"In August 2009, the BBC World Service Trust’s Research and Learning Group, on behalf of the British Council, conducted research in northern and southern Sudan to gauge the public understanding of climate change. The research consisted of 12 focus group discussions with Sudanese citizens, as well
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as 18 in-depth interviews with opinion leaders from government, religious institutions, the private sector, the media and civil society. The overall objective was to find out what people think about climate change, and to determine how to tailor communication and media strategies to support Sudan’s response to climate change. Main findings and recommendations are presented in this report. Although some Sudanese in urban areas explain climate change with reference to scientific terms and concepts, most Sudanese outside of urban areas do not. Most Sudanese have noticed changes in the weather and seasons, and experienced drought, flooding, changes in rainfall and temperature increases, but do not associate these phenomena with global climate change." (https://www.gov.uk/research-for-development-outputs/sudan-talks-climate)
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"From August to October 2009, the BBC World Service Trust’s Research and Learning group, on behalf of the British Council, conducted research in Tanzania to gauge public understanding of climate change. The research consisted of 12 focus-group discussions with Tanzanian citizens, as well as 17 in-
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depth interviews with opinion leaders from government, religious institutions, the private sector, the media and civil society. The overall objective was to find out what people think about climate change, and to determine how to tailor communication and media strategies to support Tanzania’s response to climate change. Key findings: Tanzanians have noticed changes in the weather and seasons. They say that temperatures have increased and that the rains are not falling as they used to. Many are struggling with the impacts of drought and are frustrated by increased environmental degradation and resource scarcity. Yet most Tanzanians have no understanding of the relationship between these issues and climate change. Most Tanzanians are unfamiliar with the concepts of climate change and global warming. They believe the term “climate change” refers to changes in the weather or seasons and have little knowledge of its global context or the greenhouse effect. Tanzanians draw on their existing knowledge to explain the environmental changes they experience. Most believe that humans are to blame but point to local deforestation and local pollution as the primary causes of the drought and environmental degradation they have experienced." (Executive summary)
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"In May 2009, the BBC World Service Trust’s Research and Learning Group, on behalf of the British Council, conducted research in Uganda to gauge public understanding of climate change. The research consisted of 12 focus group discussions with Ugandan citizens, as well as 18 in-depth interviews wit
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h opinion leaders from government, religious institutions, the private sector, the media and civil society. The overall objective was to find out what people think about climate change, and to determine how to tailor communication and media strategies to support Uganda’s response to climate change.
Key findings
Whilst most Ugandans do not understand the science of climate change, they have noticed changes in the weather and seasons, and accept the idea that these changes are linked to human activity. They tell of excessive heat, increasing seasonal variability and reduced rainfall. Most people, however, do not connect these with global climate change.
Changes in climate are not noticed by Ugandans in isolation from broader environmental changes. People in Uganda are keenly aware of environmental degradation and natural resource depletion. They often make little distinction between environmental degradation and climate change. Drought and food scarcity are causing frustration and despair across Kenya. Farmers, fishermen and pastoralists do not know how they would cope if these problems became worse.
Crop failure and death of livestock are causing frustration and despair. Farmers and pastoralists do not have a sense of how they would cope if the problems became worse. other issues that people are worried about include bush fires, deforestation, flooding, soil erosion, poor sanitation and air pollution. opinion leaders are particularly concerned for rural communities and the urban poor.
There is a strong tendency for Ugandans to hold themselves individually and collectively responsible for local changes in the environment and the weather. They believe their own activities, such as deforestation and draining swampland, have brought about these changes. There is little awareness that climatic problems – now or in the future – are likely to have causes that extend beyond Uganda." (Executive summary)
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