I am an Assistant Professor in the department of geography at Virginia Tech. My research primarily aims at the social dimensions of coastal studies. I am particularly interested in climate change adaptation with a major focus on how Indigenous communities and their local food systems experience and adjust to change. I have worked with Inuit (Canadian Arctic) and Vedda (Sri Lanka) communities using place-based participatory research methods, including participatory mapping, scenario building, seasonal calendars, collaborative artwork, and diagrams. My theoretical approach combines concepts from social-ecological resilience, vulnerability, adaptation, and food security. Also, I have used theoretical aspects of commons, with an emphasis on community-based management, (adaptive) co-management, Indigenous knowledge systems, co-learning, and knowledge co-production. I bring a broader perspective to my research, using systematic literature reviews that contribute to global-level assessments.
People affected by conflict are particularly vulnerable to climate shocks and climate change, yet... more People affected by conflict are particularly vulnerable to climate shocks and climate change, yet little is known about climate change adaptation in fragile contexts. While climate events are one of the many contributing drivers of conflict, feedback from conflict increases vulnerability, thereby creating conditions for a vicious cycle of conflict. In this study, we carry out a systematic review of peer-reviewed literature, taking from the Global Adaptation Mapping Initiative (GAMI) dataset to documenting climate change adaptation occurring in 15 conflict-affected countries and compare the findings with records of climate adaptation finance flows and climate-related disasters in each country. Academic literature is sparse for most conflict-affected countries, and available studies tend to have a narrow focus, particularly on agriculture-related adaptation in rural contexts and adaptation by low-income actors. In contrast, multilateral and bilateral funding for climate change adaptat...
This study conducts the first systematic literature review of climate change adaptation in aquacu... more This study conducts the first systematic literature review of climate change adaptation in aquaculture. We address three specific questions: (i) What is aquaculture adapting to? (ii) How is aquaculture adapting? and (iii) What research gaps need to be addressed? We identify, characterise and examine case studies published between 1990 and 2018 that lie at the intersection of the domains of climate change, adaptation and aquaculture. The main areas of documented climate change impacts relate to extreme events and the general impacts of climate change on the aquaculture sector. Three categories of adaptation to climate change are identified: coping mechanisms at the local level (e.g. water quality management techniques), multilevel adaptive strategies (e.g. changing culture practices) and management approaches (e.g. adaptation planning, community-based adaptation). We identify four potential areas for future research: research on inland aquaculture adaptation; studies at the household level; whether different groups of aquaculture farmers (e.g. indigenous people) face and adapt differently to climate change; and the use of GIS and remote sensing as cost-effective tools for developing adaptation strategies and responses. The study brings essential practical and theoretical insights to the aquaculture industry as well as to climate change adaptation research across the globe.
Abstract Climate change is having a significant influence on global fish production as well as on... more Abstract Climate change is having a significant influence on global fish production as well as on small-scale fishers’ livelihoods, nutrition, and food security. We compared two climate-sensitive small-scale fisheries (SSFs) – an Inuit community in the Canadian Arctic and the Coastal-Vedda in Sri Lanka – to broaden our understanding of how fisheries-dependent Indigenous communities respond and adapt to climate change impacts. We used three steps to achieve this comparative study. To do this, we developed a resilience-based conceptual framework to empirically assess adaptations in two SSF communities, based on a literature review. Using the proposed framework and collecting qualitative field data over three years (2016–2019) to investigate how different remote SSFs experience and respond to climate change, we assessed Inuit and Coastal-Vedda case studies. The framework provided the structure for data analysis and conceptual guidance for two empirical assessments and the comparative analysis. Finally, we carried out the comparative analysis across the case studies using content analysis, identifying adaptive strategies, sources of resilience, and characteristics of successful adaptation. Additionally, we used discourse analysis to develop sources of resilience and characteristics of successful adaptation. Two key adaptive strategies emerged in common across the two communities – diversification and adaptive co-management. Eight sources of resilience that underpin adaptive capacity: i) use of diverse kinds of knowledge; ii) practice of different ways of learning; iii) use of community-based institutions; iv) efforts to improve human agency; v) unique worldviews; vi) specific cultural attributes that keep up with adaptation; vii) effective social networks; and viii) a high level of flexibility. Definitive characteristics that need to promote successful community adaptation: continuous learning through knowledge co-production; capacity-building to improve human agency; a place-specific nature (rootedness); collective action and partnerships through community-based institutions; and flexibility.
