“Ugly” mine craters impacting tourism in south-central Vietnamese province
Ugly craters created by several mine sites are slowly killing tourism in Binh Thuan Province.
How Halong bay Floating Village has changed since locals move to the mainland?
The USAID funded project has been successful due to cooperation from many people and groups. It has been implemented by Centre for Marinelife Conversation and Community Development (MCD) and its Partners and Nature Reconciliation (PanNature) and the Center for Environment and Community Research (CECR), along with cooperation from Quang Ninh province People’s Committee, relevant agencies, enterprises, NGOs,…and local communities in the alliance, advice from national and international experts.
Experts warn against excessive titanium mining in south-central Vietnamese province
Experts have warned that excessive mining could lead to the disappearance of titanium from Vietnam, for the resource is not abundant as many have thought. Local pundits gathered at a conference in Phan Thiet City, located in the south-central province of Binh Thuan, on Saturday morning to discuss the exploitation and consumption of titanium in the Southeast Asian country. During the gathering, which was organized by the Vietnam Union of Science and Technology Associations (VUSTA) and the provincial People’s Committee, multiple issues in the mining of the resource in Binh Thuan were pointed out.
Vietnam’s Social Media Shaping New Environmentalism
Pressure from the international donor community and local shareholders, resulted in some successful policy changes, but the new environmental laws failed to provide any legal enforcement to ensure compliance. In fact, five years ago the Environmental Performance Index listed Vietnam in the top ten worst countries for air pollution. Because of Vietnam’s environmental enforcement weakness, a litany of damages to the land and water continues to mount: two thirds of Vietnam’s forests are in decline, mainly due to massive illegal logging; air pollution increases daily due to the growing number of motorbikes; wastewater is released untreated; and industrialization pollutes rivers and streams. It’s no wonder that Vietnam has witnessed the emergence of prominent non-governmental organizations like People and Nature Reconciliation (PanNature), Centre for Water Resources Conservation and Development (WARECOD), ECO Vietnam Group, Green Innovation and Development Centre, and Save Vietnam’s Wildlife (SVW), to name a few.
Mekong basin dams pose danger: experts
Countries in the Mekong River basin have been urged to stop building hydroelectric dams on the river’s main stream as alluvial soil and vital nutrients are being seriously depleted.
Firms to observe laws when investing abroad
A research group of PanNature, VCCI and Oxfam was drafting instructions for Vietnamese businesses to invest in agriculture overseas, which aimed to reduce risks in investing and build the image of Vietnamese investors in particular and the national image in general.
More food demand for Tet, more risks
Speaking at the discussion organised by MEC and the People and Nature Reconciliation ( PanNature), lawyer Tr?n Thu Nam said that there had neither been sanctions nor punishments for State agencies that did not publicise food-relating violations on their websites.
Renowned zoologist Võ Quý dies
Dr Quý’s death is “a big loss for Vi?t Nam’s conservation field, as well as for the national and international researcher community,” said PanNature, an organisation dedicated to protecting and conserving diversity of life and improving human well-being in Vi?t Nam, for which Quý was a advisor and supporter since its establishment.
Vo Quy, Father of Environmental Conservation in Vietnam, Dies at 87
In the early 1960s, a young ornithologist successfully persuaded Vietnam’s top leaders, including its founding president, Ho Chi Minh, to designate a tract of land near the capital as the country’s first national park.
Using REDD+ Policy to Facilitate Climate Adaptation at the Local Level: Synergies and Challenges in Vietnam
Attention has recently been paid to how REDD+ mitigation policies are integrated into other sectoral policies, particularly those dealing with climate adaptation at the national level. But there is less understanding of how subnational policy and local projects are able to incorporate attention to adaptation; therefore, we use a case study in Vietnam to discuss how REDD+ projects and policies address both concerns of mitigation and adaptation together at subnational levels. Through stakeholder interviews, focus groups, and household surveys in three provinces of Vietnam with REDD+ activities, our research sought to understand if REDD+ policies and projects on the ground acknowledge that climate change is likely to impact forests and forest users; if this knowledge is built into REDD+ policy and activities; how households in forested areas subject to REDD+ policy are vulnerable to climate change; and how REDD+ activities can help or hinder needed adaptations. Our findings indicate that there continues to be a lack of coordination between mitigation and adaptation policies in Vietnam, particularly with regard to REDD+. Policies for forest-based climate mitigation at the national and subnational level, as well as site-based projects, have paid little attention to the adaptation needs of local communities, many of whom are already suffering from noticeable weather changes in their localities, and there is insufficient discussion of how REDD+ activities could facilitate increased resilience. While there were some implicit and coincidental adaptation benefits of some REDD+ activities, most studied projects and policies did not explicitly target their activities to focus on adaptation or resilience, and in at least one case, negative livelihood impacts that have increased household vulnerability to climate change were documented. Key barriers to integration were identified, such as sectoral specialization; a lack of attention in REDD+ projects to livelihoods; and inadequate support for ecosystem-based adaptation.