Theoretical framework for applied climate education: 2. Training development and delivery for building knowledge and skills to apply seasonal climate forecasts in agriculture

Abstract

Workshops were held in Australia, India, Indonesia and Zimbabwe between January 1999 to September 2002 to enhance understanding of climate variability, ENSO and seasonal forecasts, particularly as they impact on agriculture systems in these countries. These workshops were delivered to a range of participants including agriculture department staff, farmers, researchers, bureau of meteorology staff and food security personnel.

A range of resource materials were customised in Australia for these other countries and adapted for workshops. During previous visits to these countries, there were meetings with researchers, extension officers, farmers, meteorologists, policy makers and other project members and as a result, a set of workshop aims and criteria for participants attending the workshops was developed. Educational course-ware has been developed for a range of stakeholders including secondary schools, vocational and tertiary education, formal and informal materials for workshops. This material has been developed not only in booklet format but also multimedia format so as to appeal to the changing face of education and learning styles of students. A structured program for workshops were proposed but had to in-build flexibility so as to cope with different needs of participants. The workshops consisted of sessions on the climate of their country, tools to assist forecasting, application of forecasts, communication, evaluation and future work.

This is an edited version of the paper presented at the International Conference on Applying seasonal climate forecasts in agriculture, 24-26 September 2002., Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Tamil Nadu, INDIA.