Analysis of climate change vulnerability and adaptive capacity of small coffee producers in Turrialba, Costa Rica

Inglés. In 2015, the Tropical Agricultural Research and Higher Education Center (CATIE) andthe Regional Climate Change Program (RCCP) developed a rapid assessment tool to helptechnicians and producers in Central America measure the vulnerability and adaptive capacityof coffee (Coffea arabica) farms affected by climate change. Supporting this initiative, theCentral American Program for Integral Management of Coffee Rust (Hemilia vastatrix)(PROCAGICA) provided support to develop a reference manual guiding the process in CostaRica, where coffee is mainly cultivated by small producers who represent 97% of the total coffeeproducers (ICAFE, 2018).The present study was conducted between October 2018 and May 2019, and focused onapplying the rapid assessment tool on 26 coffee farms (Organic, Agrosustainable andConventional Systems) that belong to members of the Apoya Naturalba Coffee Associationsituated in Turrialba, Costa Rica. The purpose of the study was to determine the vulnerabilityand adaptive capacity of the farms using the rapid assessment tool, farm surveys and aparticipatory workshop. The data which was gathered, tabulated and analyzed with the use offeatures in Microsoft Excel and INFOSTAT (2012). Frequency tables, Contingency tables andCorrespondence Analysis were used to analyze the data.Youth involvement in coffee activities was low to absent. The producers planted 8 ormore traditional and improved varieties as well as diverse crops; and had a few small stockanimals. The findings demonstrate that the farms are in 4 categories; Critical vulnerability andadaptive capacity; Average critical vulnerability and adaptive capacity; Regular vulnerabilityand adaptive capacity; and lastly, Moderate vulnerability and adaptive capacity. The mostimportant limitations to coffee production were temperature increase (100%) and irregularrainfall (100%). Statistical analysis demonstrated that based on the sample size used; there wasno association between the Category of Vulnerability and Adaptive capacity and the number ofpractices implemented on the farm. Neither were there any association between the number ofpractices and the type of system implemented by the producers.

Español; castellano. Tesis (Maestría) - CATIE. Turrialba (Costa Rica), 2019

Español; castellano. CATIE - Centro Agronómico Tropical de Investigación y Enseñanza