Living with water stress in the hills of the Koshi basin, Nepal

This case study attempts to understand the strategies that communities in selected locations of the Koshi basin in Nepal have used to adapt to the stresses imposed by climatic hazards. These stresses are described generally as ‘too much water’ and ‘too little water’. The study’s findings are expected to provide insight into the strategies that people adopt to cope with water excesses and water shortages so that the strategies can be woven into national policies designed to enable people to respond to stresses successfully.

This report is one case study out of five studies of local responses to climate related water stress and floods. The central objective of this series of case studies "Documenting and assessing adaptation strategies to too much, too little water" is to document adaptation strategies at local or community level to constraints and hazards related to water and induced by climate change in the Himalayan region, including how people are affected by water stress and hazards, their local short and long-term responses, and the extent to which these strategies reduce vulnerability to water stress and hazards.