Community vulnerability to climate-related disasters and environmental degradation is a concern for
social workers. This concern accentuates when the physical environment from which communities
derive livelihoods cannot sustain their subsistence. Social work is a profession that is committed to
the development of communities adhering to social justice, human rights, and respect for diversity
amongst people and cultures. It advocates for sustainable community development and the protection
of people from environmental hazards and risks. While serving the person in the social environment,
it seeks to reduce their vulnerability to disasters that could jeopardize sustainable developments in
their locality. Globally, the changing weather patterns, environmental pollution, and natural hazards
with grave consequences for communities have become burdensome. Climate change has brought
about increased flooding, frequent drought episodes, and new health hazards that require
researched corporate actions and interventions in communities. The researcher moved by the
devastating impacts of disasters in Botswana carried out an empirical study in three localities of the South East Administrative District. The study adopted the mixed methods research design to assess
community preparedness, disaster risk reduction strategies, the role of social workers in
enhancing community resilience to disasters, and efforts to promote sustainable environmental
and cultural practices. Data were collected through face-to-face interviews, questionnaires, focus group
discussions, and a review of government policies and reports. A total sample population of 3567
respondents were randomly selected for the quantitative phase and 90 participants were
conveniently selected for the qualitative phase. It was found that local communities are vulnerable to
floods, windstorms, drought, torrential rains, and wildfires which negatively impact their livelihoods
and degrade the environment. The community vulnerability resonated with their lack of knowledge
on climate change, hazards, and risks, and lack of hazard zone map. The article recommends a
community-based disaster strategy for building disaster resilience and risk management capacity.
The main concepts in this paper are: climate change, vulnerability, disaster, hazard and risks, and
resilience.

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