Rainwater harvesting: alternative for mitigating water stress in communities

Abstract

Introduction: rainwater harvesting systems date back centuries. In the context of 21st century Cuba, it is necessary to find alternatives to counteract the harmful effects of climate change expressed in recurrent and long droughts. Florencia, a municipality in Ciego de Ávila, is characterized by presenting such conditions.  Objective: implement educational and communication actions in communities for rainwater harvesting. Method: used was the analysis of documents, and observation. The methodology combines qualitative and quantitative approaches, but the qualitative logic was privileged, based on the assumption that education and communication are essentially qualitative processes. Results: proposal of actions for the promotion of rainwater harvesting in communities of the aforementioned municipality. Ending: Education and communication actions are implemented, with the aim of rainwater harvesting as an alternative to reduce water stress. Partial evaluation through socialization workshops with specialists allows to corroborate the validity of the proposed actions, as well as the recognition of the practical contribution of the research.