Projects & Activities

Chiang Khong Declaration on International Day of Action for Rivers 2017

On 14 March 2017, the International Day of Action for Rivers, we, the Save the Mekong Coalition along with civil society and community partners from Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam, make this statement to express our gratitude to the Mekong River and the way of life she supports. The Mekong is our mother river, home to unique biodiversity and a lifeline for millions of people throughout the river basin. We recognize the efforts of Mekong communities who are working to protect and preserve the unique ecosystems and resources of the river for future generations.

Statement from Vietnamese Non-governmental organizations to the Mekong River Commission

On the occasion of Mekong River Commission’s (MRC) Regional Stakeholder Forum on the Procedures for Notification, Prior Consultation and Agreement (PNPCA) for the Pak Beng hydropower project and MRC Council Study (CS) on February 22-23, 2017 in Luang Prabang, Vietnamese Non-Government Organizations and individuals who are interested in sustainable water resource management in the Mekong region, present the following public statement to MRC:

Workshop: Sustainable Agricultural Investment of Vietnamese Businesses in the Mekong Sub-region

Acknowledging the environmental and social risks of overseas agriculture investment, the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry, People and Nature Reconciliation and Oxfam in Vietnam have conducted research to rapidly assess the reality of agricultural investment in Laos and Cambodia. It aims to identify the problem and mobilize the Pioneer Enterprise Group to initiate development of Voluntary Guidelines to mitigate environmental and social risks for Vietnamese enterprises investing in the agricultural sector in the Mekong sub-region. This workshop on “Sustainable Agricultural Investment of Vietnamese Businesses in the Mekong Sub-region” is organised based on this research and the draft Voluntary Guidelines for Enterprises. The organisers hope that the workshop would be a forum for enterprises, government agencies, and civil society organisations to exchange experience and solutions to finalize the Voluntary Guidelines and contribute to Vietnam’s overseas investment policy.

PRCF Vietnam and PanNature Start Collaboration on Forest Governance and Biodiversity Conservation

On February 8th 2017, People Resources and Conservation Foundation (PRCF) and People and Nature Reconcilliation (PanNature) signed an agreement to jointly undertaking work on biodiversity conservation and forest governance in Vietnam. The geographical scope of this agreement shall be Vietnam, with particular focus on sites such as Tuyen Quang province and the Central Highlands.

PanNature Discusses Public Participation and Environmental Impact Assessments with U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Officials

During the morning of Friday, June 10, PanNature staff met with three government officials from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), including U.S. EPA General Counsel, Avi Garbow; Senior Attorney in the Office of General Counsel, Steve Wolfson; as well as Director of the Office of Regional and Bilateral Affairs, Mark Kasman. The U.S. EPA is the lead government agency in protecting public health and the environment in the United States. The meeting was an opportunity for the U.S. EPA officials to gain the perspectives and insights of a local environmental non-governmental organization in Vietnam. Trinh Le Nguyen, Executive Director of PanNature, provided information about PanNature, its various projects around the country, its funding, as well as relationships with PanNature’s partners, including the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

Policy Seminar “Free trade agreements: Investment flows and environmental issues in Vietnam”

2016 marks 30 years since Doi Moi, the government policy that opened up Vietnam to the international community and spurred Vietnam’s integration into the global economy. As Vietnam continues to integrate economically, Vietnam is currently embarking on a new wave of integration through robust and comprehensive free trade agreements (FTAs). Vietnam has signed 14 FTAs, including the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), the largest regional trade agreement in over 20 years, and the European Union-Vietnam FTA.

GFW announces the 2016 Recipients of the Small Grants Fund

Policy is central to successful forest management, and many of our projects are using GFW to inform policymakers and other stakeholders. In Ecuador, Regional Water Fund FORAGUA will improve the local management, monitoring, and enforcement of 11 municipal watershed reserves by providing training on the Global Forest Watch platform to environmental technicians, high school science teachers, and journalists. Asociación Ambiente y Sociedad (Colombia) is developing an online tool to inform local communities of infrastructure mega-projects and their potential impact on priority conservation areas, to enhance decision making and contribute to resolving conflicts. In Vietnam, People and Nature Reconciliation (PanNature), will use GFW data to monitor and evaluate established payment for environmental services programs within three provinces, and make recommendations to policy makers on how to improve their efficacy. Pronatura will use GFW in order to inform Mexican decision makers on meeting their commitments to global initiatives such as REDD+ and the Bonn Challenge.

Reporting on Mekong Dams – Science, Policies and Voices from the Ground

On November 10, BRIDGE financed a training workshop entitled Reporting on Mekong Dams – Science, Policies and Voices from the Ground in An Giang Province in the Mekong Delta. It was organized by Pan Nature, a Vietnamese NGO, to brief journalists on the concerns and perspectives of local stakeholders on planned dams on the Mekong River. Thirty journalists from national and provincial newspapers and radio and television agencies in the delta attended, as will as representatives from academia and NGOs from Vietnam and other Mekong countries.

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