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Firstly, vulnerable populations such as pastoralists or small-scale farming families depend most on natural resources for their livelihoods. Global warming tends to produce more variability in weather conditions, as illustrated in the above-mentioned case of the Maasai woman in Tanzania. The rains were delayed for weeks, if they came at all, and rainfall was well below average for the fourth consecutive year. Local knowledge to respond to extreme weather conditions, built and passed on for centuries between generations, is being devalued. Animals perish, harvests fail, incomes dwindle, and nutrition is scant. As resources become scarcer by the day, the pressures and claims on their use increase, and conflicts surge.

Secondly, the world’s most vulnerable populations are at the frontline of the climate crisis. Many of the countries Swisscontact works in, for instance in the Sahel region or Central America, are heavily affected by the combined effects of low climate readiness and high fragility. These countries have very limited means to counter the consequences of global warming. With weak institutions and a lack of resources for even the most basic provisions, people are highly exposed to crises.