Dialogues between peasant and scientific perspectives as a strategy to increase resilience to climate change in a Colombian Andean highland

Abstract

Based on peasant and scientific knowledge of climate and climate change in a Colombian highland, located in the departments of Cundinamarca and Boyacá, this article studies the relationship between hazards caused by rain and extreme temperatures on peasant communities. Among 26 weather stations analyzed, five showed changes between 1980 and 2014: four with increases and one with a decrease, using the Mann-Kendall test with more than 90% confidence. Per decade periods, four stations showed increased maximum daily temperatures, which aligns with the perceptions of farmers, while one showed a decrease. Meanwhile, minimum temperatures decreased in two stations and increased in two others. The climate change observed by farmers is not expressed through meteorological variables, but through changes in conditions and factors affecting their rural work. From a transdisciplinary approach based on dialogues with farmers, climate change was better understood through adaptations in the use and management of their territories, which may be considered a better perspective to increase the resilience of farmers in the Colombian Andes against the risks of climate change.

Keywords

• conocimiento campesino
• lluvias
• temperaturas extremas
• cambio climático
• vulnerabilidad
• colombia