Abstract This paper examines the effects of information sharing via community cooperatives on sup... more Abstract This paper examines the effects of information sharing via community cooperatives on supply chain management (SCM) in community-based shrimp aquaculture in northwestern Sri Lanka. Further, it identifies how environment management integrates into SCM. The paper examined shrimp aquaculture operations in northwestern Sri Lanka using the case study approach. Main actors of the shrimp aquaculture supply chain (SC) are: brood-stock suppliers; hatcheries; farmers; collectors; and processing companies. Information shared is: post-larvae prices; feed brands; harvest prices; production quotas; disease spread; farming techniques; and management practices. This paper explores the existing information sharing network. Its findings reveal that community cooperatives play crucial roles within this network while functioning under a mixed governance regime (private; communal; government). Membership gives farmers a mechanism for networking and accessing information. This article discusses how such information can act as commons. An efficient network of information sharing is vital for the community's socio-economic wellbeing, as well as social-ecological sustainability. Sri Lankan shrimp aquaculture exemplifies SCM that integrates environment and commons management.
ABSTRACT Shrimp aquaculture in northwestern Sri Lanka shows co-management like features. To under... more ABSTRACT Shrimp aquaculture in northwestern Sri Lanka shows co-management like features. To understand the reasons behind co-management and to identify the mechanisms by which co-management is carried out, the paper examines shrimp aquaculture operations in three coastal communities using a case study approach. Water from an interconnected lagoon system is the key input for shrimp ponds, but it is also the potential source of shrimp disease outbreaks that threaten all shrimp farms. Farmers try to prevent the spread of disease by co-operating to adjust the timing of water intake and wastewater release. This is done through a zonal crop calendar system which is developed and implemented by a vertically integrated institutional structure with three levels: sub-zonal/community, zonal, and national. Partnerships, overall sharing of power and authority, and learning-by-doing are key features of this collaborative management system. The case shows that adaptive co-management can develop through collaborative problem-solving over time, even in the absence of legal arrangements.
Constraints and limits to adaptation are critical to understanding the extent to which human and ... more Constraints and limits to adaptation are critical to understanding the extent to which human and natural systems can successfully adapt to climate change. We conduct a systematic review of 1,682 academic studies on human adaptation responses to identify patterns in constraints and limits to adaptation for different regions, sectors, hazards, adaptation response types, and actors. Using definitions of constraints and limits provided by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), we find that most literature identifies constraints to adaptation but that there is limited literature focused on limits to adaptation. Central and South America and Small Islands generally report greater constraints and both hard and soft limits to adaptation. Technological, infrastructural, and ecosystem-based adaptation suggest more evidence of constraints and hard limits than other types of responses. Individuals and households face economic and socio-cultural constraints which also inhibit beha...
Extreme heat events impact people and ecosystems across the globe, and they are becoming 54 more ... more Extreme heat events impact people and ecosystems across the globe, and they are becoming 54 more frequent and intense in a warming climate. Responses to heat span sectors and geographic 55 boundaries. Prior research has documented technologies or options that can be deployed to 56 manage extreme heat and examples of how individuals, communities, governments, and other 57 stakeholder groups are adapting to heat. However, a comprehensive understanding of the current 58 state of implemented heat adaptations-where, why, how, and to what extent they are 59 occurring-has not been established. Here, we combine data from the Global Adaptation 60 Mapping Initiative with a heat-specific systematic review to analyze the global extent and 61 diversity of documented heat adaptation actions (n=301 peer-reviewed articles). Data from 98 62 countries suggest that documented heat adaptations fundamentally differ by geographic region 63 and national income. In high-income, developed countries, heat is...
