Climate change adaptation in low-resource countries: Insights gained from an eco-social work and feminist gerontological lens

Abstract

Climate change research requires integrative and collaborative research from multiple disciplines because of its complexity and sizeable consequences. Eco-social work has an important role to play. Relatively new, scholarship on eco-social work is growing and identifying ways in which the discipline’s unique values, theories, perspectives and practices can contribute to this body of research. The aim of this article is twofold: (a) to contribute to this emerging scholarship by identifying climate change adaptation as an area of research for international social work and (b) to examine the utility of applying an integrated theoretical lens of eco-social work and feminist gerontology within this area.

Keywords

adaptation climate change eco-social work feminist gerontology research

Introduction

Climate change research, typically seen as the domain of the physical and technological sciences (Hetherington and Boddy, 2013; Ole et al., 2009; Postigo, 2008; Schmitz et al., 2012), requires integrative and collaborative research from multiple disciplines because of its complexity and sizeable consequences (Ole et al., 2009; Postigo, 2008; Schmitz et al., 2013). Eco-social work has an important role to play to this end. Eco-social work is a holistic approach to address environmental issues (Dominelli, 2012). An eco-social work lens (a) espouses a sense of deep ecology which is the recognition that human well-being is interdependent with the well-being of the natural world, (b) adopts a rights-based and social justice approach to climate change issues recognizing that differentiated experiences and impacts of climate change are connected to structural inequalities and socio-economic disparities and (c) recognizes that interventions need to be participatory and rooted in mutuality and solidarity (Dominelli, 2012; Gray et al., 2013). Eco-social work is informed by critical social work theory and seeks to unveil social power relations imbued in climate change knowledge production, analyses and interventions (Dominelli, 2012; Gray et al., 2013). Furthermore, critical analyses of the neo-liberal global economy and its connections with climate change issues are a focal point of eco-social work (Dominelli, 2012; Gray et al., 2013).

Relatively new to the field, scholarship on eco-social work is growing and identifying ways in which the discipline’s unique values, theories, perspectives and practices contribute to this body of research (Coates, 2005; Dominelli, 2013; Hetherington and Boddy, 2013; Lysack, 2013; Miller et al., 2012; Molyneux, 2010; Postigo, 2008; Schmitz et al., 2012). For example, disaster relief has been identified as an area in which social workers can contribute through the use of micro-level skills (including crisis interventions, needs assessment and counselling) and mezzo- and macro-level skills related to community organizing and advocacy (Dominelli, 2010, 2012, 2013; Pittaway et al., 2007). Public education and raising critical awareness of environmental issues is another area in which social workers can participate (Coates, 2005). The person-in-environment perspective traditionally used in social work focuses on understanding human functioning within the context of social structures and systems (Miller et al., 2012). More recent scholarship has also focused on the extension of the person-in-environment perspective embodied in social work to include ecological factors (Coates, 2005; Dominelli, 2013; Hetherington and Boddy, 2013; Miller et al., 2012; Molyneux, 2010; Postigo, 2008; Schmitz et al., 2012). A common theme within this scholarship is the role of social work in broadening the lens of examining climate change not just as an environmental and emissions issue; eco-social work considers how climate change affects vulnerable populations (Coates, 2005; Dominelli, 2013; Hetherington and Boddy, 2013; Lysack, 2013; Miller et al., 2012; Molyneux, 2010; Postigo, 2008; Schmitz et al., 2012).

