News and Updates

from PanNature and the media

Economic Empowerment for Thai and Hmong Ethnic Women in Son La, Vietnam

With financial support from the Embassy of New Zealand in Vietnam, through the Manaaki New Zealand Alumni Scholarship Fund (MNZAF), Ms. Ngan Le, one New Zealand Alumnus, together with her non-government organization - the Center for People and Nature (PanNature), organized a series of training sessions to "Promoting the role of indigenous women in farming and eco-friendly agribusiness" from May to October 2022. The targeted beneficiaries are 15 Thai and Hmong women who are members of the Xuan Nha Commune Women's Union currently participating in an existing model or planning to do business with organic agricultural products in Xuan Nha commune.

Indigenous Communities – Bodyguards of the Forest

In Vietnam, many forests are being effectively managed by the most active guardians - the local communities - thanks to their cultural norms: the forest left by their ancestors is also the place where the forest god resides. It’s the traditional regulations and laws imprinted through the traditional practice of worshiping the sacredness of the gods that guide the community to manage and protect these forests for hundreds and thousands of years. However, there are challenges ahead that hinder them from playing their role.

The Challenges of Collective PES: Insights from Three Community-based Models in Vietnam

Vietnam has adopted a national Payment for Forest Environmental Services (PES) policy, which while primarily paying individual households for forest protection, has been flexible enough to allow for collective PES models to also arise. Such collective models have the potential to reduce transaction costs, avoid motivation crowding, and protect common-pool resources like community forests.

Back To Top