SOAS Research Online

Abstract

As an emerging field, reflection and learning on community-based adaptation to climate change (CBA) and disaster risk reduction (DRR) are crucial. However, there is a danger that a focus on ‘the community’ fails to look within and understand the community itself. Children under 18 are often considered the vulnerable, passive victims of disaster events. Yet children have unique perceptions of the world in which they live, and they have the capacity to act as agents of change. In this article, we argue that widening community participation to include children is crucial for successfully tackling development issues in a changing climate. We show how child-friendly participatory methodologies and processes can enable children to take an active role in communicating their perspectives to other members of the community, tackling climate change impacts, and preventing disasters.