Climate Change Adaptation Through Agro-Social Enterprise: Green Net's Experiences in Thailand

Abstract

Climate change and variations have become an important issue in Thai rural sectors, especially for agriculture producers. Their livelihoods are sensitive and vulnerable to climatic changes. Typical responses to climate change in Thailand tend to focus more on disaster management as climate-related natural disasters capture more attention from the public compared to slow but progressive changes in climate. More perversely, climate adaptation (or even mitigation) is often used as justification ongoing development activities to procure funding. There is a shift in the types of actors involved in adaptation. In addition to conventional public agencies and non-government organizations, a new breed of organizations initiates innovative climate adaptation efforts: agro-based social enterprises. This paper looks at how Green Net, a Thai agro-based social enterprise, works to improve adaptive capacity among its organic and fair trade rice farmers in Yasothorn, a Northeastern region of Thailand. It highlights the adaptation successes, collaborative adaptation efforts and shares advantages of such enterprises and its lessons learned from its field activities during 2007–2011.