Do Small Livestock Producers Adapt to Climate Variability? An Approach to the Case of the Upper Fonce River Páramo in Santander, Colombia

Abstract

This article presents the changes in the climatic variables of precipitation and temperature, the perceptions of producers regarding these variables, and the strategies and social, economic, and political factors that affect adaptations of small livestock producers in the páramo ecosystem at the upper Rio Fonce region. Data from 33 questionnaires, 12 interviews, and two workshops with key actors and producers were analyzed. A workshop resulted in a traffic light table assessing indicators from Bergamini related to vulnerability and adaptive capacity. Survey results helped identify adaptation strategies, while public policy documents underwent deductive content analysis. The findings revealed that changes in precipitation and temperature affect livestock systems. Farms with silvopastoral systems implement more adaptation strategies than conventional farms, even when not anticipated. Additionally, the ambiguity of the concept of adaptation hinders the development of policies that would enable livestock producers to transition towards more adaptive livestock systems.

1. Introduction

Climate variability, exacerbated by the atmospheric emissions of greenhouse gases of anthropogenic origin, is recognized today as a threat whose consequences differentially affect high Andean agro-ecosystems [1]. The Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) states that the earth’s temperature has increased by approximately 0.75 °C since the industrial revolution and is projected to continue to increase if the current development model continues, favoring an increase in temperature by 0.2 °C per decade with direct impacts on ecological and social systems [2]. Likewise, the Colombian Institute of Hydrology, Meteorology and Environmental Studies (IDEAM) has forecast for Colombia an increase in the average annual temperature in 50 years of between 1 °C and 2 °C with direct repercussions on the agricultural sector, classified as the most vulnerable sector [2].

Literature reports different impact analyses of this phenomenon on livestock [3,4,5]. The main impacts reported are associated with reduced livestock growth, decreased milk production, limited productive performance, and increased animal mortality and birth rates. Producers implement different adaptation strategies in response to the nature of the threat. In the case of high rainfall scenarios, there are practices of physical modification of the indoor and outdoor environment where the animals remain: at the indoor level, the restoration of paddocks with the introduction of species that generate shade to reduce the exposure of animals to solar radiation and heat stress [6], and at the indoor level, ventilation and construction of spaces to reduce heat [7].

On the other hand, reports indicate that in drought scenarios, producers implement genetic improvement strategies to reduce animal size, knowing that smaller and clear-colored animals are more resistant to heat stress [8]. It also highlights the modification of diets, changes in feeding times, and increased fumigation practices to control pests and diseases in dry times. In addition to the above, public policy promotes rapid adaptation and technological and management changes in production systems with less vulnerability [5]. In this context, vulnerability is expressed in terms of the lack of technological, social, economic, material, and human capital that limits adaptation [9].

At the same time, livestock farming is a climate change and ecosystem loss driver, generating 14.5% of total anthropogenic greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and reducing water resources and availability, forests, and soils [10,11]. For this reason, silvopastoral livestock farming becomes an adaptation strategy that requires further evaluation [12].

In regions like South America and Colombia, the El Niño-La Niña Southern Oscillation (ENSO) has the most marked effect on climate [2]. According to the National Unit for Risk and Disaster Management (UNGRC) in the period including the years 1990–2024, the ENSO contributed to a decrease in agricultural productivity of 16% and to a loss of glacier mass of 56% and affected more than 75% of the páramo ecosystem. For example, every time an El Niño event occurred, the average reduction was about 5% in agricultural yields and 4.9% in milk production in conventional production systems, while in silvopastoral systems, milk production reduction was 2.2% [13].

The National Federation of Ranchers [14] stipulates a negative variation of −2.2% in livestock inventories from 2010 to 2018 due to Niño and Niña events. This percentage applies to the 23.5 million head of cattle that the country had at that time throughout the national territory, of which 130,000 died of thirst due to an increase in temperature [14]. The situation persists, reporting ever higher figures: between 30 November 2019, and 25 January 2020, 34,925 heads of cattle died in Colombia due to extreme temperatures, and another 742,000 livestock were relocated to different areas. Concern about this impact on livestock is mainly because the livestock subsector currently contributes 1.4% of the national GDP and 21.8% of the agricultural GDP [15] and is an active part of the livelihoods of more of 638,941 families [16]. The role of livestock in climate issues is also important because it represents the activity generating the second highest amount of emissions of greenhouse gases (GHG) with 14% (32 Mt de CO₂) after 33% deforestation, added to pressures on land use and impact on the high Andean and páramo ecosystems [17].

