Adaptation of Small Scale Fisheries to Environmental Change: A Meta-analysis of Community Response

Understanding patterns of adaptive capacity in small scale fisheries (SSF) in response to climate and other stressors is important as global climate change accelerates, yet most research to date in this field has focused on latent adaptive capacity rather than observed community responses. Here, we present the only cross-study comparison to date of SSF community responses (in the framework adapt, cope, or react) to climatic and non-climatic stressors in a meta-analysis of 22 studies from around the world. We analyze the presence or absence, and effect of potential factors that mediate these responses (i.e., Access to Assets, Diversity and Flexibility, Learning and Knowledge, and Government and Institutions) that are widely described as determinants of adaptive capacity. We find that while there is no universal set of mediating factors that typify specific responses, there are prevalent combinations that yield more adaptive responses that should be considered by policy makers. The presence of Diversity and Flexibility is important in amplifying adaptive responses, but could be combined with the other mediating factors in unique combinations, which also vary by country, type, and quality of stressor. Policies to develop resilience to climatic and non-climatic stressors in SSF can prioritize resources in these mediating factor categories, particularly Diversity and Flexibility, to facilitate adaptive responses. However, the importance of local culture and context should inform these decisions. Efforts in this field to clarify adaptive capacity terminology and record response type and mediating factors will facilitate increased synthesis of case studies in the future.