Pastoral Resilience and Sense of Place in Karamoja, Uganda (PReSense)

project summary

Historically, pastoralism has been viewed as harmful to climate and environment with claims that their livestock mobility and movements lead to overgrazing and desertification. However, newer studies instead show pastoralism as the most resilient production system for managing climate and environmental variability, particularly due to exactly the mobility and movement with the environment. This research project (PReSense) aims to explore the social, emotional, material, and practical connections that pastoralists in Karamoja, Uganda, have to the places they live in and move between, i.e. their “sense of place.” In climate change adaptation research, the term “sense of place” has been used to understand what motivates people to adopt climate change adaptation measures to protect places they care about, and also what hinders adaptive practices, as people often resist making changes to their local landscape, livelihood, or lifestyle.

PReSense explores how the sense of place among pastoralists in Karamoja, Uganda, affects climate change adaptation practices, and how this knowledge can contribute to reducing maladaptive practices and enhancing resilience. Through qualitative case studies in three different areas of Karamoja (Kaabong, Moroto, and Nakapiripirit), the PReSense aims to 1) investigate the sense of place in pastoralism and how it influences local climate change adaptive and maladaptive practices, and 2) examine how the political environment enables or hinders pastoralists' ability to adapt to climate change. The insights gained from these three case studies will form the basis for 3) advancing the field of climate change adaptation research by applying the concept of sense of place to a pastoral, mobile way of life, and 4) supporting the uptake of evidence from this study to assist political and non-political entities in developing actionable policies and fostering a conducive political environment for pastoralism.

The project collaboration between Ugandan and Danish partners, with the majority of Ugandan project participants located in Karamoja, forms the foundation for PReSense's aim of 5) strengthening research and educational capacity in Uganda through equitable and participatory partnerships. This will be further supported by the project's three PhD positions, which will all be based in Karamoja. As a result, PReSense will enhance research, learning, and educational capacity in Karamoja and across Uganda on pastoralism and related topics.