The impacts of climate change are unequally distributed and often the greatest consequences are or will be experienced by poor and marginalized groups (Dominelli, 2013; Gray and Coates, 2012). The social work profession’s history and experience in working with vulnerable populations through social justice and community-oriented approaches can contribute to research and response efforts in situations of climate change (Coates, 2005; Dominelli, 2013; Hetherington and Boddy, 2013; Lysack, 2013; Miller et al., 2012; Schmitz et al., 2012). The use of strength-based and participatory approaches not only highlights the vulnerabilities but also emphasizes the potential and strengths of such groups to become actors in prevention and response efforts (Coates, 2005; Dominelli, 2013; Hetherington and Boddy, 2013; Lysack, 2013; Miller et al., 2012; Schmitz et al., 2012). Eco-social work is thus well positioned to play an important role by focusing on marginalized groups and adaptation, and facilitating the participation and perspectives of such groups whose voices are largely left out of climate change discourse (Dominelli, 2013). As the scholarship in eco-social work continues to develop, Gray et al. (2013) advocate for ‘theoretical frameworks, examples and case studies of what social workers are doing, or might do, in relation to environmental and educational initiatives’ (p. 13).

The aim of this article is twofold: (a) to contribute to this emerging scholarship by identifying climate change adaptation, specifically with smallholder and subsistence farmers, as an area of research for international social work and (b) to examine the utility of applying an integrated theoretical lens of eco-social work and feminist gerontology to identify potential vulnerabilities and issues concerning accessibility of adaptation information, practices and technologies.

Climate change observations and projections

Climate change is one of the most pressing global challenges of the 21st century (United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), 2007). Climate change primarily refers to

increases in average global temperature (global warming); changes in cloud cover and precipitation particularly over land; melting of ice caps and glaciers and reduced snow cover; and increases in ocean temperatures and ocean acidity – due to seawater absorbing heat and carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. (UNFCCC, 2007: 8)

Since its inception in 1988, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), a scientific international body established by the World Meteorological Organization and the United Nations Environment Programme to provide current knowledge about the impacts of climate change, has been the leading authority for the assessment and impacts of climate change (IPCC, 2014a). The 2013 IPCC report established unequivocally that the earth’s climate system is undergoing global warming and that the major causes are man-made. Furthermore, according to the IPCC (2013), the increased use (burning) of fossil fuels and changes in land use are leading contributors to climate change creating increasing quantities of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.

Societies worldwide are already experiencing the effects of climate change and the IPCC projected that the situation will worsen if we continue under a business as usual model (IPCC, 2007). Under this scenario by 2020, and over the next decades, there will be a shortage of water and food, increased risks to health, life and livelihoods impacting billions of people (IPCC, 2007). In particular, people who live in low-resource countries (often referred to as developing countries) do and will continue to experience the greatest impacts (UNFCCC, 2007). A low-resource country is defined as countries (a) with low income,¹ lower-middle income² or upper-middle income³ and do not have a high-income category;⁴ (b) who are a recipient of foreign aid for public expenditures in areas such as health care and education and (c) who are a geographic area of focus for research and development for international development agencies such as the United Nations (UN) and World Health Organization (WHO) (United Nations, 2013; World Bank, 2013).

It is estimated that approximately 250 million people in African countries will experience an increased risk of water stress, which occurs when the demand for water use during a certain period of time cannot be met because it is not available and/or the quality of the water is not potable (European Environment Agency, 2013; UNFCCC, 2007). The Maldives, a small island state only 1 m above sea level, is at a great risk. Rising sea levels are projected to increase 1 m over the course of the next century, which will completely inundate the country (United Nations Foundation, 2012). Impacts of climate change vary as the effects are dependent on the unique climate, geographical, social, cultural and political contexts of the country (UNFCCC, 2007). However, there are crosscutting issues experienced within the agricultural sector, which has been identified as a focal point for climate change research and response efforts (Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), 2012; UNFCC, 2007).

