likely to trust knowledge, and may therefore be willing to act on it, when from their perspective it meets three criteria: relevance, credibility, and legitimacy. In general terms, the experience of using this didactic booklet confirmed that barriers to successful climate change adaptation (such as mutual incomprehension between scientists and end-users) could be overcome by creating collaborative enterprises. The co-creation of the didactic booklet, which included switching roles between knowledge producers and end-users, facilitated horizontal work towards the identification of climate-related risks and possible adaptation measures.

Author Biography

Gabriela Litre, Centro de Desenvolvimento Sustentável, Universidade de Brasília (UnB)

Gabriela Litre holds a B.A. in Social Communication and Journalism (1996) from the Universidad del Salvador, Buenos Aires, Argentina, and a M.Sc. in Globalisation and Latin American Studies from the University of London - Institute of Latin American Studies (2004). She studied Sociology at the University of Buenos Aires (2001). She also holds a specialization in Journalism, Freedom of Expression, and Racism in the Media (1998), from the University of Florida, U.S.A., a degree in international relations and regional economic integration from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Spain, a PhD in Environmental Management and Public Policy for Sustainable Development (Center for Sustainable Development, University of Brasilia, 2010) and a PhD in Geography and Territorial Urban Planning (IHEAL, Université Paris 3, Sorbonne-Nouvelle, 2010). She specialized in the positive, win/win management and intervention in socio environmental conflicts with courses in Chile, administered b the Fundacion Futuro Latinoamericano in Chile (FFLA, 2006). Since 2011, she is a postdoctoral researcher at the Center for Sustainable Development at the University of Brasília. 

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Published

2017-04-30

How to Cite

Litre, G., Curi, M., Mesquita, P. S., Nasuti, S., & Rocha, G. (2017). The Challenge of Communicating Research on Climate Change Related Risks to Family Farmers: The Experience of Using a Didactic Booklet in the Brazilian Semiarid Northeast. Desenvolvimento E Meio Ambiente, 40. https://doi.org/10.5380/dma.v40i0.49069

Issue

Vol. 40 (2017): Communication and Climate Change: a necessary and urgent discussion

Section

Communication and Climate Change: a necessary and urgent discussion

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