Climate change education for resilient smallholder farmers in Eastern Uganda

Abstract

This study explored climate change education among smallholder farmers in Bulambuli District, Eastern Uganda. Climate change education is critical in fostering climate-conscious communities and enhancing resilience of vulnerable populations of smallholder farmers in rural Uganda. This study explored three specific objectives: investigate the kinds of indigenous knowledge integrated into local climate education, examine how farmers acquire climate-related information and skills, and assessing their experiences with climate change education initiatives. Guided by Transformative Learning Theory and interpretivist research philosophy, a qualitative case study design was employed, collecting data through in-depth interviews, focus group discussions, and direct observations with farmers from Nabongo and Cheptui villages. Data were also collected from key informants, including community leaders and educators. Findings revealed that indigenous knowledge, such as animal behavior, wind patterns, cloud formations, and lunar indicators, remain central to understanding and adapting to climate change. Such knowledge is often combined with scientific knowledge acquired from informal and non-formal learning channels like peer-to-peer sharing, NGO workshops, farmer field schools, and SACCO meetings, which proved more effective than formal education or radio broadcasts. Observations confirmed the adoption of climate-smart farming practices including soil and water conservation through terraces, crop rotation, tree planting, and cultivation of resilient crops. Farmers reported positive experiences when training was practical, participatory, and delivered in local languages, but challenges included limited follow-up, gender disparities, language barriers, high costs of adaptation, and inconsistencies between scientific knowledge and local realities. Recommendations highlight the need for hands-on, gender-responsive training, integration of local leadership, and leveraging local change agents to sustain learning, alongside the combination of indigenous and scientific knowledge supported by communal adaptation resources. Overall, the study underscores that culturally sensitive, participatory, and sustained climate change education programs that value indigenous knowledge and address local socioecological contexts enhance comprehension, behavioral change, and resilience, providing policyrelevant insights for scaling up effective climate education strategies in rural Uganda