Agriculture as a focal point for adaptation

In the majority of low-resource countries, the agricultural sector plays a significant role, contributing between 30 percent and 60 percent of a country’s total Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and between 25 percent and 90 percent of foreign exchange income; as well as employing between 40 percent and 90 percent of the country’s population (Hossain, 2011). Agriculture is not only the most important economic sector in low-resource countries, but also the primary source of livelihood and food security for the poorest segment of the population, most of whom are engaged in smallholder and subsistence farming (FAO, 2012). Smallholder farming refers to agricultural activity conducted mostly by family labour in which the outputs are the primary source of income for the family, whereas subsistence farming is a livelihood strategy where the main outputs of agricultural activity are consumed directly (Morton, 2007). Over 2 billion people, including the majority of people living in absolute poverty and approximately half of the undernourished population, in low-resource countries engage in this type of farming (International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), 2011). Food security and poverty reduction is directly linked to smallholder and subsistence farming (IFAD, 2011). Smallholder and subsistence farming are complex, diverse and risk-prone systems (Morton, 2007). Climate change enhances complexity and creates new risks for these farming systems (Morton, 2007). For example, as many of these farms are on marginal or risk-prone environments, where soil-related restraints and water resource scarcity already constrain productivity, increasing global temperatures further impede productivity (FAO, 2012; Morton, 2007). The IPCC (2007) projected that by 2030 global temperatures could rise by 3°C if no efforts are made to address climate change. The consequence of the projected temperature rise is profound in that crop yields in tropical areas are significantly reduced by temperature in excess of 1°C–2.5°C, and with that increase, 20 percent–30 percent of animal and plant species would risk extinction (IPCC, 2007). Furthermore, the increase in frequency and severity of climate-related events such as tropical storms, droughts, floods and heat stress further impacts agricultural activity and productivity (FAO, 2012). Climate change can affect the food security and rural livelihoods of many people (FAO, 2012). Consequently, farm-level adaptation practices are of particular importance in climate change research and response efforts (FAO, 2012; IFAD, 2012).

Adaptation within smallholder and subsistence farming

The IPCC (2014b) describes adaptation as

the process of adjustment to actual or expected climate and its effects. In human systems, adaptation seeks to moderate or avoid harm or exploit beneficial opportunities. In some natural systems, human intervention may facilitate adjustment to expected climate and its effects. (p. 5)

Adaptation responses focus on the long-term impacts of climate change and strategies are built around increasing resiliency (Ayers and Huq, 2009; IPCC, 2014b). Examples of farm-level adaptation practices include, ‘diversifying crops, planting different crops or crop varieties, replacing farm activities with nonfarm activities, changing planting and harvesting dates, increasing the use of irrigation, and increasing the use of water and soil conservations techniques’ (Nhemachena and Hassan, 2008: 1).

Adaptation is not a new concept to farmers; however, the degree and rates of environmental degradation and the increased intensity and frequency of climate-related disasters impacting agriculture challenge its effectiveness (FAO, 2011a). The research community, specifically the scientific and technological disciplines, play a critical role in working with farmers to assist them in adapting by providing information about scientific forecasts, disseminating agro-meteorological tools and data and conducting vulnerability assessments, among other contributions (FAO, 2008, 2011a). Within agriculture, the FAO (2008) reported, ‘with a few notable exceptions, adaptation to climate change is presently dealt with largely in isolation from other issues, focusing on the quantitative impacts of a single harvestable component’ (p. 32). However, agricultural systems are more than just commodity outputs they operate within a larger socio-economic environment and, human relations and dynamics permeate every aspect of these systems (FAO, 2008). Adaptation information and tools designed and developed by the science and technological disciplines have less focus on the accessibility and appropriateness for the end users (Fairhead and Leach, 2005; FAO, 2008). This gap calls for the need to recognize the social dimensions of farming and the implications of gender and age for adaptation.

Recognizing the social dimension in farming

Central to understanding smallholder and subsistence farming are social relations imbued within the household and wider community (Fairhead and Leach, 2005; FAO, 2008). Social relations influence the decisions behind: what to produce, who produces it, how knowledge is managed and how the products are marketed and/or consumed (Fairhead and Leach, 2005). For example, Fairhead and Leach (2005) found that literature on African farming pointed to intra-household negotiations (i.e. between husband and wife, co-wives, parent and child, etc.) as the common reason behind decisions of what products to farm. Farming within agricultural development research is predominantly seen as an economic activity (World Bank et al., 2010). However, it cannot be assumed that only economic measures are behind farmers’ decisions (Fairhead and Leach, 2005). Understanding the farm system in terms of social relations unveils the complex interaction between power, roles, control and responsibilities of the various actors (Fairhead and Leach, 2005). Rice farming in the upland fields of West Africa is such an example: typically, men control the rice, the senior wives are in charge of household provisioning and the co-wives and daughters are responsible for their own food and income needs by farming a variety of vegetables (Fairhead and Leach, 2005). Adaption research and response efforts that fail to recognize ‘the centrality of the social’ (Fairhead and Leach, 2005: 87) in smallholder and subsistence farming can create greater inequalities by playing into unequal social relations and/or be defunct because of their social inappropriateness (FAO, 2008; Ragasa et al., 2012).

