Local perceptions in climate change debates: insights from case studies in the Alps and the Andes

Abstract

The importance of integrating local perspectives into international debates about climate change has received increasing attention. Local perspectives on the impacts of climate change often focus on issues of loss and harm and support the widely recognized need for global responses to climate change as suggested by scientists and international institutions.Here we argue that local perspectives need to be addressed not only from outside communities but also from inside in order to understand people's responses to climate change: their concerns, their understanding of themselves as members of particular groups and their position in the world, their view on responsibilities for causing climate change, and their perceptions of possible responses. The ethnographic work at two study sites, one in Carhuaz, Cordillera Blanca, Peru, and one in Stilfs, South Tyrolean Alps, Italy, identifies dominant perceptions on climate change at each site with a particular focus on glacier retreat. The case studies show that the view on the need for global action as response to climate change is not necessarily shared throughout the world, and thus presents a challenge to global collaboration.

Rapid decline of snow and ice in the tropical Andes – Impacts, uncertainties and challenges ahead

“…These aspects shape how local residents view and respond to the apparent changes in their environment, including changing climatic conditions or glacier retreat (Young and Lipton, 2006;Carey et al, 2014). Jurt et al (2015) for example, based on interviews conducted in a village at the base of the Cordillera Blanca, report how local inhabitants perceive the retreating glaciers as a threat to their livelihoods and how it further exacerbates their concern regarding water scarcity and unjust water allocation. Brugger et al (2013) also reveal the deep emotional attachments that people in Peru (and elsewhere) have to glaciers and glacier loss, a feeling that Rhoades et al (2008) also documented around Cotacachi in Ecuador, where there has been significant emotional impacts of the changing landscape amidst glacier loss.…”

“…In many Andean watersheds, local inhabitants are acutely aware of their rapidly changing environment and the retreat of glaciers (Young and Lipton, 2006;Bury et al, 2011;Jurt et al, 2015). Although their response and coping strategies vary widely, local populations have often developed their own environmental knowledge and sense of adaptation or coping strategies with these types of hazards over time.…”

Impacts of Glacier Recession and Declining Meltwater on Mountain Societies

“…In Peru's Cordillera Blanca, household studies in the Yanamarey Valley showed that 93 percent of agriculture-and livestockdependent respondents observed decadal decreases in dry season water supplies alongside a steady decline in glacier coverage (Bury et al 2011). Other studies in the region suggest that locals perceive vanishing glaciers to be critical for agriculture (Young and Lipton 2006;Jurt et al 2015). Although individuals might observe retreating glaciers and note less water, they also acknowledge that the current water realities are shaped by water governance (Rasmussen 2015).…”

Advancing the interdisciplinary dialogue on climate justice

“…In their contribution to this special issue, Jurt et al (2015) provide insight into the understanding of climate change of local mountain communities in the Andes of Peru and the Alps of Italy. By means of ethnographic work, they examine two communities who experience glacier retreat, their understanding of themselves as members of particular groups and their position in the world, their view on responsibilities for causing climate change, and their perceptions of possible responses.…”