The working group “Environmental Behaviour and Planning” at the Institute of Environmental Planning (IUP) is launching a research project that seeks to unravel the interconnections between climate change, mental well-being, and adaptation decision-making in the agricultural sector. As societies grapple with the compounding effects of climate change —extreme weather events amongst the most poignant— the urgency of bolstering resilience is increasingly apparent, especially within vulnerable groups like farmers.
Kicking off in August 2024 and spanning until July 2027, the research project, led by Prof. Dr. Ann-Kathrin Koessler, "Mental well-being and adaptation decisions of Mexican farmers following extreme weather events", aims to provide insights into how extreme weather events impact the mental well-being of Mexican farmers and understand how this effect ties in with their subsequent adaptation decisions. With support from the German Research Foundation (DFG – Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft) and the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), the interdisciplinary initiative brings together behavioural economists and psychologists.
Emphasising a comprehensive approach that blends qualitative and quantitative research methods, the project encompasses three main stages:
- Unveiling Interconnections: Through a combination of focus group discussions, psychometric evaluations, economic experiments, and therapeutic sessions, the project aims to shed light on two largely unlinked sectors: the impacts of extreme weather events on mental well-being and the implications for adaptation decisions of farmers.
- Promoting Resilience: Based on the findings, the project aims to provide insights that could pave the way to developing mechanisms to alleviate negative impacts on mental well-being, thereby promoting better decision-making towards adaptation.
- Enabling Policy Interventions: The project outcomes aspire to be a valuable input for policymakers by creating interventions that protect economically vulnerable groups —particularly farmers in regions similar to Mexico at the mercy of extreme weather events.
By bridging this critical gap, the project champions a more holistic and inclusive approach to dealing with the increasingly severe challenges of climate change within the agricultural sector.
For more information: https://www.umwelt.uni-hannover.de/en/research/forschungsprojekte
