The Walker Institute was present at the Development Studies Association (DSA) annual conference organised and hosted by the University of Reading. The theme for this year was Crisis in the Anthropocene: Rethinking connection and agency for development. Academics in the field of global development came together from across the world to address issues from climate change, to plastic pollution and biodiversity loss to the emergence of novel viruses and new challenges.
Dr Elena Saggioro attended the first day of the conference and one of the many interesting sessions was on “Interrogating the links between Climate Change, Migration and Immobility” where the complex effects of climate change on human mobility were explored via a range of case studies, especially focusing on Asia.
Several speakers noted that climate shocks are only some of the factors affecting human mobility, and often not the dominant if compared to underlying socio-economic conditions. Indeed, the scientific literature agrees that the popular discourse shaped by news media and NGOs reports often overstates the current effect of climate change on human mobility. A few points often omitted are that displacement can be temporary since usually people strive to go back to their homes; migration already routinely happens in some of these communities (e.g. for seasonal labour); and dominant drivers of long-term migration tend to be economic opportunities. Importantly, not conveying the complex relationship between climate change and migration was noted as ultimately not serving the populations affected. These simplistic narratives could be manipulated to achieve political agendas on human mobility that may not improve the situation and create additional vulnerabilities.
Yet, given the projected escalating impacts of climate change, these relationships and the balance of effects may change. This relatively young area of research thus still needs more work, including being supported by better data on migration.
The second day continued with a series of 18 parallel panel sessions covering a range of topics related to development and the Anthropocene. Dr Harley Pope attended the panel on “Responsible Research: Ethics and Integrity in the Anthropocene” which focused on the perils of undertaking research when there are stark disparities and social distance between the status of the researcher and the researched. Much of this session was focused on reflections ethical issues that arose from undertaking research, although there were a couple of sessions that sought to theorise on the transactional basis of human behaviour and interactions. As the module convenor of the Climate Change: Values, Ethics and Justice module, Dr Pope found much to reflect on with respect to the opportunities and limits of ex ante ethical assessments vis-à-vis momentary pragmatic ethical considerations in the field – particularly around the issue of fairness in research.
Another panel session preceded lunch, which was followed by the plenary session of the day delivered by Prof. Jason Moore, entitled, “Civilizing Projects in the Capitalocene, or, Imperialism Developmentalisms in the Web of Life.” Prof Moore gave an engaging and uncompromising talk on how international development and the scientific establishment tends to unquestioningly and unknowingly serve the interests of Capital and big business. Moore contends that the whole concept of the Anthropocene fails to properly address the root causes of the issue, which is not man per se, but global capitalism. He maintains that our framings and solutions fail to address or even mention this core issue. In failing to do so, he suggests that scientists and development workers are acting as the unwitting agents of the same vested interests that continue to drive the climate crisis. Hence, he argues, it should not be called the Anthropocene, but instead the Capitalocene.
While the talk was aimed to be a provocation – which it certainly achieved, given the animated talk it generated during refreshments and further into the evening; there was much worth reflecting on. For example, the way that climate science is generated and delivered, and the way in which it is used to justify different actions, needs to be considered with respect to whose interests are being served, ignored or, in some cases, actively supressed. The Walker Institute is actively engaged in this issue through its work on My Climate Risk, which seeks to integrate upstream into climate science and decision making the different ways individuals see and relate to climate risk, rather than continue to rely on the traditional top-down dissemination of knowledge.
Dr Cathie Wells attended the third and final day which began with a keynote speech by Professor Coleen Vögel of the Global Change Institute at the University of Witwatersrand in Johannesburg. Her key theme, the importance of co-production with stakeholders to give all a voice and help to ensure that adaptation policies are inclusive and coherent, was one which resonates strongly with the work of the Walker Institute. She was also keen to express the need for a range of different modes of communication in bridging the gap between climate experts and local stakeholders, with art helping to provide a middle ground from which understanding can be developed.
Responding to her speech was the Walker Institute’s Director, Rosalind Cornforth, who explained how integrating bottom-up planning with top-down climate research is imperative if science is to be harnessed to enhance policy making, a key approach of the My Climate Risk Lighthouse Activity. The importance of hearing local voices and working outside of our comfort zones to aid empathy in interdisciplinary research was highlighted.
The Climate Change Adaptation and Livelihoods morning session included talks on the artisanal fisherfolk of Nigeria and the impact that climate change is having on their unique way of life, the effect that living through flood events has had on the ability of farmers in Zambia to share resources and to what extent irrigation is being developed on a farmer-led basis in sub-Saharan Africa, based on a review of current literature. The research shared reflected not only the difficulties that indigenous people with traditional livelihoods are facing, but also their ingenuity in coping with climate change on a daily basis.
In the afternoon, two speakers presented their research in the “Understanding the agricultural food systems and climate change nexus” session, one using econometric analysis to look at patterns in those shown to be more vulnerable to food insecurity as the climate changes in Malawi and the other discussing the impact of changes in the climate on the livelihoods of smallholder farmers in Nigeria. From both projects it was that the same factors that make people feel insecure, like poverty, gender, low levels of education and size of household, continue to be the main indicators under the effects of climate change.