How artisanal and small-scale mining helps vulnerable rural households in Malawi cope with climate stress

A novel study shows how artisanal and small-scale mining helps vulnerable rural households in Malawi to cope with climate stress, income uncertainty and livelihood risks.

The doctoral dissertation in the field of environmental policy by Kennedy Chifundo Adamson will be examined at the Faculty of Social Sciences and Business Studies at Joensuu Campus and online. The opponent will be Professor Roy Maconachie, University of Bath, and the custos will be Professor Rauno Sairinen, University of Eastern Finland.

What is the topic of your doctoral research? Why is it important to study the topic?

The topic of my doctoral research is mining for resilience, and I am exploring artisanal and small-scale mining as a pathway for climate change adaptation in rural Malawi. My study reframes artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) as a viable climate change adaptation strategy among vulnerable rural households. Climate adaptation debates in the Global South have largely sidelined ASM, prioritizing agriculture. Where ASM is acknowledged, it is often framed as a source of environmental degradation with limited recognition of its livelihood value.

This research moves beyond that dominant narrative by examining the underexplored adaptive and resilience-building roles of ASM. It shows how households strategically engage with mining to cope with climate stress, income uncertainty and livelihood risks. By bringing lived experiences and local realities, the study brings novel evidence broadening climate adaptation options and challenges policy and research communities to rethink ASM's role in resilience building.

What are the key findings or observations of your doctoral research?

The results provide novel evidence that vulnerable rural households increasingly turn to ASM as a viable climate change adaptation option in response to declining agricultural productivity linked to climate impacts. The study further demonstrates how household members reorient their livelihoods through differentiated and gendered roles to navigate climate shocks and stresses. Despite this adaptive potential, significant policy gaps persist with ASM remaining marginalized within major development and climate policies.

Overall, the thesis contributes to emerging scholarship that calls for a broader conceptualization of climate adaptation beyond externally driven, top-down interventions. It argues for recognizing informal and endogenous livelihood strategies such as ASM that reflect lived realities in climate-vulnerable contexts highlighting the need for a more responsive, inclusive and sustainable policy landscape surrounding ASM to strengthen rural livelihoods and adaptive capacity.

How can the results of your doctoral research be utilized in practice?

The results present critical call for policy shift from the dominant discourse that views ASM only as a problem to be contained to a more inclusive viewpoint that perceive ASM as part of broader climate solutions among vulnerable households. In addition, the study unearthed various socioeconomic challenges that artisanal and small-scale miners face in their quest to adapt to climate change. This timely evidence is crucial for different stakeholders to design responsive and evidence-based interventions promoting both sustainable mining and the welfare of the miners themselves. The individual roles examined in the study also provide evidence challenging the dominant community-oriented approaches against empowerment of individuals for better results. Finally, the findings contribute to the debates in this emerging discourse positioning ASM as a climate change adaptation strategy, disaster recovery pathway and the critical role of development minerals amongst vulnerable households.

What are the key research methods and materials used in your doctoral research?

Methodologically, the study adopted a qualitative design grounded in political ecology theory, resilience scholarship, formalization studies and sustainable livelihoods framework. This was important because the study required primary testimonies from the miners themselves to generate empirical evidence on possible connection between engagements in ASM and climate change adaptation and resilience building.

Primary data were collected through semi-structured interviews with 403 mining households across Malawi, complemented by 17 focus group discussions involving women, men, youth and elderly miners operating in diverse mining landscapes. Additional insights were obtained from 5 key informants and detailed field observations. Secondary data were sourced from major climate change, adaptation and mining policies and legislative documents in Malawi. The data were analyzed through thematic and content analyses to generate a comprehensive understanding of the ASM-climate change interface.

The doctoral dissertation of Kennedy Chifundo Adamson, M.Sc., titled "Mining for Resilience: Exploring artisanal and small-scale mining as a pathway for climate change adaptation in rural Malawi" will be examined at the Faculty of Social Sciences and Business Studies. The opponent will be Professor Roy Maconachie, University of Bath, and the custos will be Professor Rauno Sairinen, University of Eastern Finland. Language of the public defence is English.

More information:
Mining for Resilience : Exploring artisanal and small-scale mining as a pathway for climate change adaptation in rural Malawi. erepo.uef.fi/items/af8bc000-03 … b7-8b72-2cefac50d0be

Provided by University of Eastern Finland