Farmers in Rangpur have started early planting of winter vegetables to avert potential crop damage due to cold weather extremes. Pesticide use has reduced as a result, and farmers are now earning more profits than before. The local agriculture extension office has been providing necessary awareness and training on the benefits of early planting, and more and more farmers are beginning to adopt this practice.

Unpredictable rainfall patterns, flash floods along with incidence of drought conditions due to climate change, are adversely affecting farmers and fisherfolk in the northern district of Kurigram. To address the issue, locals, with support from the Bangladesh Water Development Board have started reclamation and rehabilitation of abandoned canals in the area. Fisherfolk now have new spaces for cultivating fish, while farmers are growing seasonal crops along the banks and using the water to irrigate their fields during dry season.

Majority of the people living along the banks of Teesta and Brahmaputra River in the northern areas of Bangladesh are engaged in fishing for their livelihoods. Howeever, irregular rainfall and untimely floods due to climate change are hampering the regular breeding and production of local species of fish. Faced with huge losses, many fishermen had to sell off their own boats, and forced to join bigger fishing groups for only half as much income as before. Left with no choice, several of them had to migrate to other places.

Irregular rainfall, untimely floods, extreme heat and droughts are the major climatic hazards experienced in the northern districts of Bangladesh. As a result, agriculture using traditional methods and techniques have become very difficult. To cope with the situation, local farmers have devised innovative ways to deal with the issue, including early planting as well as use of polytunnels and short duration crop varieties, allowing them to grow vegetables all year round.

Lazina Begum, resident of Musallipara village in Kurigram, has started practicing ‘sack gardening’ on raised beds, as an innovative approach to protect her crops during flood months. Her once-submerged land has now transformed into a thriving garden, boasting a variety of vegetables including ginger plants, pointed gourds, long beans, and an array of leafy greens. The raised bed method and sack gardening not only shield her crops from the recurrent floods, but have also become a source of substantial income for her.

For the past couple of decades, salinity levels in water and soil have been gradually rising in Bagerhat, forcing people to quit agriculture and start practising shrimp farming. However, due to extreme heat and irregular rainfall in recent years, the number of virus attacks on shrimp farms have increased, causing huge losses for the farmers. In response, several farmers have opted for crab farming which proved to be more profitable than shrimp farming.

Md. Abu Taher, a young farmer from Gaibandha is growing BRRI-52 rice, a flood tolerant variant of rice. With training and support from the local agriculture extension office, other farmers like Taher are also using this rice variant to sustain their livelihoods in the face of erratic rainfall patterns caused by climate change.

For the past 20 years, Faruk had been ‘hilsa’ fishing in Meghna river to earn a living. However, several Chars (riverine islands) have emerged along the river in recent years, significantly restricting upstream migration of ‘hilsa’ population. Over 165,000 fishermen living in Bhola district have been affected as a result. However, Faruk had not given up. As an alternative, he adopted cage culture to cultivate tilapia and other freshwater fish.

Irregular rainfall due to climate change poses an array of challenges for agricultural production in the northern district of Gaibandha. Irrigation costs is one of tge major issues facing farmers in the region. To cope with this, local farmers have started using solar irrigation pumps for their agricultural purposes. Their production costs have fallen by over 30% as a result. The practice is becoming increasingly widespread in the region, with almost 3000 farmers across Gaibandha using solar irrigation pumps now.

Tulatoli Colony, situated in Ward no 5 of Monpura Island in Bhola, is home to around 100 families. Due to its low elevation and absence of embankments, the colony is frequently flooded during cyclonic storms and tidal surges. In response, families are building their homesteads and toilets on raised platforms to prevent inundation during floods.

Rehana Khatun had been living in Porar Char of Kurigram for the last 12 years, until a devastating riverbank erosion last year swallowed the entire Char. Losing her home and all her belongings, Rehana moved to the nearest YouthNet Char with her family. With training and financial support from a local youth-led organization called YouthNet, she bought a sewing machine and took up tailoring to earn a living. She is now earning enough to provide for her family.