Gender

Recognizing and addressing gender dimensions is critical throughout adaptation research and response efforts (Aguilar, 2010). The FAO (2011b) found that an inclusion of gender dimensions results in more effective adaptation outcomes. Gender issues in agriculture have been acknowledged and discussed by researchers since the 1980s (see, for example, Boulding, 1980; Ireland, 1983; Koskie, 1982; Rosenfeld, 1985; Sachs, 1983). However, only recently have donors and policy makers focused their attention on gender and climate issues in international development discourse (Adaptation Committee, 2013; Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, 2012; Meinzen-Dick and Quisumbing, 2013; Nelson et al., 2010). For example, the UNFCCC Adaptation Committee’s (2013) most recent report explicitly stated that in order for adaptation strategies to be effective, gender considerations must be integrated in the design and delivery of such responses. In 2011, the FAO flagship report focused on gender dimensions in agriculture. The organization developed a gender strategy that committed 30 percent of its operational budget on addressing these issues via intervention programmes and disaggregating their data by sexes to assist with gender analysis studies (FAO, 2011b, 2013). In 2012, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (2012) launched their gender-responsive agricultural development programme, which asks grantees to ‘Know her. Design for her. Be accountable to her’ – an explicit recognition to include women (p. 12).

Gender dimensions are integral to adaptation measures because women represent 43 percent of the agricultural workforce in low-resource countries (FAO, 2011b). Furthermore, women are among the poorest smallholder and subsistence farmers due to their limited access to agricultural resources and services, additional responsibilities outside the farm and systematic prejudices in land rights (ActionAid, 2011; Lambrou and Nelson, 2013; Neefies and Nelson, 2010). Women farmers are important stakeholders in the agricultural sector, yet they receive minimal support in terms of climate change adaptation information, services and resources (Dankelman and Jansen, 2010). For example, agricultural extension services, which are a primary avenue for knowledge and technology transfer, including supporting farmers in increasing yield productivity, labour saving and climate resilient agricultural methods, are key to climate change adaptation efforts (Aguilar, 2010; FAO, 2011b). However, only a small percentage of these services are accessed by and directed to women (ActionAid, 2011; Aguilar, 2010; FAO, 2011b). In sub-Saharan Africa, for example, the agricultural labour force is more than 60 percent women, yet they only own 1 percent of land, represent 7 percent of extension services and 1 percent of all agricultural credit (ActionAid, 2011). Although an increased interest in addressing gender issues exists currently, a stronger empirical base is needed to support this direction (ActionAid, 2011; Arora-Jonsson, 2011).

Ageing and older people

Within international development discourse, the definition of an older person is usually determined by chronological age. Sixty years of age and older is generally considered the benchmark within low-resource countries (Guerny, 1997; HelpAge, 2006, 2010, 2012; United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and HelpAge, 2012; WHO, 2002). It is important to also consider how culture, politics, history and economics influence the meaning of ageing and old age (Gorman, 2000). The agricultural workforce is ageing at rapid rates due to factors such as increased life expectancy and younger generations migrating to urban areas (Gorman, 2012; UNFPA and HelpAge, 2012; White, 2012). However, the dialogue about the shifts in demographics and age structures within international development has largely focused on youth (FAO and IFAD, 2012a, 2012b; Food, Agriculture and Natural Resources Policy Analysis Network (FANRPAN), 2012; White, 2012). A focus of this dialogue is developing a youth perspective and an understanding about (a) why youth are leaving the agricultural sector, (b) how they can be encouraged back into the sector and (c) how they can contribute to adaptation efforts (FANRPAN, 2012; FAO and IFAD, 2012a, 2012b; White, 2012). While an important endeavour, a parallel research agenda of adopting an older adult perspective is foundational in order to identify challenges and opportunities for the farmers of today and in the future (Gorman, 2012).

