Climate change: Social adaptation strategies for fishermen

As climate change continues to pose a major threat to the well-being of both people and the environment, adaptation to its negative effects has moved to the forefront among occupations that rely on natural resources for their livelihood. As one of the main occupational groups who are dependent on nature, fishermen are expected to experience many new challenges from the changing climate. Though an adequate amount of scientific research on climate change has been carried out, few studies have explored the social circumstances of the issue, particularly in the context of small scale fishermen. This paper aims to address this gap. Aspects such as risks reduction, social relationships, climate change knowledge, alternative skills, involvement in adaptation planning and access to credit are recommended to be considered as these are found to provide synergy for social adaptation, and it is hoped that such recommendation strategies will assist stakeholders in generating and engendering effective adaptation strategies for small-scale fishermen.