article · The Review of Rural Resilience Praxis
Research conducted in Ward 16 of Buhera District in Zimbabwe examines how rural young people experience and adapt to climate change in a semi-arid, drought-prone environment dependent on rain-fed farming. Drawing on qualitative interviews with young adults and community leaders, the findings demonstrate that climate change functions as an encompassing social condition rather than solely an ecological challenge. Its consequences emerge as reduced agricultural output, food insecurity, economic hardship, psychosocial stress, and interrupted schooling. These combined pressures alter youth transitions into adulthood by restricting access to education, eroding livelihood possibilities, and limiting future goals. The evidence points to an urgent need for climate adaptation strategies and community programmes that specifically address the realities of young people in rural, semi-arid regions.
Climate shocks extend well beyond environmental damage, directly threatening the education, mental health, and economic independence of rural youth. Recognising these interconnected social impacts helps policymakers, development agencies, and community organisations design adaptation initiatives that protect the future prospects of young people living in climate-vulnerable areas.
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This study examines how youths in Buhera District's Ward 16 experience, interpret and respond to climate-induced challenges within a semi-arid environment. This environment is characterised by recurrent droughts, erratic rainfall patterns and dependence on rain-fed agriculture. The study was guided by a critical application of Resilience Theory. The study adopted interpretivism research philosophy and a case study research design. In-depth interviews with ten youths aged 18-21 years and key informant interviews with two community leaders were conducted. The findings reveal that climate change is experienced not merely as an environmental phenomenon but as a lived social condition manifested through declining agricultural productivity, food insecurity, educational disruption, economic hardship and psychosocial stress. The study demonstrates that climate change is actively restructuring youth transitions to adulthood by narrowing educational pathways, undermining livelihood security and constraining future aspirations. By centering youth voices, the study contributes to climate change, youth studies and social work scholarship while highlighting the need for youth-centred, socially just and context-specific climate adaptation interventions in rural Zimbabwe and similar semi-arid settings.
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DOI: 10.71458/785bew63
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