Agroecology and Transformative Adaptation to Climate Change

Abstract

This paper examines transformative adaptation to climate change through the EFICAS Project (Eco-Friendly Intensification and Climate-resilient Agricultural Systems) implemented across 12 upland communities in northern Laos from 2014 to 2020. Using participatory methodologies, including theory of change processes, village-level land use planning and community-based monitoring, the project aimed to support community-led adaptation to climate change through agroecological transformation. The analysis reveals three fundamental paradoxes challenging conventional adaptation approaches. First, the ‘paradox of transformation from below’ shows how external facilitation, however participatory, creates dependencies that undermine autonomous local agency. Second, ‘adaptation pathways as emergent social constructs’ demonstrates that communities navigate change through ongoing social negotiation rather than linear planning processes. Third, ‘transformative adaptation as institutional redesign’ reveals that technical practice adoption alone is insufficient—meaningful transformation requires renegotiating power structures and social relations governing resource management. Key findings include the critical importance of institutional change over technical solutions, the social construction of adaptation pathways through collective sense-making, and the persistence of innovations that emerged through community initiative vs. those dependent on external support. The study suggests that effective climate adaptation support should focus on creating enabling conditions for local experimentation rather than prescribing specific interventions, emphasising long-term relationship building and strengthening communities' capacity for continuous adaptation within complex social-ecological systems.