Putting Vulnerable People at the Center of Communication for Adaptation: Knowledge Sharing through Participatory Games and Video Tools

The document examines how participatory communication tools, specifically video and games, can bridge the information gap for the most vulnerable people affected by climate change. It highlights that treating end-users as partners in co-learning rather than target audiences improves the adoption of adaptation strategies. Case studies demonstrate that participatory video in Malawi, Nepal, and Ethiopia helped farmers and children advocate for and implement adaptation measures. Additionally, the paper discusses how games can simplify complex systems, such as probabilistic forecasts for humanitarian action in Senegal or micro-insurance concepts for farmers in Ethiopia and Malawi, to build trust and facilitate better decision-making.

• Participatory approaches to community-level risk management, which treat end users as partners in co-learning rather than just a target audience, can significantly increase the benefits derived from climate information.
• Participatory video allows vulnerable groups to act as co-producers of knowledge, using a multi-dimensional peer-teaching format to narrate experiences and disseminate adaptation strategies.
• In Mphunga, Malawi, a participatory video project led to a substantial increase in the willingness of subsistence farmers to adopt six adaptation strategies, including crop diversification, duck rearing, and the use of whistles for flood warnings.
• Participatory video has been used in Nepal to enable children to advocate for community-based adaptation strategies and in Ethiopia to accelerate the adoption of fuel-efficient woodstoves among rural women, which improved forest cover in the Ebinat district.
• Experiential games are effective tools for conveying the complexity of climate-sensitive systems—including non-linearities and trade-offs—to both government officials and illiterate farmers.
• Game-based tools have successfully facilitated the design of early warning systems in Senegal and helped farmers in Ethiopia and Malawi understand complex micro-insurance concepts, proving at least as effective as conventional lectures and superior in building trust.

APA

Suarez, P., Benn, J., & Macklin, C. (2010). Putting Vulnerable People at the Center of Communication for Adaptation: Knowledge Sharing through Participatory Games and Video Tools. World Resources Institute. https://files.wri.org/d8/s3fs-public/2023-02/wrr-2010-11-question-5-response-3.pdf

Chicago

Suarez, Pablo, Justin Benn, and Colleen Macklin. Putting Vulnerable People at the Center of Communication for Adaptation: Knowledge Sharing through Participatory Games and Video Tools. World Resources Institute, 2010. https://files.wri.org/d8/s3fs-public/2023-02/wrr-2010-11-question-5-response-3.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Suarez |first1=Pablo |last2=Benn |first2=Justin |last3=Macklin |first3=Colleen |title=Putting Vulnerable People at the Center of Communication for Adaptation: Knowledge Sharing through Participatory Games and Video Tools |publisher=World Resources Institute |date=2010 |url=https://files.wri.org/d8/s3fs-public/2023-02/wrr-2010-11-question-5-response-3.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{suarez2010putting, author = {Suarez, Pablo and Benn, Justin and Macklin, Colleen}, title = {{Putting Vulnerable People at the Center of Communication for Adaptation: Knowledge Sharing through Participatory Games and Video Tools}}, institution = {World Resources Institute}, year = {2010}, url = {https://files.wri.org/d8/s3fs-public/2023-02/wrr-2010-11-question-5-response-3.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }