‘Staying’ as a potential climate change adaptation strategy and its impact on the rural population of the Indian Sundarbans

The research paper explores the process of ‘staying’ as a possible adaptation strategy to the impacts of climate change in the Indian Sundarbans. As an effect of the crises caused by climate change, much of the recent research has revolved around the perspective of migration. Nonetheless, there is a rising academic interest in examining the lived experiences of persons affected by climate change who essentially choose to stay put rather than relocate. In line with this latter orientation, this research paper centres on the perspectives and capacities of the most marginalised and vulnerable populations living in the Indian Sundarbans. The paper places their experiences in context whilst exploring the idea of ‘staying’ as a strategy for adaptation. The methodological approach utilized draws on qualitative field research conducted with the Adivasi, Scheduled Castes, and Scheduled Tribes in the climate-sensitive district of the South 24 Parganas in the Sundarbans, West Bengal. A combination of unstructured interviews with fifteen islanders and participatory techniques was used. We ask: what makes communities remain where they are despite hazardous changes in their surroundings? The conceptual tools used to explore this question are drawn from theories situated within political economy, feminist political ecology, and agrarian studies. The findings bring to light the changing attitudes of the local populace in their struggle against climate change and its occurrences. The overwhelming majority preferred ‘staying’ as a tactic for climate adaptation and temporarily adopting seasonal movement, allowing them to diversify their income and maintain ties with their native places. Since there has been limited study on ‘staying’ or environmental non-migration, this paper makes a case for a more contextually grounded methodology considering the social, political, economic, and cultural variables underpinning the Sundarbans’ inhabitants.