Space Education and Strategic Applications Journal
complex issues such as climate change impacts on agricultural landscapes and human communities ( Drexler , 2020 ; Oremo , 2013 ). Climate change and food security studies are complex , systemic , cumulative , and intertwined with human systems ( Molnar & Molnar , 2000 ). SES is a flexible framework which considers the interrelationships , linkages , and synergies between multiple trans-disciplinary factors ( i . e ., social , economic , environmental , cultural , governance , health , justice ) and community-based partnerships and adaptive management ( Olsson , Folke , & Berkes , 2004 ; Ostrom , 2009 ; Parrott , Chion , Gonzalés , & Latombe , 2012 ). A socio-ecological system is a linked network where an impact on one part of the system — climate change impacts from storm erosion , for example — can affect the larger system , such as food security and farmer livelihoods ( Lal , 2008 ; Levasseur & Olivier , 2000 ; Molnar & Molnar , 2000 ; Selomane , Reyers , Biggs , & Hamann , 2019 ). Understanding these system relationships — and how each factor functions in the complex whole of the SES — is important as each decision a farmer makes to adopt CSA practices can advance the entire milpa agriculture system further ( Koutsouris , 2008 ; UC Davis , n . d .).
A paradigm shift toward SES systems-thinking , described by Ratima , Martin , Castleden , and Delormier ( 2019 ) as a more “ Indigenous way of thinking about the interconnected and interdependent web of the natural world ” is needed to examine and understand complex SES linkages and dynamics , to manage resources and system vulnerabilities , and to facilitate policy changes on sustainability ( Drexler , 2020 ; Sikula , Mancillas , Linkov , & Mc- Donagh , 2015 ). A systems perspective is important in making climate mitigation and adaptation policies which contribute to positive outcomes of sustainable food systems ; considerations should include equity , resilience , renewability , responsiveness , transparency , scale , and evaluation as well as SES indicators such as food security , health , environmental integrity , equity , and profitability ( Niles , Ahuja , Esquivel , Mango , Duncan , Heller , & Tirado , 2017 ).
Climate Change Vulnerability in Belize
Focusing on Belize , there is evidence of climate change including a lack of rain , increased heat and sun exposure , offset rainy seasons , increased storm intensity , and an increase in pests and crop diseases ; these changes were perceived to have direct and indirect impacts to resident health , livelihoods , resource security , cultural traditions , and compounding environmental impacts ( Drexler , 2019 ). Communities in Belize are vulnerable to these direct impacts , which are compounded by factors such as deforestation , agriculture activity ( i . e ., the use of chemical inputs of pesticides and fertilizers ), biodiversity loss , poverty , population growth , land degradation , and farming on degraded soils ( Drexler , 2020 ; Flint , 2015 ; Oremo , 2013 ; Young , 2008 ; Meerman & Cherrington , 2005 as cited in Chicas , Omine , & Ford , 2016 ; Young , 2008 ).
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