Assessing rural households' resilience and adaptation strategies to climate variability and change

Climate variability and change have intensely affected agricultural systems, which are the major sources of livelihood for rural families in developing countries. Given the fact that climatic events are projected to become more pervasive, it is necessary to address the resilience of rural households and their complementary choices for adaptation to climate change. Despite raising awareness about the need for enhancing climate resilience among the farm families of developing countries, little is known about the factors that influence their resilience to climate change. Therefore, a survey research was conducted in northeast Iran to serve as a case study in a developing country. A multistage stratified random sampling technique was used to investigate the climate resilience of 224 farm families. While the results revealed low, moderate, and high levels of climate resilience, most farm families were found unable to endure climatic stressors. To enhance climate resilience, most farmers had adopted a combination of absorptive and adaptive measures. Anticipative and transformative measures were less practiced. Age, adaptation strategies, household size, ownership, response efficacy and income were the main drivers of the resilience of farm families to climate extremes. To increase the rural households' resilience against climate change, planning appropriate resilience-building initiatives, designing efficient preventive, absorptive, adaptive and transformative strategies, providing fair technical and financial supports, and increasing rural households’ knowledge and information for sustainable management of farms are required. •Addressing climate resilience and adaptation choices of rural families is necessary.•Different levels of climate resilience (low, moderate and high) were determined.•Most rural families were found unable to endure climatic stressors.•Combination of absorptive and adaptive strategies was used by the resilient categories.•Climate resilience was induced by human, financial, technical and psychological drivers.