Public policies in Colombia recognize and address this complex situation, although their application is sectoral and has represents an important challenge to solve with regard to emerging tradeoffs from the conservation of affected ecosystems, protection for the growth of the economy, and demands that come from the marginal communities located in the páramos. These aspects are observed first in the national climate change policy—PNCC—that promotes research and actions to identify strategies for adaptation and mitigation of impacts, risk reduction, disaster response, and reconversion of the different bovine production systems [18,19,20,21] and second, in Law 1930 of 2018, wherein it is considered urgent to reduce the impacts generated by cattle ranching in the páramo through productive reconversions adapted to current environmental change conditions. Since 2020, the country has been consolidating the climate resilience policy (E2050), which includes a framework to define a route to achieve sustainable socioeconomic development, seeking a more systemic measure. This policy is expected to overcome the predominant sectoral vision where adaptation to climate events and ecosystems conservation are independently developed and change towards a systemic and territorial policy where economic development based on livestock, a difficult-to-eliminate traditional activity, technologically changes to adapt to these ecosystems and settles with sustainability in strategic ecosystems such as the páramo s, without displacing the communities that have traditionally inhabited these territories.

Given the existing interest at the academic and political levels on this topic, this document offers a balance of the situation that in terms of adaptation is presented in Guantiva La Rusia Páramo for their location in the paramos, the confluence of different protected areas and livelihoods, the latter incorporating livestock as one of their basic components.

The development of the exercise allowed us to identify the hydroclimatological state of the case study and the set of strategies used by producers to respond to the events of climatic variability. It also provided an understanding of the Colombian public policy commitments to promote adaptation strategies in traditional livestock production within its conceptual gaps. The document concludes with a set of public policy recommendations and conclusions.

2. Study Area

2.1. Location

Páramo ecosystems are localized at high latitudes and considered strategic areas for the conservation of ecosystem services and biodiversity. Regulation of water resources, carbon sequestration, and the protection of unique flora species are among their crucial functions, essential for the provisioning of ecosystem services. They contain 10% of Colombia’s biodiversity with endemic species of plants, mammals, birds, and amphibians [22]. In addition, these ecosystems have been the livelihood of a sizable number of families who benefit from the water for their consumption and agricultural and livestock activities. The study area is located within the buffer zone of the Guantiva-La Rusia complex, which supplies 87% of the water of the 22 municipalities that border the complex (Figure 1) [23].

2.2. Characteristics of Páramo

In Colombia, paramo ecosystems, water sources, and aquifers are priority areas for conservation. This is because one of the main criteria for determining strategic areas for conservation, planning, and environmental management has been their ecological importance and their role in providing water resources for the population. This last aspect has been a recurrent criterion in the declaration of protected areas [24].

The páramo passes through transition zones from high Andean forests to herbaceous cover as altitude increases and is characterized by its floristic diversity, which includes approximately 128 different species of mosses, and 302 species of vascular flora, mainly of the genus Asteracea [25].

The paramo’s climate is cold and humid, with an average annual temperature ranging from 12 °C–18 °C, annual average rainfall of 1000 mm–1500 mm, average relative humidity of 80%, annual average daily solar brightness of 4–5 h, and annual evaporation between 900–1100 mm [26].

The main coverages of the Guantiva-La Rusia páramo are pastures and stubble, followed by forest areas. The paramo holds livestock production, minor species, and some forest plantations [27].

2.3. Socioeconomic Aspects

The major socioeconomic activities are primary production systems based on conventional semi-intensive livestock farming, including pasture monocultures, and silvopastoral, with diversification practices of pastures and tree species in the same area for livestock feeding.

The main source of income is of the traditional type with herds of approximately 1–10 animals per family with a prevalence of smallholdings (3–20 ha), mixed with agricultural activities for self-consumption (home gardens) such as potatoes, corn, peas and carrots, onions, some cold-climate fruit trees, and minor species such as chickens, sheep, and rabbits. Dual-purpose livestock activities constitute the activity of greatest economic importance in the area and in the municipality. Thus, livestock is even more important than agriculture and labor.

3. Methods

This research is exploratory and qualitative in nature [28]. Likewise, it has an inductive nature, based on the case study [29]. To analyze the variables of the climate, we carried out a review and compilation of information on climate variability provided by the Institute of Hydrology, Meteorology and Environmental Studies (IDEAM) on the closest stations. We selected the main pluviometric and climatological categories, and we analyzed a data record of 35 years and the variables of precipitation and temperature.

