Climate Variability and Causes: From the Perspective of the Tharaka People of Eastern Kenya
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Date
2017
Authors
Recha, Charles W
Makokha, George L
Shisanya, Chris A
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Springer
Abstract
The study assessed community understanding of climate variability in semi-arid Tharaka sub-county, Kenya. The study
used four focus group discussions (FGD) (N = 48) and a household survey (N = 326) to obtain information from four
agro-ecological zones (AEZs). The results were synthesized and descriptively presented. People in Tharaka sub-county
are familiar with the term climate change and associate it with environmental degradation. There are, however, misconceptions and gaps in understanding the causes of climate change. There was a mismatch between community
and individual perception of onset and cessation of rainfall—evidence that analysis of the impact of climate change
should take into account the scale of interaction. To improve climate change knowledge, there is a need for climate
change education by scientifc institutions—to provide information on local climatic conditions and global and
regional drivers of climate change to local communities.
Description
Article
Keywords
Perception, Climate variability, Tharaka
Citation
Recha, C. W., Makokha, G. L., & Shisanya, C. A. (2017). Climate variability and causes: from the perspective of the Tharaka people of eastern Kenya. Geoscience Letters, 4, 1-8.