This document summarizes three case studies of local small farmers in Thailand adapting to climate change through traditional wisdoms. The first case details how farmers in Nakhon Phathom province lift soil to plant crops above flood levels. The second case discusses how farmers in Chachoengsao province developed a drop planting method using channels to save seeds and roots during droughts. The third case profiles a rice farmer in Yasothon province who records weather data to supplement traditional knowledge and cope with increased unpredictability from climate change.

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Local Small Farmers' Wisdoms for Adaptation to Climate Change: Case
Studies of Thailand
Conference Paper · September 2018
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2. Local Small Farmers’
Wisdoms for Adaptation to
Climate Change: Case
Studies of Thailand
By
Dr.Choen Krainara
Central Economic and Social Development Office
Office of the National Economic and Social
Development Board
at Pridi Banomyong International College
Thammasat University
25 September 2018

3. Contents
1.Overview Adaptation and mitigation to
climate change in the context of
Thailand
1.1 Current situation
1.2 Problems
1.3 Challenges
2. Three selected case studies of local
small farmers’ wisdoms for adaptation
to climate change in Thailand

4. 1.Overview of Adaptation and
mitigation to climate change in the
context of Thailand
1.1 Current situation
• There has been existent of a long-term
“National Master Plan for Climate Change
2013-2050”. (to be implemented for 37 years)
Principle
• Adhere to the concept of public support for
accelerating change and promote partnerships
between public, private and civil society. It also
enhances strong community participation along
with the use of the polluter principle.

5. • The action plan is divided into three phases:
short-term, medium-term and long-term, and
preparation for monitoring and evaluation
• Including a revised master plan every 10
years to improve the overall effectiveness of
the Master Plan and its implementation.
Vision
• Thailand has a plan and approaches to
prepare for and adapt to climate change and
the plan and guidelines can be used
appropriately.
• To enhance competitiveness and development
towards sufficiency economy and low carbon
society.

6. Selected mission
• Ensure all stakeholders are well prepared and
skilled in managing the impacts of climate
change.
• Encourage all stakeholders to participate in
reducing greenhouse gas emissions based on
sustainable development and mutual benefits in
the context of Thai society, the philosophy of
sufficiency economy and the way of life of Thais.
• Develop knowledge and mechanisms to stimulate
an integrated plan to address climate change
issues at all levels.
Sectoral strategies to climate change
• Specific medium-term sectoral climate change
strategies have been formulated e.g. agriculture,
health, energy, etc.

7. • Specifically, Agriculture is a highly sensitive
sector of climate change, especially for small
farmers and coastal fishers. The production
process is linked to the natural environment.
• When climate is variable, farmers can not set
the crop as in the past.
• Higher temperature changes also affect the
survival and propagation of insects.
• As a result, there is an outbreak of diseases
and insects, which cause a lot of damage to
agricultural products.
• Therefore, Agriculture needs to be prepared
for sustainable and tangible climate change,
based on the resources and the appropriate
conditions of each area.

8. • The climate change strategies for
agriculture sector covers plans on plants,
soil, water, livestock and fishery, and
climate change on agriculture.
1.2 Problems
• Existent of long-term strategies for
climate change is timely needed but it is
very much top-down initiative.
• Whereas, local Communities and farmers
are directly affected by climate change,
but still lack of knowledge on how to
quickly adapt to climate change.

9. 1.3 Challenges
• It is challenging on how to translate
the national master plan and strategies
on climate change into real local action
in a timely manner.
• It is also interesting to learn how local
communities/farmers respond and
adapt to climate change using their
effective wisdoms for enhancing
sustainable livelihoods.

10. 2. Three selected case studies of local small
farmers’ wisdoms for adaptation to climate
change in Thailand
Case Study 1: Klong Jinda Fruits and Vegetables Group
in Sampran district of Nakhon Phathom province
• The group has a learning process in adaptation to
global warming using folk wisdom by lifting the
groove (ร่อง) to grow vegetables and fruits.
• In the past, there was a roundabout dike. Let the
water flow into the farms in the rainy reason.
• Then, pump out because letting flooded once a year is
good due to the water will blow the diseases and
insects out of the farms.
• Nowadays, better-off farmers create higher dike than
poorer planters. As a result, the runoff water will be
flooded at the lower farms.