A major barrier to examining issues related to ageing and older people is the lack of age-segregated data available (Gorman, 2012). Globally, agricultural and rural data from official national sources are increasingly less available (World Bank et al., 2010). As an exemplar, the quantity and quality of data collected in Africa have been declining since the 1980s (World Bank et al., 2010: 1). The reduction in agricultural data at national and international levels occurs at a time when this sector is particularly important to poverty reduction, food security and environmental sustainability initiatives (World Bank et al., 2010). In response, the World Bank et al. (2010) outlined a ‘global strategy to improve agricultural and rural statistics’ (p. 1). In addition to prioritizing economic and environmental data, the social dimensions of agriculture are documented in the proposed strategy as social data. Furthermore, the commitment to the collection of gender-based data is explicit, although specific attention to collecting age-segregated data is lacking (World Bank et al., 2010).

As the feminization and ageing of agriculture continues, gender and age are inter-connected social dimensions that are critical for consideration in adaptation research and response efforts. Thus, improving the quantity and quality of age and gender-segregated data is important in order for researchers, funders and policy makers to make informed decisions.

Applying an integrated theoretical lens of eco-social work and feminist gerontology to adaptation research

The application of theory in research is important to ‘provide a lens to help us frame the complex interplay between humans and their environment’ (Gentle-Gennity et al., 2007: 62). Adaptation research is characterized by complexity and diverse theoretical perspectives are necessary to tease out individual constituents and then to examine the inter-relationships between the various components. ‘Put simply, to invoke a theoretical perspective is to say “look at it this way”’ (Marshall, 2009: 573). Theory is also used to direct research, which is helpful to a relatively new field such as eco-social work (Gentle-Gennity et al., 2007). The integration of feminist gerontology with an eco-social work framework offers particular insights into adaption research and provides a direction for international social work research.

Defining feminist gerontology

Feminist gerontology is aligned with critical social work theory in that both recognize macro-social structures and processes that contribute to micro and mezzo issues (Estes, 2006; Fook, 2002). In this way, feminist gerontology is also synergistic with person-in-environment approaches and can adopt eco-social work’s extended version examining ‘the ways in which humans and the social environment fit within an environmental paradigm’ (Miller et al., 2012: 273). A goal of feminist gerontology ‘is to understand how the dominant social institutions render older women vulnerable and dependent throughout their life course’ (Estes, 2006: 81). Feminist gerontology, like critical social work theory, recognizes the significance of ideology and explicitly examines neo-liberal economic globalization and its implications for socio-economic systems, the welfare state and the daily lives of individuals and groups (Coates, 2005; Deepak, 2012; Estes, 2006). Feminist gerontology is consistent with ‘postcolonial and transnational feminist perspectives [that] offer theoretical attentions to the complexity of power relations within and between macro, mezzo and micro systems that is well suited to the mission values of social work, particularly social justice and self-determination’ (Deepak, 2012: 781). Affirming older women’s strengths and agency is another key aspect of this theoretical lens (Deepak, 2012; Estes, 2006).