Indigenous peoples globally have high exposure to environmental change and are often considered a... more Indigenous peoples globally have high exposure to environmental change and are often considered an ‘‘atrisk’’ population, although there is growing evidence of their resilience. In this Perspective, we examine the common factors affecting this resilience by illustrating how the interconnected roles of place, agency, institutions, collective action, Indigenous knowledge, and learning help Indigenous peoples to cope and adapt to environmental change. Relationships with place are particularly important in that they provide a foundation for belief systems, identity, knowledge, and livelihood practices that underlie mechanisms through which environmental change is experienced, understood, resisted, and responded to. Many Indigenous peoples also face significant vulnerabilities, whereby place dislocation due to land dispossession, resettlement, and landscape fragmentation has challenged the persistence of Indigenous knowledge systems and undermined Indigenous institutions, compounded by t...
An international collaborative initiative to systematically map and review human adaptation respo... more An international collaborative initiative to systematically map and review human adaptation responses to climate-related changes that have been documented globally since 2013 in the scientific and grey literature.
This thesis investigates small-scale community-based shrimp aquaculture (CBSA) in northwestern Sr... more This thesis investigates small-scale community-based shrimp aquaculture (CBSA) in northwestern Sri Lanka. The objectives are to explore: (1) community-based shrimp aquaculture; (2) commons institutions and application of commons rules; and (3) policy implications (i.e., as an alternative to large-scale operations in ensuring sustainability). Data were gathered from three communities in northwestern Sri Lanka, through participant observations; semi-structured interviews; focus group discussions; and key informant interviews. Presence of small-scale community-based institutions is evident. Arguably, commons in this context are social-ecological systems, including the interconnected natural water body. Main characteristics of the existing resource governance system are multi-level commons institutional structure; zonal crop calendar system; collaborative/participatory management approach; and better management practices. A SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats) analysis p...
People affected by conflict are particularly vulnerable to climate shocks and climate change, yet... more People affected by conflict are particularly vulnerable to climate shocks and climate change, yet little is known about climate change adaptation in fragile contexts. While climate events are one of the many contributing drivers of conflict, feedback from conflict increases vulnerability, thereby creating conditions for a vicious cycle of conflict. In this study, we carry out a systematic review of peer-reviewed literature, taking from the Global Adaptation Mapping Initiative (GAMI) dataset to documenting climate change adaptation occurring in 15 conflict-affected countries and compare the findings with records of climate adaptation finance flows and climate-related disasters in each country. Academic literature is sparse for most conflict-affected countries, and available studies tend to have a narrow focus, particularly on agriculture-related adaptation in rural contexts and adaptation by low-income actors. In contrast, multilateral and bilateral funding for climate change adaptat...
This study conducts the first systematic literature review of climate change adaptation in aquacu... more This study conducts the first systematic literature review of climate change adaptation in aquaculture. We address three specific questions: (i) What is aquaculture adapting to? (ii) How is aquaculture adapting? and (iii) What research gaps need to be addressed? We identify, characterise and examine case studies published between 1990 and 2018 that lie at the intersection of the domains of climate change, adaptation and aquaculture. The main areas of documented climate change impacts relate to extreme events and the general impacts of climate change on the aquaculture sector. Three categories of adaptation to climate change are identified: coping mechanisms at the local level (e.g. water quality management techniques), multilevel adaptive strategies (e.g. changing culture practices) and management approaches (e.g. adaptation planning, community-based adaptation). We identify four potential areas for future research: research on inland aquaculture adaptation; studies at the household level; whether different groups of aquaculture farmers (e.g. indigenous people) face and adapt differently to climate change; and the use of GIS and remote sensing as cost-effective tools for developing adaptation strategies and responses. The study brings essential practical and theoretical insights to the aquaculture industry as well as to climate change adaptation research across the globe.