To assess the adaptive capacity and vulnerability of the system, two workshops with male farmers aged 30 to 60 years, representing both conventional and silvopastoral production systems, were held. During these sessions, we utilized traffic light perception tables. Participants rated various adaptation and vulnerability indicators at the farm level, as proposed by Bergamini [30], on a 1 to 3 scale (where 1 indicates low, 2 indicates medium, and 3 indicates high) (

Table 1. Adaptation and vulnerability variables and indicators.

Variables	Indicators
Landscape	Landscape diversity
	Slope
	Proximity to forest and protected areas
	Live fences and windbreaks
	Proximity to water sources
Production systems	Diversity of productive systems
	Practices of conservation of forest and water
	Drains (Channels and ditches)
	Use of water technologies
	Self-consumption of products generated at the farm
	Farm infrastructure
	Pasture rotation
	Variety of breeds
	Variety of grasses
	Soil fertility
	Rainwater harvesting practices
	Practices to increase soil organic matter
	Sustainable management of weeds and practices
Local knowledge	Seed selection of grasses resistant to dryness and humidity
	Use of breeds tolerant to dryness and humidity
	Water conservation practices
	Use of climatic indicators
	Strategies for prevention of drying
	Strategies for prevention of rain
	Inherited technologies
	Possibility of generacional relief
Institutions and social networks	Facilitation of interchange of local cooperation and knowledge
	Support from institutions to productive systems
	Participation in organizations
Gender	Women involved in decision-making in the productive systems
	Women’s access to resources and employment opportunities
Infrastructure	Knowledge of management of productive systems
	Contribution of infrastructure of productive systems (roads, schools and services)

).

The workshops followed a different logic for each type of production. In the first workshop, 18 producers (men) participated with conventional systems, and in the second, 15 (11 men and 4 women) participated with silvopastoral systems. In these instances, timelines helped to track climate changes and social mapping to identify the spatial development of the adaptation strategies. To corroborate the information from the workshops, visits to ten farms (five under silvopastoral arrangements and five conventional) took place to weigh the results of the workshops and to validate the status of the indicators with the households. The data obtained from the 33 surveys complemented the indicators and made it possible to understand the perceptions of impact and adaptability of producers.

Moreover, 12 interviews were conducted with key stakeholders, including technicians from protected areas, municipal technical assistance units (UMATA), and municipal delegations of the Agrarian Bank directors and representatives of local organizations. The results provided a better understanding of climate and policy impacts on adaptation strategies for climate events (changes in temperature and precipitation).

A content analysis of different normative instruments was also conducted based on Clemence and colleagues’ [31] coding proposal. Six laws were reviewed: Law 1972 of 2019; Law 1931 of 2018; Law 1844 of 2017; Law 1776 of 2016 Law 629 of 2000; Law 164 of 1994; and Law 1931 of 2018, as well as a policy, National Adaptation Plan, 2014, and a technical document, Climate Resilience Strategy E2050 of 2021. The exercise allowed for the identification of descriptive codes of the adaptation category that define the concept according to specific analytical approaches. Conceptual trends to elaborate network graphs with word frequencies (codes) in Gephi 0.10 software are available.

The selection of the case study villages responds to the presence of livestock-based livelihoods in the high Andean forests and the buffer zones of the National Natural Park, placed in the biogeographic region of the páramo.

4. Results

4.1. Climate Characteristics

The results show that the most important changes for livestock-based livelihoods are related to changes in precipitation and temperature. The average annual temperature ranges from 12 °C to 16 °C, with an average annual rainfall of 1000 mm a 4000 mm, average relative humidity of 80%, annual average daily solar brightness of 4–5 h, and annual evaporation between 900–1100 mm. The results show a tendency to increase the annual mean precipitation, and the temperature variable increases with respect to the current mean of 0.5 °C–0.75 °C (Figure 2).

4.2. Perceptions of Producers Regarding Climate Variability Phenomena

The perceptions of livestock producers regarding climate phenomena depend on their productive activity and the type of capital they have available to manage their activities. Farmers who engage in conventional livestock production report receiving monthly incomes ranging from US$290 to US$400 from milk sales, and 80% feel that they have adequate technology, labor, and productive infrastructure (farms, milking machines, barns) to manage their animals. Similarly, 94% suggest that the natural resources on their farms are in a good state of conservation, and, as a result, the soil and water are sufficient to meet the requirements of their animals in terms of food and water. However, 6% mentioned that in the last 10 years, water has reduced, and soil erosion has increased due to animal trampling on their farms; however, this is not associated with climate variability events, although they identify that the climate is less predictable nowadays.

Access to stable income, the technical support they pay for, and the possibility that more than 80% of producers access productive loans allow them to acquire technologies and invest in improvements to their farms and their family homes. However, part of the income does not address climate threats. In the case of producers who perceive a decrease in water and soil, monetary resources are not allocated to their conservation.

