Challenges of Local Coping Capacities due to Climate Change in the Coastal Regions of Bangladesh

摘要

Bangladesh is prone to a multitude of natural hazards and vulnerable to the adverse impacts of future change in climatic conditions. One of the most vulnerable aspects in climate change is the fragile coastal ecosystem in Bangladesh. Here, different ecosystems are highly exposed to cyclone, sea level rise, coastal flooding, flash flood, intense riverine floods, droughts and other climatic extremes. Traditionally, in Bangladesh, climatic variations have provided opportunities (resources) and imposed costs (hazards), depending on how society adapted to the environment. In the drive for modernization, evolving technologies and economic and social structures alter existing systems and make many sectors and groups in the ecosystems (especially Coastal Areas) more vulnerable to significant variations in climate and sea level. In this regard, indigenous knowledge and local coping capacities have become a key to survival of the people of the coastal areas (like Sundarbans Area) of Bangladesh. But in recent years, climate change has had a serious impact on the livelihood enterprises and coping capacities. The present paper has been prepared based on secondary sources to examine the often intriguing coping strategies of the coastal areas due to the adverse impacts of climate change. This paper hopes to contribute to our broader understanding of the challenges of the local coping strategies that communities have developed in their quest to stabilize increasingly fragile livelihood systems.