Abstract Climate change is having a significant influence on global fish production as well as on... more Abstract Climate change is having a significant influence on global fish production as well as on small-scale fishers’ livelihoods, nutrition, and food security. We compared two climate-sensitive small-scale fisheries (SSFs) – an Inuit community in the Canadian Arctic and the Coastal-Vedda in Sri Lanka – to broaden our understanding of how fisheries-dependent Indigenous communities respond and adapt to climate change impacts. We used three steps to achieve this comparative study. To do this, we developed a resilience-based conceptual framework to empirically assess adaptations in two SSF communities, based on a literature review. Using the proposed framework and collecting qualitative field data over three years (2016–2019) to investigate how different remote SSFs experience and respond to climate change, we assessed Inuit and Coastal-Vedda case studies. The framework provided the structure for data analysis and conceptual guidance for two empirical assessments and the comparative analysis. Finally, we carried out the comparative analysis across the case studies using content analysis, identifying adaptive strategies, sources of resilience, and characteristics of successful adaptation. Additionally, we used discourse analysis to develop sources of resilience and characteristics of successful adaptation. Two key adaptive strategies emerged in common across the two communities – diversification and adaptive co-management. Eight sources of resilience that underpin adaptive capacity: i) use of diverse kinds of knowledge; ii) practice of different ways of learning; iii) use of community-based institutions; iv) efforts to improve human agency; v) unique worldviews; vi) specific cultural attributes that keep up with adaptation; vii) effective social networks; and viii) a high level of flexibility. Definitive characteristics that need to promote successful community adaptation: continuous learning through knowledge co-production; capacity-building to improve human agency; a place-specific nature (rootedness); collective action and partnerships through community-based institutions; and flexibility.
Abstract This paper examines the effects of information sharing via community cooperatives on sup... more Abstract This paper examines the effects of information sharing via community cooperatives on supply chain management (SCM) in community-based shrimp aquaculture in northwestern Sri Lanka. Further, it identifies how environment management integrates into SCM. The paper examined shrimp aquaculture operations in northwestern Sri Lanka using the case study approach. Main actors of the shrimp aquaculture supply chain (SC) are: brood-stock suppliers; hatcheries; farmers; collectors; and processing companies. Information shared is: post-larvae prices; feed brands; harvest prices; production quotas; disease spread; farming techniques; and management practices. This paper explores the existing information sharing network. Its findings reveal that community cooperatives play crucial roles within this network while functioning under a mixed governance regime (private; communal; government). Membership gives farmers a mechanism for networking and accessing information. This article discusses how such information can act as commons. An efficient network of information sharing is vital for the community's socio-economic wellbeing, as well as social-ecological sustainability. Sri Lankan shrimp aquaculture exemplifies SCM that integrates environment and commons management.
ABSTRACT Shrimp aquaculture in northwestern Sri Lanka shows co-management like features. To under... more ABSTRACT Shrimp aquaculture in northwestern Sri Lanka shows co-management like features. To understand the reasons behind co-management and to identify the mechanisms by which co-management is carried out, the paper examines shrimp aquaculture operations in three coastal communities using a case study approach. Water from an interconnected lagoon system is the key input for shrimp ponds, but it is also the potential source of shrimp disease outbreaks that threaten all shrimp farms. Farmers try to prevent the spread of disease by co-operating to adjust the timing of water intake and wastewater release. This is done through a zonal crop calendar system which is developed and implemented by a vertically integrated institutional structure with three levels: sub-zonal/community, zonal, and national. Partnerships, overall sharing of power and authority, and learning-by-doing are key features of this collaborative management system. The case shows that adaptive co-management can develop through collaborative problem-solving over time, even in the absence of legal arrangements.
Constraints and limits to adaptation are critical to understanding the extent to which human and ... more Constraints and limits to adaptation are critical to understanding the extent to which human and natural systems can successfully adapt to climate change. We conduct a systematic review of 1,682 academic studies on human adaptation responses to identify patterns in constraints and limits to adaptation for different regions, sectors, hazards, adaptation response types, and actors. Using definitions of constraints and limits provided by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), we find that most literature identifies constraints to adaptation but that there is limited literature focused on limits to adaptation. Central and South America and Small Islands generally report greater constraints and both hard and soft limits to adaptation. Technological, infrastructural, and ecosystem-based adaptation suggest more evidence of constraints and hard limits than other types of responses. Individuals and households face economic and socio-cultural constraints which also inhibit beha...