For producers with silvopastoral systems, income ranges between USD 350 and USD 500 per month. Of this income, 70% comes from the sale of milk and 30% from the sale of agricultural products they produce on their farms. Productive diversification in this case is widely used for animal management, since from the harvested corn crops, forages are obtained that are reserved for the months of less rainfall, and from the organic waste of the home and other crops, composting is carried out that serves as a fertilizer for the crops and improves soil conditions in areas of the property with greater erosion.

Ninety-five percent of these producers indicate that they have little dependence on chemical inputs, although they dedicate at least USD 20 per month to purchase inputs for tick control. However, they point out that they implement ecological measures to reduce the presence of these animals, such as planting bitter plants and rotating pastures. In terms of conservation, all respondents say that they implement strategies for reforestation of pastures and streams, fencing water sources to prevent the introduction of animals, and composting organic waste for fertilizer production for family crops and soil improvement. They also mention that some organizations and pasture foundations have contributed knowledge to promote conservation strategies; however, they point out that government entities do not provide any technical or environmental support.

Unlike conventional producers, all producers who develop silvopastoral arrangements claim to have observed changes in the behavior of climatic variables in the last 30 years, particularly associated with the increase in temperature and precipitation. For example, they point out that the years 1994, 2007, 2010, and 2022 were the rainiest, while 1997, 2013, and 2023 were the driest years. They also affirm that it was in these years that production decreased the most, diseases increased, and there were animal deaths. However, they mention that they do not have enough resources to face these problems; even if they receive income from the activity, it is not adequate to cover their livelihoods.

According to producers, two variables directly influenced production: temperature and precipitation. First, the increase in temperature generates weight loss due to heat stress, a decrease in milk production, an increase in pests, a decrease in water sources, a decrease in reproduction, and even the death of animals due to thirst. Second, increased rainfall affects fungal diseases and causes damage to the physical structures of buildings, loss of pasture due to waterlogging, and increased proliferation of bacteria and fungi. In addition, excess rainfall causes a reduction in milk production due to lower availability of pastures, since they rot due to the floods; and the soil deteriorates due to trampling. Similarly, production is affected by the energy expenditure of the animals because of the formation of mud, the occurrence of leg diseases, and the difficult transit to the milking points when the mud hardens. In this sense, two different types of impact on properties with silvopastoral arrangements exists.

• Impacts on animal comfort

Temperature is the variable that causes the greatest physiological reactions in cattle. Producers (silvopastoral) who recognize impacts point out that in El Niño years, animals can lose up to 50 kg due to food shortages and energy loss because of temperature regulation. According to the information obtained, although the climatic averages do not exceed 13 °C, during El Niño years, the temperature can increase up to 1 °C, which impacts animals adapted to colder climates. According to the producers, although technically the Holstein and Norman breeds, predominant in the area, are resistant to the climate, when there are temperature increases, the animals become stressed, and milk production decreases. The stress is because animals, in addition to having very thick skin, have a coat that reduces perspiration. Impacts due to temperature are lower in properties with greater shade and greater presence of tree cover. In silvopastoral systems, more than 20% of the pasture area has trees that provide shade and reduce energy consumption for the animals’ thermal regulation.

• Impacts on the appearance of pests and diseases

According to producers, during the summer, animals experience increased parasitism caused by ticks, which aggravates nutritional stress due to food deficit. Water scarcity also causes animals to concentrate on small water sources, which results in contamination with eggs or cysts, leading to severe clinical cases of parasitic diseases.

It is striking that producers with conventional systems do not explicitly mention climate impacts on their production. For these producers, reduced production, weakening of pastures, and decline and deterioration of water are associated with anthropogenic dynamics. For example, reduced production is associated with poor animal and pasture genetics; the worsening of pastures is associated with trampling and the limited knowledge that producers must carry out rotations; and the low availability of water is due to pollution and excessive use in other farms where tuber production is developed, where water demand is usually higher.

4.3. Vulnerability and Adaptation Strategies

• Vulnerability

The results allow us to point out that the changes in precipitation and temperature gave rise to various manifestations of vulnerability.

First, vulnerability increases due to limited access to diverse sources of income. The most vulnerable producers are those who depend exclusively on the income generated by livestock activity; however, most producers reduce their vulnerability by deriving income from various agricultural and non-agricultural activities. This occurs on properties with silvopastoral arrangements.

Second, the absence of physical capital (e.g., with drainage ditches and signaling) generates risks of landslides, all of which imply greater efforts by producers for almost any type of commerce, and they increase transportation costs. In the rainy season, all these tertiary roads with steep slopes are not passable.

