This project has the aim to improve the adaptive capacity of rural small and marginal farmers, including hill women in the Himalayan region of Uttarakhand, India, to respond to climate change by introducing a combination of Climate Smart Farming Technologies along with required social engineering and capacity building processes.
The implementation of this solution in Champawat district, in the state of Uttarakhand, is part of one of six small-scale adaptation projects financed by the Adaptation Fund in India, aimed at combating climate change and its associated challenges. It includes the implementation of different measures in 10 vulnerable villages in the district, which is characterized by the presence of mountain ranges, large valleys, and rivers, and whose population is primarily engaged in agriculture. According to previous observations, this region faces numerous climatic and social challenges, such as water stress, extreme weather events, habitat loss, and land degradation, acute poverty, isolation, discrimination against women and lack of technical knowledge.
The project has been tailored to local needs. It focuses on diversifying production systems and improving institutional capacities to adopt climate-smart technologies and practices as a means of reducing people's vulnerability, while simultaneously building field evidence of climate-resilient strategies and approaches for subsequent replication or upscaling. Throughout the project implementation period, special attention has been given to ensuring the benefit of women and other poor and marginalized groups.
The project is composed of three main components:
Component 1: Community Mobilization and Organization.
Component 2: Introduction of Water Resource Development and Climate Smart Farming Technology.
Component 3: Knowledge Management including Knowledge Creation and Wider Dissemination Actions.
Photo: Project’s Implementation Areas
Source: Adaptation Fund, 2021.