Extreme heat events impact people and ecosystems across the globe, and they are becoming 54 more ... more Extreme heat events impact people and ecosystems across the globe, and they are becoming 54 more frequent and intense in a warming climate. Responses to heat span sectors and geographic 55 boundaries. Prior research has documented technologies or options that can be deployed to 56 manage extreme heat and examples of how individuals, communities, governments, and other 57 stakeholder groups are adapting to heat. However, a comprehensive understanding of the current 58 state of implemented heat adaptations-where, why, how, and to what extent they are 59 occurring-has not been established. Here, we combine data from the Global Adaptation 60 Mapping Initiative with a heat-specific systematic review to analyze the global extent and 61 diversity of documented heat adaptation actions (n=301 peer-reviewed articles). Data from 98 62 countries suggest that documented heat adaptations fundamentally differ by geographic region 63 and national income. In high-income, developed countries, heat is...
Indigenous peoples globally have high exposure to environmental change and are often considered a... more Indigenous peoples globally have high exposure to environmental change and are often considered an ‘‘atrisk’’ population, although there is growing evidence of their resilience. In this Perspective, we examine the common factors affecting this resilience by illustrating how the interconnected roles of place, agency, institutions, collective action, Indigenous knowledge, and learning help Indigenous peoples to cope and adapt to environmental change. Relationships with place are particularly important in that they provide a foundation for belief systems, identity, knowledge, and livelihood practices that underlie mechanisms through which environmental change is experienced, understood, resisted, and responded to. Many Indigenous peoples also face significant vulnerabilities, whereby place dislocation due to land dispossession, resettlement, and landscape fragmentation has challenged the persistence of Indigenous knowledge systems and undermined Indigenous institutions, compounded by t...
An international collaborative initiative to systematically map and review human adaptation respo... more An international collaborative initiative to systematically map and review human adaptation responses to climate-related changes that have been documented globally since 2013 in the scientific and grey literature.
This thesis investigates small-scale community-based shrimp aquaculture (CBSA) in northwestern Sr... more This thesis investigates small-scale community-based shrimp aquaculture (CBSA) in northwestern Sri Lanka. The objectives are to explore: (1) community-based shrimp aquaculture; (2) commons institutions and application of commons rules; and (3) policy implications (i.e., as an alternative to large-scale operations in ensuring sustainability). Data were gathered from three communities in northwestern Sri Lanka, through participant observations; semi-structured interviews; focus group discussions; and key informant interviews. Presence of small-scale community-based institutions is evident. Arguably, commons in this context are social-ecological systems, including the interconnected natural water body. Main characteristics of the existing resource governance system are multi-level commons institutional structure; zonal crop calendar system; collaborative/participatory management approach; and better management practices. A SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats) analysis p...
This thesis investigates small-scale community-based shrimp aquaculture (CBSA) in northwestern Sr... more This thesis investigates small-scale community-based shrimp aquaculture (CBSA) in northwestern Sri Lanka. The objectives are to explore: (1) community-based shrimp aquaculture; (2) commons institutions and application of commons rules; and (3) policy implications (i.e., as an alternative to large-scale operations in ensuring sustainability). Data were gathered from three communities in northwestern Sri Lanka, through participant observations; semi-structured interviews; focus group discussions; and key informant interviews. Presence of small-scale community-based institutions is evident. Arguably, commons in this context are social-ecological systems, including the interconnected natural water body. Main characteristics of the existing resource governance system are multi-level commons institutional structure; zonal crop calendar system; collaborative/participatory management approach; and better management practices. A SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats) analysis proves the viability of existing CBSA. This thesis recognizes CBSA as an alternative approach to large-scale aquaculture operations to ensure sustainability in the long run.
Uploads
Papers by Eranga Galappaththi