Indigenous Climate Knowledge in Southern Uganda: The Multiple Components of a Dynamic Regional System

Climatic Change 100(2):243-265, 2010

Posted: 29 Mar 2013

See all articles by Ben Orlove

Ben Orlove

Columbia University

Carla Roncoli

Emory University

Date Written: 2010

Abstract

Farmers in southern Uganda seek information to anticipate the interannual variability in the timing and amount of precipitation, a matter of great importance to them since they rely on rain-fed agriculture for food supplies and income. The four major components of their knowledge system are: (1) longstanding familiarity with the seasonal patterns of precipitation and temperature, (2) a set of local traditional climate indicators, (3) observation of meteorological events, (4) information about the progress of the seasons elsewhere in the region. We examine these components and show the connections among them. We discuss the social contexts in which this information is perceived, evaluated, discussed and applied, and we consider the cultural frameworks that support the use of this information. This system of indigenous knowledge leads farmers to participate as agents as well as consumers in programs that use modern climate science to plan for and adapt to climate variability and climate change.

Suggested Citation

Orlove, Ben and Roncoli, Carla, Indigenous Climate Knowledge in Southern Uganda: The Multiple Components of a Dynamic Regional System (2010). Climatic Change 100(2):243-265, 2010, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2240471

Ben Orlove (Contact Author)

Columbia University ( email )

420 West 118th Street, room 833
New York, NY 10027
United States
+1 (212) 854 1543 (Phone)

Carla Roncoli

Emory University ( email )

201 Dowman Drive
Atlanta, GA 30322
United States

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