Sugar, Communities, and Companies: Interventions to build climate resilience in Pakistan
WWF Changing Climate
Accelerating solutions to survive and thrive in our climate future.
Recently, the WWF Corporate Climate Resilience Partnerships team traveled to Punjab, Pakistan for workshops with high-level government officials, sugarcane farmers, civil society organizations, and academics. WWF brought these groups together to socialize a climate resilience action plan and gather ideas for priority interventions on climate resilience and adaptation against drought, extreme heat, and flooding. WWF Changing Climate sat down with Laura Brush , Senior Program Officer, U.S. Corporate Resilience Partnerships, to learn more about the impact of climate change on sugar production, climate risks to these communities, and interventions that enhance communities’ resilience to changing weather patterns and water security issues.?
WWF Changing Climate (WCC): What motivates you to work with companies to enhance their climate resilience??
Laura Brush (LB): I’ve worked with federal agencies, cities, and companies on policy and programs related to climate change adaptation, particularly for water resources and flooding. I enjoy working with companies because of how connected to and reliant they are on the people, places, and ecosystems where they operate and source materials for their products. This connection enables them to drive positive changes that support communities facing climate change impacts. At WWF, we work with companies to provide guidance on their climate adaptation and resilience strategies as they relate to the climate risks to the communities and ecosystems where they have a footprint. We facilitate the development of projects in landscapes around the world that build resilience for communities, to the benefit of companies that depend on them.???
WCC: How is climate change impacting sugar production in Pakistan???
LB: Climate change is influencing multiple trends impacting both sugar production and the farming communities that produce it in the Punjab province of Pakistan. In addition to sugar, this region—considered the breadbasket of the country—is important for food production and other cash crops like cotton that global companies source as inputs to their products.??
Sugarcane has high water requirements, and crops are being directly damaged or stunted by water scarcity due to drought and prolonged periods of extreme heat. Rainfall patterns are also changing, including the timing and intensity of annual monsoon rains, causing extreme flooding, increased soil erosion, and nutrient loss. Moreover, pest populations that damage crops are also rising due to increasing temperatures. These trends are negatively impacting yields of sugar and other crops and are putting agricultural communities, as well as supply chains for companies that source from the region, at greater risk.
WCC: Right, and this all has significant implications for farmer’s families and livelihoods. Can you share more about what future risks you foresee for farms and farming communities in Pakistan??
LB: The agricultural sector in Pakistan is comprised mostly of smallholder farmers who farm on average about 2.5 hectares (or roughly 6 acres) of land. Many of these farmers have limited means with which to deal with climate impacts but are coping with these threats in several ways. For example, some producers have switched from sugarcane to less water-intensive crops like cotton and maize. Some are also applying more fertilizer to compensate for soil nutrient loss. Broadly, agricultural groundwater withdrawals are increasing as surface water supplies have decreased, leading to declining groundwater tables. Some of these strategies may lead to greater risks (what is called “maladaptation”) in the region moving forward.?
Climate hazards are also causing direct impacts to health and wellbeing in farming communities. These include heat stroke, especially for farm workers, and limited access to clean water for drinking and household needs. Severe flooding events, like the summer 2022 floods, have displaced people from their communities, and are exacerbating existing issues like food insecurity and the spread of waterborne diseases. These impacts are contributing to a larger trend of migration from rural areas to cities, which threatens the agricultural sector and the vitality of rural communities more broadly.?
WCC: Recently you met with partners involved in water and agricultural management in Punjab. Why did you meet with them and what did you learn? ?
LB: In collaboration with local partners, we are developing a resilience action plan for the landscape communities in Punjab. In the plan, we highlight many of the root causes of climate risks and vulnerabilities in the region. We use this analysis and a systems-thinking approach to outline interventions that could address key vulnerabilities in the area, and potential partners that could be engaged to implement these solutions, including companies that source from the region. To inform the plan, we’ve engaged over 100 individuals in the region to hear more about their experiences and concerns related to climate change hazards, current coping strategies, and solutions that they think will best mitigate climate risks.??
These engagements have included a focus group with smallholder farmers and a workshop with representatives from national and provincial governments, civil society, the sugar mill industry, and academia and research. At the workshop, cross-sector groups discussed the potential cascading impacts of climate hazards and ranked resilience-building interventions on their effectiveness and feasibility. We heard from several attendees that it was valuable to participate in such cross-sector discussions, because different groups engaging on water, agricultural, and climate resilience issues in the region are often working in silos.??
WCC: What strategies were discussed or generated that are key for agricultural communities in the region??
LB: Pakistan is facing severe flooding, extreme heat, and drought risks due to climate change, but we heard a clear and specific need from local partners for more action on drought, due to a lack of resources and planning devoted to it and its impacts on the agricultural sector.??
Workshop participants highlighted the need for numerous interventions, focused on the farm field level, up to the national policy level. Key interventions include:?
WCC: How should companies act? Is there anything already being done that companies can build from??
LB: Many of these interventions are already occurring in the region but need to be scaled up to have greater impact. That’s where collective action and cross-sector partnerships including the private sector come into play. Collaboration with and engagement from the private sector can help spur action in many ways. One such example is by providing suppliers with financial incentives for sustainable practices. Companies can also support the enabling environment for resilience by sharing climate risk information on their supply chain risks with communities, or advocating for government policy or funding that can support community resilience. Additionally, companies can fund the expansion of existing initiatives to ensure long-term success of projects. Supporting the implementation of strategies to address challenges agricultural communities face builds resilience against climate impacts, ensures food security, supplements economic stability, and reduces risks for companies’ supply chains. The involvement of the private sector can not only drive progress but also foster the needed collaboration to solve complex climate challenges in vulnerable regions like Punjab.?