Third, in terms of technological innovation, changes are minimal due to a lack of capital and also because of a limited institutional offer and support for accessing technology. This increases the vulnerability of producers because there is no evidence of cases of continuous technical assistance. Only one silvopastoral production program, led by a national NGO, was identified. Although it has not been assessed, the producers with silvopastoral arrangements considered that it contributed to improving the practices of production.

Finally, in relation to the membership of producers in social organizations, vulnerability increases in both cases due to a lack of stable organizations with the capacity for collective action. However, the existence of producer associations has increased their capacity for milk transformation, negotiation, and commercialization, hence contributing to the permanence of livestock activity and the families settled there. In the field of marketing, the production of conventional and silvopastoral farms aims at the same commercial spaces. No differences are present in terms of the organizational capacity of the activities.

The analysis of the 33 indicators proposed by Bergaminni [30] demonstrated an important level of vulnerability in the Rio Fonce (47.9%) and a low and medium response capacity in most of the indicators (

Table 2. List of indicators to estimate adaptative capacities with vulnerability elements.

Indicators	Variables	S1	S2	S3	S4	S5	C6	C7	C8	C9	C10
Landscape	Landscape diversity
	Slope
	Proximity to forests and protected areas
	Live fences and windbreaks
	Proximity to water sources
	Diversity of productive systems
	Practices of conservation of forest and water
	Drains (channels and ditches)
	Use of water technologies
Production systems	Self-consumption of products generated at the farm
	Farm infrastructure
	Pasture rotation
	Variety of breeds
	Variety of grasses
	Soil fertility
	Rainwater harvesting practices
	Practices to increase soil organic matter
	Sustanaible management of weeds and practices
	Seed selection of grasses resistant to dryness and humidity
	Use of breeds tolerant to dryness and humidity
Local knowledge	Water conservation practices
	Use of climatic indicators
	Strategies for prevention of drying
	Strategies for prevention of rain
	Inherited technologies
	Possibility of generational relief
Institutions and social networks	Facilitation of interchange of local cooperation and knowledge
	Support from institutions to productive systems
	Participation in organizations
Gender	Women involved in decision-making in the productive systems
	Women’s access to resources and employment opportunities
Infrastructure	Knowledge of management of productive systems
	Contribution of infrastructure of productive systems (roads, schools and services)

In this table, each column corresponds to a farm as a sample to determine vulnerability level; the column with word S corresponds to conventional systems of livestock, and columns with word C correspond to farms with silvopastoral arrangements. Colors represent vulnerability level: red: high vulnerability; yellow: medium vulnerability; green: low vulnerability.

).

In general terms, the results show limited capacity to respond to climate variability, especially noticeable in the indicators associated with the practices of the production systems and the strategies for the prevention of impacts of rain and drought. Although silvopastoral systems are present in the territory, the limited climate activities developed on these farms aim at improving production under a conservation model.

However, indicators of landscape, knowledge, institutions and social networks, gender, and infrastructure showed an average response capacity, meaning that in the midst of conditions of vulnerability there is some knowledge associated with climate management and collective work in silvopastoral properties that can lead to actions aimed at improving productivity and responding better in the long term to events of climate variability.

• Adaptation strategies

The results show a total of 19 adaptive practices associated with elements of production, associativity, income diversification, and conservation of natural resources for use in livestock activity, given the influence and investment of some environmental projects. Producers implement these practices exclusively on farms with silvopastoral arrangements.

In general terms, more than half of the identified practices (13) are associated with activities to conserve production and indirectly reduce climate impacts. To start with, there have been improvements in cleaning, planting, and pasture rotation, as well as enhancements to watering troughs, the procurement of pasture, animal feed, vitamins, and salts; second, activities have been implemented to prevent and cure diseases through vaccination, deworming, and baths against ticks and flies; and third, there are practices of genetic improvement through artificial insemination. In addition, strategies for reducing production costs and achieving market access were identified. These include forming partnerships with local environmental and territorial organizations focused on soil and water conservation, as well as diversifying income streams through tourism (

Table 3. Adaptation strategies common in Upper Rio Fonce region.

