Bolivia is a country with a vastgeographical diversity, from a high plateau (altiplano) thatreaches 3,000 meters above sea level to valleys atmid-altitude and tropical plains. During the last decade,the magnitude of Bolivia’s weather patterns has undergonesignificant changes; extreme rainfall, floods, landslides,and droughts have been pushing the poorest and mostmarginalized communities beyond their ability to respond.There is a considerable amount of literature documenting theconsequences of weather shocks on income and poverty. Theaim of this study is to supplement the quantitative evidenceof the impact of droughts and floods on the welfare ofBolivian households by exploring the impacts of these severeweather events which affect psychological factors, that inturn are important when it comes to preventing andresponding to these events. The study highlight theimportance of considering these intangible elements thatdrive families’ decisions, in the context of designingpolicies for managing weather risk. Interventions andpolicies aimed at improving risk management in very poorcommunities should take into account the role of theseinternal factors in the reception and adoption of solutions,and in the likelihood that the investments can contribute tosocial mobility. The report is organized as follows: sectionone gives introduction. Section two gives a brief overviewof the research methods used. The third section discussesthe main findings related to immediate impacts (physicallosses as well as services impacted), risk management, andthe role of agency. Lastly, the fourth section presents theconclusions reached.
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