Dr. Ephias Mugari

Dr. Ephias Mugari is a Research Fellow in the South Africa/Flanders Climate Adaptation Research and Training Partnership (SAF-ADAPT) project and a Fellow in the 2023/24 Commonwealth Futures Climate Research Cohort.

His current research spans climate change adaptation, disaster (climate) risk reduction, and climate resilience in vulnerable regions.

His research aims to promote the role of nature-based solutions and sustainable agricultural practices in advancing sustainable, climate-resilient livelihoods.

Through knowledge co-creation and transdisciplinary approaches, Dr. Mugari thrives to engage various stakeholders, including vulnerable communities, to inform demand-driven research that leads to evidence-based decisions and policy.

While studying for his PhD on the barriers and enablers to Ecosystem-based Adaptation (EbA) within the Adaptation at Scale in Semi-Arid Regions (ASSAR) project, he was selected as a Junior Scientist by the Right Livelihood College, in Bonn, Germany.

This selection recognized his transdisciplinary research in climate change adaptation in the Limpopo Basin of Botswana

Dr. Mugari has attended and talked at several workshops, and national and international conferences, and publishes peer-reviewed articles in leading journals. Other research areas of interest include climate risk and livelihoods, adaptation of agricultural systems, smallholder farmers and rural development, climate finance, nature-based solutions, and natural resource management.

• PhD (Climate Change Adaptation)
• MSc (Agricultural & Applied Economics)
• BSc (Agriculture)

1. Mugari E., Vambe A.T., Tatsvarei S., Nethengwe N.S. and Mutambara J. 2023. Factors influencing smallholder farmers’ climate change risk perceptions: A behavioral approach in semi-arid regions of Zimbabwe. Environmental Research Communications. https://doi.org/10.1088/2515-7620/acece6
2. Mugari E. and Nethengwe N.S. 2022. Mainstreaming Ecosystem-Based Disaster Risk Reduction: Towards a Sustainable and Just Transition in Local Development Planning in Rural South Africa. Sustainability. 14 (19), 12368. https://doi.org/10.3390/SU141912368
3. Mugari E. and Masundire H. 2022. Consistent changes in land-use/land-cover in semi-arid areas: Implications on ecosystem service delivery and adaptation in the Limpopo Basin, Botswana. Land 11(11), 2057. https://doi.org/10.3390/land11112057
4. Mugari E., Masundire H., and Bolaane M. 2020. Effects of droughts on vegetation condition and ecosystem service delivery in data-poor areas: A Case of Bobirwa sub-district, Limpopo Basin, Botswana. Sustainability. 12(19), 8185. https://doi.org/10.3390/su12198185
5. Mugari E., Masundire H. and Bolaane M. 2020. Adapting to Climate Change in Semi-Arid Rural Areas: A Case of the Limpopo Basin Part of Botswana. Sustainability. 12 (20), 8292. https://doi.org/10.3390/su12208292