Climate Variable	Strategies	Effect
Temperature increase	Planting trees and living fences to create shady spaces	Reduce the impact of heat stress and weight loss of the animal
	Purchase and transport of grass Rent of farms with pastures in higher elevations	Maintain a balance in the weight of the animal and quality in the production of milk and meat
	Increase in the dose of salt and vitamins	Prevent fluid retention and increase nutrients in the diet to improve the quality of meat and milk
	Greater frequency of cattle sales in critical periods of El Niño	Reduce costs generated by the maintenance of animals
	Genetic improvement	Increase productivity and find breeds more resistant to the weather
	Increase in the application of medicines and vitamins	Disease and fungus reduction
	Purchase of concentrates	Improve diet and avoid weight loss
	Periodic baths	Reduce infection by ticks and flies
	Search for activities to diversify income	Improve income and maintain livelihoods
	Technical assistance (private not certified service)	Improvement in knowledge aimed at increasing productivity
Precipitation rise	Purchase and transport of grass	Maintain the diet of the animal in the face of a shortage of pasture generated by waterlogging and trampling
	Construction of trenches and drains	Avoid creation of ponds in paddocks
	Increase in the purchase of vitamins, salt, and molasses	Provision of dietary vitamins, minerals and energy
	Greater frequency of cattle sales in critical periods of La Niña	Avoid financial losses
	Increase in the purchase of supplements and concentrates	Maintain the animal’s diet and reduce weight loss
	Construction of water points, avoiding entrance of cattle into the water source	Conserve water sources
	Strengthening of associativity	Continuous sale of milk
	Animal deworming	Prevention against parasites generated by contaminated water

).

Evidence shows that 80% of the practices recognized as adaptations are unplanned interventions designed to cope with climate variability.

4.4. Policy Analysis: Conceptual Approach and Institutional Information Review

The development of the concept of adaptation represents one of the most important efforts at the level of public policy and international cooperation during the last 30 years [1]. Furthermore, adaptation has generally prevailed, aimed at incremental changes in the economy by reducing risk exposure, control, and vulnerability and improving resilience [1,32,33]. This emphasis has not made it possible to address adaptation as a strategy for promoting effective transformation of production systems based on understanding and assembling them as complex systems in constant coevolution with nature.

Failures for understanding and using the concept in the policy realm and limitations for its application in the producer realm are related to limitations that arise from worldviews and myths about the society–nature relationship, rooted in politics and public institutions. Each myth leads to different assumptions about adaptations and consequently leads to different types of policies and producer activities that are considered the most appropriate. Table 3 classifies the predominant ways of understanding and using the concept, the consequences of planning, and the way they are addressed in Colombian public policies.

Table 3 also shows the emphasis of the Colombian Institutional Framework on defining adaptation as a reactive and disaster preventive capacity, including elements of the following:

(1)

Direct adaptation: mitigating potential impacts of vulnerable groups (capacity-building people and systems, social protection measures, insurance to reduce potential adverse effects);

(2)

Balanced adaptation: preparation for emergency responses (establishment of alert systems, contingency plans, construction of shelters, stocks of food reserves, medicines, and essential materials);

(3)

Balanced adaptation: response to the crisis that includes the humanitarian measures necessary to meet the basic needs of the affected population;

(4)

Resilient adaptation: recovery, rehabilitation, and reconstruction with measures that help overcome the emergency, focused on the recovery of livelihoods and the reorganization of basic public services.

The typology offered in Table 4 allows the identification of five central arguments that are used later as an interpretive framework:

1. The concept of adaptation reflects a predominant trend, both from academia and from public institutions, that promotes reactive actions aimed at reducing risk and damage caused by climatic events and to enable the continuity of economic growth [34,35,36]. Little has been written about the structural factors that determine adaptation, as well as the strategies that human groups develop to face these changes and develop possible forms of adaptation that allow for a transformation of the current situation in the Andes [37,38].

2. This concern has prompted the creation of various definitions and ways of using the concept, although they are mainly focused on aspects relating to risk and disaster response [39,40,41] that restrict a broader application of the concept within the framework of public policy and in particular in the field of adaptation to high Andean ecosystems where there is little information on the strategies and factors that influence adaptation [42].

3. Although a tendency towards analysis was identified in politics, recognizing the importance of reducing vulnerability was identified, which is mainly attributed to the set of threats that come from biophysical external drivers. This aspect limits an understanding of the set of endogenous elements affecting production systems and livelihoods in the Andes, as well as the combination of the characteristics of actors, individuals, households, and communities, expressed in relation to exposure to a threat derived from their own social, cultural, and economic conditions [32].

4. Recently, there has been a shift in public policy and international cooperation towards the need to improve understanding of human groups’ adaptations to climate variability with a focus on resilience [42]. This approach has not been developed in adaptation policies and practice, since it presents an important challenge in the Andes related to the need to understand the impacts of climate phenomena and hence the totality of relationships, dynamics, and interactions that occur between ecological and social systems and that facilitate adaptation as well as planning as a fundamental aspect of long-term adaptation [43].

