Rural households, Agriculture, and Climate change – why and how farmers (do not) adapt in Ethiopia (RACE)

This project investigates why and how rural households in Ethiopia (do not) adapt through a combination of qualitative, quantitative, and experimental methods, using an integrated watershed management lens.

About the project

Global warming has far-reaching consequences for humans, ecosystems, and economies. Households reliant on rain-fed agriculture are particularly vulnerable. Yet, current climate change adaptation among these households remains very limited. Using integrated watershed management and smallholder agriculture in Ethiopia as a case, we uncover what makes households adapt to changes, estimate the relative importance of climate change in the adaptation of new practices, measure what types of  interventions promote adaptation (across a range of households, including female-headed households), and diagnose how this can inform effective future adaptation policies. RACE will suggest pathways to enhance rural households' adaptive capacity.

Project information

Primary investigator (PI)

Project period

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Organisation

Rural households, Agriculture, and Climate change – why and how farmers (do not) adapt in Ethiopia (RACE) is part of: Section for Production, Markets and Policy

More about the project

Using integrated watershed management and smallholder agriculture in Ethiopia as a case, we uncover what makes households adapt to changes, estimate the relative importance of climate change in the adaptation of new practices, measure what types of interventions promote adaptation (across a range of households, including female-headed households), and diagnose how this can inform effective future adaptation policies. RACE will suggest pathways to enhance rural households' adaptive capacity.

  1. WP1 identifies the determinants of rural households' climate change adaptation practices.
  2. WP2 estimates the relative importance of climate change when adaptation measures are undertaken.
  3. WP3 designs and tests interventions that increase household-level adaptation of climate-smart technologies.
  4. WP4 identifies factors enabling the design and dissemination of realistic and feasible guidelines on climate change adaptation on the ground
  5. WP5 builds human and social capacity at partner institutions to undertake high quality climate change related research and dissemination.

September 2023:Joint start-up workshop.

December 2023: 5 PhD students enrolled (4 double degree PhD students enrolled at Barhir Dar University (BDU) and University of Copenhagen and 1 PhD student, partially funded by RACE, enrolled at University of Copenhagen).

March-June 2024: PhD students and senior researchers from Bahir Dar University (BDU) and Policy Studies Institute (PSI) visited Copenhagen (1 month visit for senior researchers and 3 months visit for PhD students).

March-June 2024: BDU researchers present their research work at the department of Food and Resource Economics.

October 2024: Joint preparatory field visit to South Wollo in Amhara region, Sidama Region and South Ethiopia regional state.

January-February 2025: Data collection, ongoing.

March 2025: Senior researchers joint field work during data collection.

March 2025:Project Advisory Committee meeting held.

April 2025: Baseline data collection completed. Find the details about the data collection instruments here.

June 2025: Randomized controlled trial of three interventions was implemented among 200 watershed groups in Amhara, Sidama and South Western Ethiopia Region ( 6 zones and 17 districts) of Ethiopia.

September-November 2025: Three senior researchers from Bahir Dar University (BDU) visited University of Copenhagen, Department of Food and Resource Economics. The European commission supported the visit through 1-month Erasmus+ funding for 1 senior researcher.

August 2025-January 2026: Four RACE project PhD students are visiting University of Copenhagen, Department of Food and Resource Economics. The European commission supported the visit through two-month Erasmus+ funding for all RACE project PhD students.

February-March 2026: Mid-way follow-up of 150 watershed groups, which received one of the three randomized controlled trial interventions, was conducted and midline-data collected.

March 2026:Mid-way RACE project workshop and Project Advisory Committee meeting were held. 

March 2026: Senior researchers and PhD students conducted a joint field work to the project study sites.

External researchers

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