Objective/Mission
The Jameel Observatory – Climate Resilience Early Warning System Network (Jameel Observatory CREWSnet) project is committed to strengthening climate resilience among the most vulnerable communities in Bangladesh’s climate-affected regions. The mission is to develop and operationalize an integrated, evidence-based decision-support system that equips frontline communities with timely, actionable climate information.
The initiative aims to empower people, communities, local governments, and civil society organizations to better plan for, and respond to, the growing risks of climate change. By combining local knowledge with scientific data, the project seeks to enhance adaptive capacities and decision-making processes at the community level. It is designed as a public good; one that is locally driven, rooted in community priorities, and capable of being scaled and adapted globally to address climate challenges in diverse contexts.
Approach in Year 3
As MIT will issue local near-term and long-term climate forecasts to inform focused adaptation solutions based on its in-depth expertise in climate science, forecasting, and physical and economic impact modeling, BRAC will design and implement context-specific interventions and adaptation strategies informed by these forecasts. BRAC will use this information and data to raise awareness and inform all relevant stakeholders, including local communities, government officials, policy makers, academia etc. BRAC conducted regional and national workshops to identify gaps and needs in climate data, particularly for developing a crop calendar aligned with farmers’ needs and current changing climate. Additionally, BRAC works closely with communities, school authorities, and administrators to establish multipurpose heatwave shelters, organize training sessions for agrarian communities, and conduct household-level, door-to-door awareness campaigns to encourage the adoption of critical climate-adaptive technologies.
For the Agriculture and Livelihoods flagship, BRAC leveraged knowledge and insights from the Krishi Gobeshona Polli and Adaptation Clinic as part of its contribution. Additionally, the BRAC team analyzes weekly meteorological data with agricultural experts to develop farmer-friendly agro-meteorological advisories, disseminated via voice SMS to 6,625 farmers, as well as to sector specialists and community mobilizers. In the Housing and Shelter flagship, BRAC conducted community needs assessments for establishing a multipurpose heatwave shelter, complemented by short studies—including Rapid Rural Appraisals and Focus Group Discussions—to understand community members’ perceptions of heatwaves and their willingness to use such shelters if established. Two sites for the implementation of the AF have been selected. Piloting will first take place in Baradal Union of Satkhira, with Munshiganj Union to follow. The site has received leadership approval, and design and implementation are in progress. BRAC also organized and conducted regional and national-level workshops with government officials from the agricultural sector. The BRAC team is working with Y-Rise, taking an entrepreneurial approach under the Water Security flagship. The Water Entrepreneurship Intervention has identified 240 treatment communities and 120 control communities across Shyamnagar and Assasuni Upazilas. Following this, BRAC will conduct a comparative analysis.
Progress in Year 3
The BRAC team largely relies on primary data collected from the field for its work. Current weather information is sourced from the Bangladesh Meteorological Department (BMD), while salinity data has been gathered directly from project areas. For socioeconomic data, BRAC has conducted field surveys to support the development of a water pricing model. Additionally, several community perception studies have been carried out on issues related to water, livelihoods, and heatwaves. Lastly, a survey was conducted to assess existing cyclone shelters in the project areas.
Foundational/internal modeling
In Year 3, the BRAC Jameel Observatory-CREWSnet team redesigned the crop calendar based on concepts from Jameel Observatory-CREWSnet climate modelling, identified and mapped water crisis blocks through Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) in project areas and is working on designing the AFs to address extreme heat, humidity, and cyclones. We also held workshops with government officials from the climate-change sector and identified key individuals as focal points for the AC, who will work closely with MIT and Jameel Observatory-CREWSnet project in informing Bangladesh’s 2027 NAP.
Data Hub and Decision-Support Tool
The BRAC team conducted a Water Price Survey in the southwestern region to assess economic analysis of selected households that purchase water. A household-based census was also completed in the Jameel Observatory-CREWSnet study areas in Year 2 and uploaded to Data Hub. This data will be used in the decision-support tool to inform multiple programmes of BRAC, including precision targeting and gender-sensitive climate risk analysis, salinity and drought projections, crop-yield modelling for climate-resilient insurance and climate-aligned academic planning.
In Year 3, BRAC contributed to the Agriculture and Livelihoods, Housing and Shelter, and Water Security flagship areas through context-specific interventions informed by climate forecasts and community-needs assessments. Key activities included developing agro-meteorological advisories, initiating to pilot the AF, conducting community-based studies on heatwaves and water pricing, and operationalizing a Water Entrepreneurship Intervention. Additionally, BRAC led stakeholder workshops, working on an updated crop calendar using climate-modeling insights, and generated field data for integration into the Jameel Observatory-CREWSnet Data Hub and decision-support tools to enhance locally driven climate-adaptation solutions.