Char (riverine islands) areas situated along the Teesta river in the northern district of Gaibandha are frequently subjected to riverbank erosion, resulting in significant loss of land and property. To combat this issue, local residents of Bhati Kapshia Char in the Sundarganj upazila of Gaibandha have collectively planted 4000-5000 trees of various species, including banana trees and vetiver grass, across a stretch of 1.5 kms along the riverbank. Erosion has substantially reduced since. Local authorities believe that this collaborative initiative could serve as a model for protecting other Char areas across the country.

The residents of Bhato ki Dhani, a hamlet in Rajasthan’s Jaisalmer district in India, use locally available materials to make their school more comfortable for young students in the face of rising temperatures.

In Bharatkhali Union of Gaibandha, a group of women collectively manage a Community Food Bank, which they had set up six years ago with support from NGOs. Every month, the women deposit up to one kilogram of rice grains each, which other villagers can borrow during periods of crisis and emergency situations. Over the years, the local community has significantly benefitted from this initiative, being able to access food in the aftermath of natural disasters such as flooding and riverbank erosion.

People living along the Teesta river basin are engaged a constant battle with the forces of nature. For up to 4 months each year, they have to endure relentless flash floods caused by excessive rainfall. Despite the difficulties, the inhabitants remain deeply rooted to their homes, refusing to migrate elsewhere. Instead, they have devised ingenious strategies to cope with the challenges posed by annual flooding. These include adopting alternative livelihoods, stockpiling grains, and availing financial services from local lenders.

As the number of Chars (river islands) increase in the northern part of Bangladesh due to drying of rivers, people are opting for transporting passengers on horse drawn carriages as a livelihood option.

People living in the bank of Teesta-Jamuna-Brahmaputra river are losing their lands and belongings to riverbank erosion caused by more intense and frequent floods. Number of climate migrants are also increasing as a result. Consequentially, women in the Batikamari Char of Gaibandha are experiencing a range of socio-economic challenges and health hazards. But against all odds, these women, determined to turn their luck around, have adopted different climate resilient farming methods such as growing vegetables on raised beds and taking up alternative livelihood options such as sheep rearing.

People of Lakhitari union of Rangpur, Bangladesh developed an embankment with their own resources to safeguard their lives and assets from the floods.

In Char Gobindapur of Gaibandha, a group of women had come together and collaboratively set up a Community Food Bank, with support from local NGOs, to ensure access to food during periods of crisis. On a monthly basis, these women contribute up to one kilogram of rice grains each, which fellow villagers can borrow as required. Over the years, the local community has greatly profited from this endeavor, accessing sustenance in the aftermath of various natural calamities that plague the area.

Communities of Gharialdanga and Biddananda union of Kurigram, after losing all their belongings to riverbank erosion, joined forces to rent land in the nearby district of Rangpur to have a second shot at life. Instead of migrating to big cities like Dhaka, Chittagong, the displaced people moved to Thushmara Char (river island) of Rangpur, (which is now known as Bharatia Gram - Village of Tenants), where they have rented lands for cultivation and dwelling for USD 9 and 18 per year respectively.

Vulnerable coastal communities along the Scottish coast are mapping hazards and engaging the island community to develop adaptation plans under the Carbon Neutral Initiative. Lessons from their efforts echo those from the developing world, including the importance of locally-rooted action, coordination, interconnectedness, and adequate finance and capacity.

Agriculture is at risk in the northern districts of Bangladesh due to irregular rainfall, extreme heat, untimely flood and droughts. Depleting groundwater table is further adding to the problem. The situation is particularly severe in the districts of Rangpur, Kurigram and Nilphamari. To cope with this, local farmers, with support from the agricultural extension office, are shifting towards climate resilient farming techniques such as early planting of vegetables, use of less water intensive rice variants etc.

Community-led efforts in Darewadi have transformed barren terrains into verdant landscapes where wells have sprung to life, and fields provide abundant harvests. The economy of the village has been transformed, inspiring similar efforts by countless others across India.

Margaret Arnold, World Bank’s former Global Lead on the Social Dimensions of Climate Change, describes Kenya’s Financing Locally Led Climate Action Program (FLLoCA), which is the first, national scale model of devolved climate finance.

Across 44 villages on the island of Java, women’s groups are working together to plan and executive a diverse range of initiatives to reduce the risk that climate change disasters present, adapt to changing weather patterns, and develop stronger, more resilient local communities.