Fisher’s Resilience: Preparedness, Coping Capacity, and Adaptation Capacity in Surigao del Sur, Philippines

Coastal fishing communities depend on marine resources for their protein and livelihood needs, making them vulnerable to natural hazards. We assessed the exposure and adaptive capacity of six fishing villages located in three municipalities (Cortes, Lianga, Lanuza) in Surigao del Sur, Philippines by determining their resilience to various climatic hazards. We held six focus groups with 10–15 participants from each fishing community (N = 80 participants). We also conducted stakeholder meetings (N = 100 participants) to validate our findings. We used 12 indicators, divided into three components of resilience scored using a Likert scale: preparedness, coping, and adaptive capacity. We identified the important roles of good communication between community and municipality leaders, seminars and training on natural hazard awareness, livelihood alternatives, the presence of marine protected areas, and infrastructure to mitigate the impact of natural hazards (e.g., regular typhoons) such as sea walls.