11. Map of Nakhon Pathom province

14. • However, the effective barrier is to plant on
the lifted soil so that the roots can fix on the
soil.
• Klong Jinda Community has more than 50
plant species, with the selection of plant
species and methods of planting that are
expected to cope with climate change.
• And promote growing of plants that are
symbiosis, such as on the groove to grow
grass, nail polish (หญ้าเล็บนก) and guava that
was planted on the back of the farm was then
planted on two sides of the grooves and let the
trees lean down the grooves.
• This method can reduce the problem of hot
weather to a certain degree.

15. • Klong Jinda's collaborative work is learning how
to visit the farms of friends in the community,
exchange and learn how to adapt to the climate
change of each farm in order to apply to their
own farms.
• In the past, members of Khlong Jinda often did
not have time to pay attention on neighbors or
neighboring communities.
• Because most of the time, they are busy with
taking care of their own farms.
• Currently, Community leaders jointly map flood
risk in Klong Jinda. The results have enabled
communities to analyze flood risk areas and
jointly solved problems particularly during the
great flood in 2011 with the pumps.
• The community members jointly contributed
funds for management and fuel costs.

16. Case Study 2: Organic farmers in Sanam
Chaikhet district in Chachoengsao province
• They discover how to make rice planting
method through drop down by plown channel
(วิธีการทานาหยอดแบบไถชักร่อง).
• It was found that this way of planting has the
advantage of saving seed, root crack, deeper
root than sow (รากลึกกว่านาหว่าน), use less
water, so rice farmers do not wait for rain.
Method
• Use bamboo to drill holes on the rope that
stretched and then dropping paddy. This will
make it easier to manage the weed.
• The spacing between the holes is 50 -100 cm,
depending on the size of each rice species.

17. Map of Chachoengsao province

18. • And the distance between the grooves is
1 meter
• The reason why the farmers interested in this
method is mainly because in the past the
seeds are used in large quantities and suffer
from the variability of rainfall.
• When discussing within the group to find a
solution, especially with large paddy areas,
the group members looked for a new way of
planting with a drop down by plown channel.
• Local farmer experiments have shown that
this approach can effectively cope with
climate change and drought.

22. Case Study 3: Adaptation to Climate Change:
A Modern Farmer to Record Community
Weather Data
• Father Iam Sompeng, a 65-year-old Jasmine rice farmer in
Yasothon province in the Northeastern region.
• He is a farmer who is interested to learn and record the
phenomenon associated with the rain on a regular basis.
• He was one of those who turned to organic farming
because insecticides were bad and sick, and when he
turned to organic farming, he never thought of going back
to non-organic farming.
• He just finished the fourth grade.
• The record is a normal routine that he regularly recorded
for statistical purposes.
• Access to weather information is new to rural Thai
farmers.
• Approximately 70% of the population in the countryside
rely on traditional knowledge inherited from grandparents
and trusted by experience and recognition.

23. Photo of Father Iam Sompeng

25. • But, he is a different farmer. Because he makes
notes and take advantage of those notes.
• He is one of 15 farmers who record weather
information under the Community Weather
Forecast Center (CWFC), the first center in
Thailand.
• He informed that normally farmers would forecast
or predict the weather using natural observations.
• But today the use of local wisdom alone in
predicting the weather that rain will fall or not is
inadequate because current weather conditions
are relatively unpredictable.
• Because of global warming, like in 2012, when the
rain was delayed for months.
• Many farmers in the area had to face the problem
of loss of money after investing in rice farming
because there is not enough water to grow rice.
• So, the farmers have to adjust to the situation as a
modern farmer to know how to protect risks.

26. • Currently, he will read and listen to the
weather forecast, as well as notice on the
real environment in the area and compared
to forecast data.
• And, he will see the message through the
mobile phone (SMS) regularly sent from the
Community Weather Center project.
• He learned to use computers, want to use
Facebook and the Internet in order to
communicate with others and get more
information.
• In addition, he stressed that he is not afraid
that the new generation will leave farming.
• But what is more worrisome.
"The farmers themselves today do not change
the way and adapt to climate change is more
worrisome."
•

27. References
http://www.greennet.or.th/node/1032
http://www.greennet.or.th/news/1490
https://www.google.com/search?q=แปลงนาเกษตร
อินทรีย์สนามชัยเขต

28. End
Thank You!!!
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