5. Finally, it is worth noting that the literature regarding adaptation in páramo ecosystems is still limited. There is a large body of literature relating to the importance of conserving this ecosystem, as well as a reduction of impacts generated by mining and agricultural activities [44,45,46,47]; however, not enough studies have been identified to show the adaptation strategies of agricultural producers in these systems, much less how these activities would contribute to sustainable production [42].

6. As illustrated in Table 4, definitions of adaptation and their inclusion in current adaptation policies are diverse and chaotic and follow mental models of nature, deeply rooted in the environmental policy realm. This presents an important challenge for conciliating this diversity of approaches and creates an Andean consensus on the climate question, its regional manifestation, and its sustainment in the social-ecological realities of the Andes.

Table 4. Definitions on adaptation and forms of application identified in the literature and their use in the Colombian Institutional Framework.

Concept	Definition	Characteristics	Type of Planning	Scale and Temporal Level	Colombian Institutional Framework
Direct adaptation	Adjustment of human or natural systems to new or changing environments [1,48].	Reduce risks and control vulnerabilities	Static and reactive. Reaction when shock occurs.	Closed systems. Sectoral interventions on micro and medium-term scales.	Ley 1972 of 2019 Ley 1931 of 2018 Ley 1844 of 2017 Ley 1776 of 2016 Ley 629 of 2000 Ley 164 of 1994
Anarchic adaptation	Minimal system adjustments due to minimal system demands [36].	Maintain the balance of the system	Static and caution. It reacts when a shock occurs.	Closed systems without intervention	It is not directly included in Colombian regulations
Balanced adaptation	Gradual adjustments in daily practices made by human systems [35].	Maintain the essence and integrity of what exists.	Static and reactive. It reacts when a shock occurs.	Open systems.	National Adaptation Plan, 2014
				Sectoral interventions at micro and short-term scales.	Law 1931 of 2018
Resilient adaptation	Capacity of a social or ecological system to absorb disturbances, maintaining the basic structure and modes of operation [49].	Manage the transformation of systems by increasing absorption and adaptive capacities.	Dynamic and flexible. Adaptive planning with principles aimed at prevention	Open systems. Inclusive approach that integrates actions at the local, national, regional, and global levels, in the short, medium, and long term.	Climate resilience strategy E2050, 2021
Co-evolutionary adaptation	Capacity of complex systems to learn and respond to disturbances under uncertainty scenarios [50,51].	Manage uncertainty	Dynamic and flexible	Open and multi-scale systems	Not directly included in the regulations

Source: Typology elaborated from [34,35,36,38,49,51].

Table 4. Definitions on adaptation and forms of application identified in the literature and their use in the Colombian Institutional Framework.

Concept	Definition	Characteristics	Type of Planning	Scale and Temporal Level	Colombian Institutional Framework
Direct adaptation	Adjustment of human or natural systems to new or changing environments [1,48].	Reduce risks and control vulnerabilities	Static and reactive. Reaction when shock occurs.	Closed systems. Sectoral interventions on micro and medium-term scales.	Ley 1972 of 2019 Ley 1931 of 2018 Ley 1844 of 2017 Ley 1776 of 2016 Ley 629 of 2000 Ley 164 of 1994
Anarchic adaptation	Minimal system adjustments due to minimal system demands [36].	Maintain the balance of the system	Static and caution. It reacts when a shock occurs.	Closed systems without intervention	It is not directly included in Colombian regulations
Balanced adaptation	Gradual adjustments in daily practices made by human systems [35].	Maintain the essence and integrity of what exists.	Static and reactive. It reacts when a shock occurs.	Open systems.	National Adaptation Plan, 2014
				Sectoral interventions at micro and short-term scales.	Law 1931 of 2018
Resilient adaptation	Capacity of a social or ecological system to absorb disturbances, maintaining the basic structure and modes of operation [49].	Manage the transformation of systems by increasing absorption and adaptive capacities.	Dynamic and flexible. Adaptive planning with principles aimed at prevention	Open systems. Inclusive approach that integrates actions at the local, national, regional, and global levels, in the short, medium, and long term.	Climate resilience strategy E2050, 2021
Co-evolutionary adaptation	Capacity of complex systems to learn and respond to disturbances under uncertainty scenarios [50,51].	Manage uncertainty	Dynamic and flexible	Open and multi-scale systems	Not directly included in the regulations

Source: Typology elaborated from [34,35,36,38,49,51].