When a feminist gerontological lens is integrated with eco-social work, several insights can be gained in regards to vulnerabilities to climate change and accessibility to adaptation information, practices and technologies, specific to older women. Rural older women represent a marginalized group with particular vulnerabilities to the impacts of climate change (Gorman, 2012). The concept of vulnerability, an important component of adaptation research and response efforts, is defined in various ways (IPCC, 2014b). The IPCC (2014b) defines vulnerability as ‘The propensity or predisposition to be adversely affected. Vulnerability encompasses a variety of concepts and elements including sensitivity or susceptibility to harm and lack of capacity to cope and adapt’ (p. 5). Vulnerability, according to the FAO (2011b), is defined in relationship to food security and climate change is among the contributing factors that increase the risk of food insecurity and malnourishment. Vulnerability is also defined in regards to individuals and social groups whereby access to resources determines, to a great extent, the degree of vulnerabilities (Adger and Kelly, 1999; Liverman, 1994). In a review of climate change impacts and vulnerability literature, Olmos (2001) concluded that within definitions of vulnerability, a core component ‘is the idea that countries, regions, economic sectors and social groups differ in their degree of vulnerability to climate change’ (p. 3).

Older women and vulnerabilities

As discussed previously, low-resource countries and specifically the agricultural sector in low-resource countries are highly susceptible to the impacts of climate change. Within that context, older women farmers represent a social group who experience greater degrees of vulnerability to climate change due to factors such as low levels of income security, limited access to capital and credit, ageing and old-age-related health issues, social exclusion and additional caregiving roles and responsibilities.

Income security

Income levels, regularity and predictability of income are important factors that contribute to the adaptive capacities of farmers to climate change (Ragasa et al., 2012). The majority of older women living in low-resource countries live on low income and have so for the majority of their lives (Gorman, 2012; HelpAge, 2010; Walker, 2005). In addition, many do not have alternative sources of generating income aside from agriculture, and the majority of low-resource countries do not provide old age pensions - if provided, they are minimal (Gorman, 2012; HelpAge, 2010; Shetty, 2012). In India, for example, the monthly pension of Rs 200 (equivalent to US$4) is not enough to meet the basic needs of older people (Shetty, 2012). Furthermore, the majority of pension schemes are contributory in low-resource countries; most farmers engaged in the informal sector have not contributed and therefore are ineligible to receive benefits (Evans and Harkness, 2008; HelpAge, 2010; Midgley, 2012; Pei and Tang, 2010).

Access to credit

Individuals and groups can increase their adaptive capacities to climate change through access to credit (FAO, 2010; Ragasa et al., 2012). However, in order to access credit, individuals need assets and capital, which often excludes women in low-resource countries as a consequence of traditional property and inheritance laws (FAO, 2010; HelpAge, 2010; Ragasa et al., 2012). Furthermore, if land titles have been exclusively held by the male householder, women are at ‘risk of losing entitlements in case of divorce, widowhood or their husband’s migration’ (FAO, 2010: 1).

Health

The WHO (2013) links health to climate change and cautions that ‘areas with weak health infrastructure – mostly in developing countries – will be the least able to cope without assistance to prepare and respond’ (para. 1). In particular, the struggling health infrastructures in low-resource countries are ill equipped to address issues related to ageing and old age (Shetty, 2012; WHO, 2012). While low-resource countries have made progress in areas of child and maternal health (due in large part to the Millennium Development Goals), geriatric health has largely been ignored (Shetty, 2012; WHO, 2012). The WHO (1998) projects that by 2020, ‘three-quarters of all deaths in developing countries could be ageing-related [and] the largest share of these deaths will be caused by non-communicable diseases (NCDs), such as diseases of the circulatory system (CSDs), cancers and diabetes’ (para. 3). Populations with existing health conditions and illnesses are more vulnerable to the impacts of climate change (WHO, 2012). The WHO (2012) identifies older women as one of the more vulnerable groups to the health impacts of climate change, as they have limited access to health information and facilities due to geographical location, low income and lack of health insurance, among other factors.

