Gender Differences in Climate Change Perception and Adaptation Strategies: An Intra-Household Analysis in the Context of Coastal Area of Bangladesh

Ayesha Siddika, Ashim Kumar Nandi

Abstract

The paper aims to examine the perception of climate change and the local adaptation strategies based on gender differences to reduce climate risks and vulnerabilities. This study explores the local adaptation knowledge based on the observed climate risks using a survey of 128 respondents and a case study of 13 respondents of the coastal area in Bangladesh. This study finds that all respondents witness a change in climate and both male and female respondents report flood and heat stresses are the most serious environmental problems in the study area. To build resilience, households undertake various adaptation strategies, and a higher percentage of females are found to adopt in maintaining food security, homestead gardening and rearing poultry and cattle, while husbands employ changing planting time, infrastructural development and crop-related adaptation strategies to climate change. This paper suggests that access to information about appropriate strategies should be improved that helps to support adaptation processes locally.

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