Mud, memories, and meaning: Investigating climate security in Southwestern Zimbabwe
This study examines climate security challenges in southwestern Zimbabwe's Tsholotsho district, where communities continue to grapple with the lasting impacts of Cyclones Dineo (2017) and Idai (2019), compounded by severe drought in 2024. Researchers from the CGIAR Climate Security Southern Africa H...
| Autores principales: | , |
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| Formato: | Blog Post |
| Lenguaje: | Inglés |
| Publicado: |
2025
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| Materias: | |
| Acceso en línea: | https://hdl.handle.net/10568/176620 |
| _version_ | 1855537998197686272 |
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| author | Maviza, Gracsious Taiwo, Ibukun |
| author_browse | Maviza, Gracsious Taiwo, Ibukun |
| author_facet | Maviza, Gracsious Taiwo, Ibukun |
| author_sort | Maviza, Gracsious |
| collection | Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace) |
| description | This study examines climate security challenges in southwestern Zimbabwe's Tsholotsho district, where communities continue to grapple with the lasting impacts of Cyclones Dineo (2017) and Idai (2019), compounded by severe drought in 2024. Researchers from the CGIAR Climate Security Southern Africa Hub conducted immersive fieldwork in late 2024, living alongside local communities in wards 5, 6, 8, and 10 to understand how climate stresses interact with social tensions and resource conflicts.
The research reveals that resource scarcity extends beyond simple availability to encompass daily negotiations shaped by structural inequities, gender dynamics, ethnicity, and displacement status. A critical incident at Gariya Dam, where water competition between Kalanga and San community members escalated to violence, illustrates how climate stress can trigger immediate security risks at local resource access points.
Key findings emphasize two critical lessons: first, that climate adaptation strategies must integrate conflict-sensitive water governance mechanisms involving all stakeholders, including marginalized groups like the San community; and second, that early warning systems require robust last-mile delivery of basic services to prevent small disputes from escalating into broader security threats.
The study demonstrates the importance of immersive, community-embedded research methodologies that build trust and reveal overlooked pressure points in climate-affected communities. These insights inform more effective policy approaches that integrate water governance, livelihood support, and basic services to enhance both climate resilience and social stability across Southern Africa. |
| format | Blog Post |
| id | CGSpace176620 |
| institution | CGIAR Consortium |
| language | Inglés |
| publishDate | 2025 |
| publishDateRange | 2025 |
| publishDateSort | 2025 |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | CGSpace1766202025-09-23T09:04:14Z Mud, memories, and meaning: Investigating climate security in Southwestern Zimbabwe Maviza, Gracsious Taiwo, Ibukun evaluation livestock climate change food security rural communities drought pastoralism water resources water scarcity grazing This study examines climate security challenges in southwestern Zimbabwe's Tsholotsho district, where communities continue to grapple with the lasting impacts of Cyclones Dineo (2017) and Idai (2019), compounded by severe drought in 2024. Researchers from the CGIAR Climate Security Southern Africa Hub conducted immersive fieldwork in late 2024, living alongside local communities in wards 5, 6, 8, and 10 to understand how climate stresses interact with social tensions and resource conflicts. The research reveals that resource scarcity extends beyond simple availability to encompass daily negotiations shaped by structural inequities, gender dynamics, ethnicity, and displacement status. A critical incident at Gariya Dam, where water competition between Kalanga and San community members escalated to violence, illustrates how climate stress can trigger immediate security risks at local resource access points. Key findings emphasize two critical lessons: first, that climate adaptation strategies must integrate conflict-sensitive water governance mechanisms involving all stakeholders, including marginalized groups like the San community; and second, that early warning systems require robust last-mile delivery of basic services to prevent small disputes from escalating into broader security threats. The study demonstrates the importance of immersive, community-embedded research methodologies that build trust and reveal overlooked pressure points in climate-affected communities. These insights inform more effective policy approaches that integrate water governance, livelihood support, and basic services to enhance both climate resilience and social stability across Southern Africa. 2025-09-16 2025-09-23T09:04:13Z 2025-09-23T09:04:13Z Blog Post https://hdl.handle.net/10568/176620 en Open Access Maviza, G.; Taiwo, I. (2025) Mud, memories, and meaning: Investigating climate security in Southwestern Zimbabwe. [Blog post] NewSecurityBeat. Published online 16 September 2025. URL: https://www.newsecuritybeat.org/2025/09/mud-memories-and-meaning-investigating-climate-security-in-southwestern-zimbabwe/ |
| spellingShingle | evaluation livestock climate change food security rural communities drought pastoralism water resources water scarcity grazing Maviza, Gracsious Taiwo, Ibukun Mud, memories, and meaning: Investigating climate security in Southwestern Zimbabwe |
| title | Mud, memories, and meaning: Investigating climate security in Southwestern Zimbabwe |
| title_full | Mud, memories, and meaning: Investigating climate security in Southwestern Zimbabwe |
| title_fullStr | Mud, memories, and meaning: Investigating climate security in Southwestern Zimbabwe |
| title_full_unstemmed | Mud, memories, and meaning: Investigating climate security in Southwestern Zimbabwe |
| title_short | Mud, memories, and meaning: Investigating climate security in Southwestern Zimbabwe |
| title_sort | mud memories and meaning investigating climate security in southwestern zimbabwe |
| topic | evaluation livestock climate change food security rural communities drought pastoralism water resources water scarcity grazing |
| url | https://hdl.handle.net/10568/176620 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT mavizagracsious mudmemoriesandmeaninginvestigatingclimatesecurityinsouthwesternzimbabwe AT taiwoibukun mudmemoriesandmeaninginvestigatingclimatesecurityinsouthwesternzimbabwe |