Older women and accessibility to adaptation information, practices and technologies

Literacy

Accessibility to adaptation information, practices and services is linked with literacy rates; a higher level of literacy lends itself to greater access and opportunities for adaption (Bryant and Gray, 2005; Gorman, 2012; HelpAge, 2010; Ragasa et al., 2012). Ragasa et al. (2012), in their study of accessibility to agricultural extension services, found that in addition to gender, education was a significant factor whereby ‘those with primary level education are more likely to have access to extension services than those with no formal education’ (p. 8). Extension services, as noted earlier, are a critical access point for adaptation research and response efforts (FAO, 2011b). There are clear gender differences in literacy levels within low-resource countries. For example, 73 percent of all men in Southern Asia could read and write compared to 51 percent of all women (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), 2010). In many low-resource countries, older people have lower literacy rates than younger people (HelpAge, 2010; UNESCO, 2007; United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA), 2007). According to UN Data from 2005 to 2007, over 50 percent of older people (65+ years) were illiterate as compared to 13 percent of younger people (15–24 years) (HelpAge, 2010; UNDESA, 2007; UNESCO, 2007). Older people living in rural areas tend to have even lower literacy levels. For example, in Haiti, Guatemala, Nicaragua and El Salvador, there are higher percentages of older people who are illiterate living in rural areas (64%–90%) as compared to urban areas (32%–68%) (HelpAge, 2010; UNDESA, 2007; UNESCO, 2007). Literacy levels are impacted by gender, age and geographic location, and rural older women are more likely to have the lowest literacy rates (Bryant and Gray, 2005; Gorman, 2012; HelpAge, 2010; Ragasa et al., 2012).

The differentiated literacy rates are mirrored within the agricultural population. Bryant and Gray (2005) found a strong association between gender, age and educational attainment in their study of the agricultural workforce in Thailand. As a consequence of the introduction of public education in the 1950s in Thailand, most people over 40 years of age did not have elementary-level education, while those under the age of 40 years did (Bryant and Gray, 2005). They also reported that female agricultural workers 60 years of age and older have the highest percentage (17.8%) of no formal education as compared to their male older age counterparts or younger female and male counterparts (aged 15–59 years).

Language

Connected to literacy and education is language. The language in which new adaptive information and technologies are disseminated is an important consideration (HelpAge, 2010). Older people specifically in the rural areas may not understand, speak and/or be comfortable with national official languages used (HelpAge, 2010). For example, educational materials in Bahasa (Indonesia’s national official language) were inappropriate to use with older people in the Achech regions of Indonesia who were more comfortable using their native tongue (Acehnese) (HelpAge, 2006). Ensuring access to diverse language groups is important because of its potential to connect with ethnic minority groups, who often already experience greater risk to the impacts of climate change due to lower levels of income, education and literacy (CARE Poverty, Environment and Climate Change Network, 2011).

Social exclusion

Age discrimination is defined as ‘the systematic and institutionalised denial of the rights of older people on the basis of their age by individuals, groups, organisations and institutions’ and contributes to social exclusion of older women farmers (Nhongo, 2006: 3). Age discrimination is evident in many adult education programmes. Torres (2009), for instance, studied adult education in Latin America and the Caribbean and determined that programmes not only focused on younger age groups, but specifically excluded older people by setting age limits (i.e. 30–40 years of age) for inclusion. Cuba, a notable exception, specifically identifies older people as a priority group in adult education (Torres, 2009).

Older women tend to have the lowest literacy rates, yet they have the least opportunities to improve their skills (HelpAge, 2010). Improving accessibility to adaptive information, practices and technologies also requires a broader look at adult education programmes targeted at older people. Older people have the right to continued education and learning opportunities (HelpAge, 2010). It should not be assumed that because of their age, older people are unwilling and/or unable to learn new skills or adopt new practices and technologies. Kwan and Walsh (2013) found, in their study of community organizing with older people in the Philippines, that ‘opportunities for continued growth and development are important for older people [and] the passion to learn new skills and knowledge also continues as one ages’ (p. 26).

