Climate change vulnerability, ecological resilience, and adaptive capacity of Angami agroecological systems in Kohima, Nagland, Northeast India.

The present study assessed the climate vulnerability and ecological resilience of the Angami agroecological system in Kohima district of Nagaland, Northeast India, using the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Vulnerability framework. Despite growing research on climate vulnerability, a significant gap remains in developing integrated frameworks that capture the interactions among socio-economic conditions, ecological processes, and ecosystem services within indigenous agroforestry systems (AFS) of the Eastern Himalayas. Addressing this gap, the study attempts to integrate socio-economic and ecological dimensions to evaluate climate vulnerability of indigenous AFS, and by explicitly linking ecosystem services with adaptive capacity, to demonstrate the potential of indigenous AFS in enhancing resilience and reducing climate vulnerability. The study was carried out in four villages (Khonoma, Mima, Viswema, and Jotsoma) in Kohima district of Nagaland using qualitative and quantitative datasets that revealed the role of socio-demographic and environmental factors in shaping vulnerability and ecological resilience. Among the studied villages, Khonoma and Mima were found to be least vulnerable to climate change due to higher adaptive capacity, while Viswema and Jotsoma face greater vulnerability due to higher exposure and lower adaptive capacity. The order of vulnerability of farming systems to climate change was observed to be Viswema (0.293) > Jotsoma (0.278) > Mima (0.270) > Khonoma (0.268). Agroforestry systems were shown to enhance ecological resilience by improving soil fertility, carbon sequestration, and biodiversity. The Climate Vulnerability Index (CVI) relative to Per Capita Income (PCI) exhibited benefits such as low vulnerability and economic stability. The study underscores the importance of village-specific policies and adaptive strategies to strengthen climate resilience through sustainable ecological management, integration of traditional knowledge, and economic diversification for future research on resilient agroecosystems.