5. Discussion

This study confirms that livestock production systems under conventional arrangements in the Upper Fonce River are more vulnerable than silvopastoral systems, like Peri and colleagues mention [52] regarding the current state of the silvopastoral systems in Latin America, finding that these systems are more resilient because of their adaptative capacity. This is because traditional producers do not develop adaptation strategies, nor do they recognize the impacts of these phenomena. In the case of silvopastoral systems, results indicate that although limited, farmers develop adaptation innovations to improve pastures, protect water, and maintain production. Likewise, producers recognize the existence of climate variability, its impacts, and the need to continue promoting their systems, as Kargbo and colleagues mention as well [53]. In this case, silvopastoral livestock have better capacities to adapt to páramo ecosystems and utilize tools to conserve natural resources [4,5,54].

Despite the benefits of silvopastoral systems, Ramírez-Gómez and colleagues [54], argue that evaluating different livestock production systems is not enough, and the adoption of practices and technologies that make livestock farming a sustainable activity in sensitive ecosystems such as the páramo is needed. Three strategies are crucial for livestock management in páramo areas: pasture management, water resource management, and animal production management, which coincide with the practices of adaptation to climate change identified in our study. Nevertheless, these adaptation strategies must be complemented by other complex studies to monitor climate and biodiversity. This will allow for making decisions and strategies to guarantee the development of the livelihoods of small livestock producers and farmers and the maintenance of the ecosystem services provided by the páramo [37,55,56].

In terms of public policy, there is a divergence of conceptual definitions that prevents specific adaptation actions from materializing in strategic ecosystems [57]. Currently, politics promotes actions that ignore three aspects: (1) threats and their frequency and intensity; (2) territorial planning and its determinants of land use; and (3) the exogenous and endogenous elements that determine the system’s vulnerability and limit adaptation [58,59,60]. If the concept of adaptation were approached from a multilevel perspective through public policy discussions at the national and regional levels, it would be necessary to move from the linear and static consideration of adaptation as an end and advance in the understanding of the processes and dynamics carried out by producers to co-evolve with nature and adapt in the biogeographic regions of the páramo.

In the Alto Río Fonce, practices identified in silvopastoral systems coincide with official strategies designed for the sustainable development and conservation of the high Andean paramos and forests. These practices are based on previous ideas to reduce environmental impacts, protect water sources and soil, and increase the economic and social choices of inhabitants. However, these are not preventive or anticipatory. In general, response strategies do not align with the definitions of early adaptation suggested by Colombian policies [60].

The final highlighted element is the policy scarcity adaptation of practices in training, communication, and rural non-livestock activities, such as tourism and other economic services. These practices correspond to adaptations that promote good management of the high Andean Forest. However, in this research, given the incipient level of development in the study area, the communities did not prioritize these activities. Practices such as strengthening human capital, communication, and social organization have obvious benefits; however, they do not have a direct impact on the conservation of ecosystems or adaptation to climate change.

6. Conclusions

This research confirms the existence of interannual climate variability phenomena in the analyzed area, as well as intensified changes in these climatic variables in a period not exceeding 50 years. The observed temperature increased by up to 1.3 °C in the study area. These data confirm that climate variability negatively affects livestock production, with direct impacts on milk and meat production due to a decrease in pasture and water, an increase in pests and diseases, and a decline in conditions that ensure animal well-being.

Small livestock producers are increasingly aware of how climate variability affects livestock production, and their main response focuses on maintaining productivity. However, this awareness and response primarily occur on farms that utilize silvopastoral arrangements. In contrast, farmers operating under conventional systems often do not recognize the impacts of climate variability or identify any adaptation strategies.

Overall, production systems are currently at a critical vulnerability level that hampers their ability to effectively respond to climate challenges. This vulnerability arises from many factors, including weak infrastructure, limited household income, lack of technological innovation, and poorly developed organizations and social networks.

Regarding their response capacity, the identified strategies tend to be reactive, aimed at mitigating the effects and risks posed by climate variability on agricultural activities and the sustainability of livelihoods. Unfortunately, these strategies do not involve initiative-taking adaptive actions, which are necessary for effective planning and prevention regarding the examined climate variables.

We conclude that the lack of knowledge regarding the experiences and research related to the adaptation of small livestock production systems to climate variability has hindered the development of effective measures and strategies for managing páramo ecosystems across the country. Therefore, it is essential to allocate resources to science and technology to deepen the analysis of these variables and identify tailored management strategies.

Generating new knowledge is crucial, but it must be approached within a framework that connects science with public policies and the daily practices of high Andean livestock. This approach will facilitate a co-evolutionary process of transformed adaptation, considering not only the necessary social and biophysical conditions but also the capacity of local actors to integrate them.