Care-giving roles and responsibilities

Older women often take on nonfarm roles and responsibilities that can limit their time to participate in adaptation programmes. Care giving of dependents is increasingly a primary responsibility for older women: including caregiving to adult children who are dying of AIDS, caring for the younger dependents whose parent(s) are suffering and/or have died from AIDS and caregiving for younger dependents whose parent(s) have migrated (either to urban centres or abroad) for employment (HelpAge and UNICEF, 2012; WHO, 2002). A study on the impact of AIDS on older people in Zimbabwe noted, ‘older persons have now taken on the roles of primary and sole care providers’ and the psychological and physical stress related to caregiving with extremely limited resources is an additional responsibility that further increases older people’s vulnerabilities (WHO, 2002: 27). Moldova is also an example, where 25 percent of their economically active population have migrated abroad for employment leaving older women with the entire spectrum of responsibilities (physical, educational and moral) related to child caregiving (HelpAge and UNICEF, 2012).

Strengths: Historical data and traditional knowledge

There is an emerging focus on concepts such as traditional knowledge and/or local knowledge in recent climate change literature (Anik and Khan, 2012; Leonard et al., 2013; Williams and Hardison, 2013; Xu and Grumbine, 2014). Older women play an important role as traditional and/or local knowledge holders; however, research that highlights their strengths and roles in adaptation is limited. HelpAge (2009) advises that in the absence of historical scientific data, the observations of older people can ‘contribute uniquely to understanding how the natural environment and climate have changed over the decades and, what the toll of this change has been on their communities’ (p. 7). Furthermore, older people’s traditional knowledge (e.g. in identifying drought-resistant crops) is seen as valuable information that can be integrated with scientific knowledge (HelpAge, 2009). However, in a survey of older people about their perceptions of climate change, HelpAge (2009) found that many older people could no longer rely on their traditional knowledge in forecasting weather patterns due to increased climate variability.

Older women represent a social group with specific vulnerabilities. They are a significant segment of the smallholder and subsistence farming population and are a rapidly growing group (Gorman, 2012; HelpAge, 2012; Shetty, 2012; Walker, 2005). Ensuring that new adaptation information, practices and technologies are accessible to rural older women is important to protect the livelihoods and food security systems of this group and those who are dependent on them (Gorman, 2012).

Conclusion

Climate change adaptation in smallholder and subsistence farming has been identified as a potential area for international social work research. Social dimensions permeate every aspect of the farming system, and a social work lens is needed to highlight how these specific dimensions (including social institutions, customs, roles, relationships and power dynamics, among others) impact the vulnerabilities and adaptive capacities of individuals and groups to climate change (Fairhead and Leach, 2005). In particular, social work is well positioned to play a part in (a) the assessments of climate change impacts by identifying vulnerabilities specific to marginalized populations and (b) the design, development, implementation and evaluation of climate change response efforts by facilitating the participation and perspectives of marginalized groups whose voices are largely left out of climate change research and response efforts (Dominelli, 2013).

An integrated framework of eco-social work and feminist gerontology is offered as a promising theoretical perspective to adopt within climate change adaptation research with smallholder and subsistence farmers. The feminization and ageing of the agriculture workforce call for this particular lens that unveils how older women comprise a social group that faces greater risks to the impacts of climate change, yet potentially faces the greatest barriers to access adaptation information, practices and technologies (Gorman, 2012). An integrated eco-social work and feminist gerontological perspective also recognizes the strengths of this population and how they may contribute to adaptation and response efforts. In order to raise the profile of older women in adaptation research and response efforts, a stronger evidence base is needed. In particular, participatory research studies that prioritize the engagement and perspectives of the participants are important in understanding vulnerabilities, issues of accessibility and strengths of older women.

Footnotes

Funding

This research received no specific grant from any funding agency in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.

Notes

Author biographies

Crystal Kwan is a first year PhD student in Social Work at the University of Calgary. Her areas of focus within social work are international and community development; participatory action research; community organizing and advocacy with older adults. During her MSW research practicum, she collaborated with eight elders in the Philippines to explore older adult perspectives of community organizing.

Christine Walsh, Professor, Faculty of Social Work University of Calgary has a program of funded research examining violence across the lifespan. She is particularly interested in applying community-based, arts-based and participatory action research to collaborate with members of vulnerable and marginalized populations to foster social justice.

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