Now I See: Photovisualization to Support Agricultural Climate Adaptation

To remain viable, agricultural producers will need to adapt to changing climatic conditions in coming decades. Agricultural advisers play an important role in helping producers decide to adopt appropriate adaptation practices. Photovisualizations have the potential to complement currently utilized outreach and education strategies. This research uses a focus group approach to explore (1) whether photovisualizations can aid in decision-making about climate change adaptation, and (2) what characteristics of photovisualizations are most effective at conveying spatial aspects of adaptation practices. We found that photovisualizations generate rich discussions about ecological and economic effects as well as tradeoffs associated with climate adaptation practices. To have the greatest impact, photovisualizations should be used when producers are considering implementing high-cost or high-risk projects, when practices are likely to dramatically change the visual landscape, or when a practice is unfamiliar to a producer.未来数十年间，农业生产者若要维持经营存续，必须适应不断变化的气候条件。农业顾问在协助生产者决策并采纳适宜的气候适应措施方面，扮演着至关重要的角色。摄影可视化（Photovisualizations）有望对当前所采用的农技推广与教育策略形成有效补充。本研究采用焦点小组法，旨在探究两大核心问题：其一，摄影可视化能否辅助气候变化适应相关的决策制定；其二，具备何种特征的摄影可视化，在传递适应措施的空间维度信息时效果最优。研究结果显示，摄影可视化能够引发围绕气候适应措施的生态、经济影响以及相关权衡取舍的深度讨论。若要发挥最大效用，摄影可视化应在以下场景中应用：当生产者考虑实施高成本或高风险项目时，当相关措施极有可能显著改变视觉景观时，或是当生产者对该措施完全陌生时。