Building Adaptive Capacity to Climate Change Through NGO-Initiated Community-Based Adaptation: Insights from Southeast Coastal Communities in Bangladesh

Adaptation is now considered a fundamental means of addressing various challenges posed by climate change. Among different pathways of adaptation, community-based adaptation (CBA) to climate change has become a widely accepted approach, which has been practised primarily by non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in numerous developing countries including Bangladesh. The popularity of the CBA approach lies in the premise that it builds the adaptive capacity of the most vulnerable individuals and communities to climate change based on their knowledge, priorities and needs. The overarching aim of this research is to explore the underlying factors that influence the implementation of NGO-driven community-based climate change adaptation (CCA) interventions that seek to build adaptive capacity of individuals and communities vulnerable to climate change. In particular, it examines the external factors that influence the implementation of CBA theory in practice, the ways local individuals and communities perceive and respond to these external interventions, as well as to what extent such adaptation measures contribute to strengthening the adaptive capacity of groups and communities that are vulnerable to climate change. The arguments of this study were developed based on the insights from a CBA project implemented through the formation of women-led community-based organisations (CBOs) in the southeast coastal areas of Bangladesh. Research undertaken for this study adopted a qualitative case study approach, and data were collected from different actors engaged in CBA projects by using multiple qualitative techniques including: semi-structured interviews, focus group discussions and participant observations. The study showed that the principles of CBA face diverse challenges. The foremost challenge arises from the existing institutional framework that finances, plans and implements the CBA projects. The inter-relationships between organisations, and their pre-formulated project goals and procedures of a CBA project, limit the achievements of its intended outcomes. Results indicated that NGO-initiated CBA interventions, delivered through the CBOs, not only benefited from the opportunities presented by the approach, but also embraced the long-standing weaknesses that inhibited the achievement of sustainable adaptation outcomes. Another major challenge emerges from the target communities per se. The study found that the perceptions of community actors and the socio-cultural norms of the local communities impeded the CBOs to achieve capacities to act collectively to enhance adaptive capacity for the whole community. Results also demonstrated that there was a deep disconnection between the objectives of the CBA project and the agendas of local community members. This, in turn, negatively influenced the group-based CBA interventions to build adaptive capacity of communities vulnerable to climate change. The empirical evidence of this study contributes to the current debates in the literature on community-based CCA by identifying the challenges and constraints of applying CBA principles in practice. As such, it provides some suggestions for overcoming the barriers of achieving the promises of the CBA approach. Overall, this study forms the basis for further critical analysis on planned bottom-up adaptation interventions to climate change.