Adaptation to climate change involves adjusting systems to reduce the impacts of climate change, such as extreme weather and rising temperatures. It is vital as climate impacts are already being felt. Key strategies include resilient infrastructure, sustainable agriculture, and ecosystem protection. Adaptation helps communities and ecosystems cope with climate challenges, ensuring long-term sustainability.
From 2020 to 2022, CECAD implemented the project "Strengthening Communication Capacity for Better Climate Resilience in the Mekong River Delta (FLC 20-02)" – Phase 1, funded by the Finland Embassy in Vietnam.
The target groups are local people in the Mekong Delta, especially poor households in remote areas far from concentrated residential zones, who are directly affected by saltwater intrusion and the lack of freshwater for domestic use and production in Tiền Giang Province. The indirect beneficiaries of the project include local authorities at the district and provincial levels, civil society organizations, district and provincial governments, the Meteorological and Hydrological Center, Irrigation Sub-Departments, the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, and other relevant departments in provinces heavily affected by saltwater intrusion. These provinces include Long An, Bến Tre, Kiên Giang, and Cà Mau in the Mekong Delta region. CECAD has partnered with specialized and relevant organizations to implement the project activities. Partner organizations include the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of the province; Irrigation Sub-Departments, Meteorological and Hydrological Services in the most affected provinces in the Mekong Delta, local Youth Union organizations, People's Committees at the district and commune levels, local communities, the Department of Information and Communications of Tiền Giang Province, national and international NGOs working in water security in the Mekong Delta, local newspapers, national television stations (VTV1, VTV2, VTV6, VTC, HTC), and the Finland Embassy.
Not stopping there, from 2022 to 2023, CECAD continued to implement phase 2 of the FLC 20-02 project, which is later coded as FLC 22-02. To continue its commitment to mitigating the impacts of climate change in the Mekong Delta, phase two of the project focused on interventions in the provinces of Tiền Giang, Long An, Bến Tre, Trà Vinh, and Sóc Trăng. One of the key activities of the project was organizing a series of communication events, including running and debating competitions in 5 provinces. These events attracted a large number of young people, university students, and high school students, helping to raise their awareness about drought, saltwater intrusion, and climate change. Furthermore, the project organized competitions to promote local knowledge to enhance resilience to saltwater intrusion in the five provinces, which helped to improve the capacity of young people in proposal writing, presentations, and idea generation. This series of events contributed to young people in the Mekong Delta offering their ideas to efforts to mitigate the impacts of climate change, saltwater intrusion, and drought. Moreover, the project supported enhancing the skills of professional journalists and communication officers in local government agencies to build effective communication strategies. Through training courses, comprehensive communication plans on saltwater intrusion and drought were developed for local TV stations, the press, and local government agencies. News, articles, and newsletters with in-depth content on drought and saltwater intrusion were published on local TV stations, newspapers, and websites of the agencies. Additionally, a talk show program on drought and saltwater intrusion in the Mekong Delta, with the participation of representatives from the Tiền Giang Youth Union, Trà Vinh University Youth Union, and CECAD representatives, was produced and broadcast on national television.
The project CCBRC (FLC 20-02) aims to mitigate the impacts of climate change through an effective communication program to enhance climate resilience in the Mekong Delta. To achieve the project’s goals, activities and communication programs have been implemented to raise awareness among local communities in the Mekong Delta about the severe issue of saltwater intrusion and promote their active participation in initiating and implementing activities to strengthen climate resilience. Additionally, pilot activities on saltwater intrusion response models have been carried out in Tiền Giang, one of the provinces most affected by saltwater intrusion, to develop a monitoring system for saltwater intrusion and enhance early warning networks and forecasting for information management. The project also supports local communities to proactively collect and store water for domestic use and production, ensuring water security in the region.
The "Plant for the Planet " project, conducted from 2018 to 2019 with funding from SK Innovation and in collaboration with UNEP Korea, was implemented by CECAD in the districts of Cầu Ngang and Duyên Hải, Trà Vinh Province. The project aimed to contribute to forest regeneration and management as part of the response to the impacts of climate change. The specific goals of the project included building and strengthening the mangrove ecosystem to adapt to climate change and biodiversity loss, ensuring community security against natural disasters, creating employment opportunities, improving income, health, and the quality of life through mangrove planting, and raising environmental awareness and empowering the community through environmental education programs for local residents, children, and youth.
The project achieved several outcomes, such as afforesting 7 hectares of mangrove forest along the coastline of Mỹ Long Nam commune, Cầu Ngang district, and increasing the density of Sonneratia caseolaris trees to reduce erosion. Additionally, the quality of life for communities dependent on mangrove forests and nearby ecosystems improved, and local communities, including children and youth, became more aware of the importance of mangroves and the impacts of climate change. The reforestation activities took place in Đông Hải commune between July and November, where approximately 30 hectares of mangrove forest were planted with the support of the Tra Vinh Provincial Forest Protection Department and local authorities. At Xuân Thủy National Park in the Red River Delta, 1 hectare of mangrove forest was also planted with the support of SK Innovation and UNEP Korea. The event was successful and symbolized the fruitful collaboration between CECAD and Xuân Thủy National Park. The global environmental campaign “I green, we green” was also introduced to the delegates attending the event at Xuân Thủy National Park.
Moreover, environmental education activities were conducted to raise awareness among students and local communities about the importance of mangrove forests and their ecosystem services, particularly in the context of climate change. At Trà Vinh University, an Environmental Club was established, and 3 training sessions aimed at enhancing club members' understanding of the biodiversity and economic value of mangrove forests were organized for 300 students. Similar environmental education activities were also conducted at primary schools in Đông Hải and Mỹ Long Nam communes. Students and teachers enthusiastically supported these environmental education activities and actively participated in these events. Two creative slogan competitions on mangrove forest protection were held to engage primary school students in environmental protection and mangrove ecosystem conservation efforts.
Local communities were also trained on the impacts of climate change and how mangrove forests can help them adapt more effectively. Forest rangers and members of forest protection teams in Đông Hải and Mỹ Long Nam communes also received similar training courses to help them: 1) better understand the role of mangrove forests and their environmental, economic, and social importance; 2) the threats and pressures facing mangrove forests in the context of climate change; and 3) solutions for sustainable mangrove forest management at the local level. Upon completing the training courses, all participants became Mangrove Conservation Ambassadors, and thus, they would make significant contributions to the sustainable management of mangrove forests, not only in Trà Vinh but also nationwide.
Climate change poses a significant threat to poverty reduction and economic growth in Vietnam. Vietnamese policymakers currently have an incomplete understanding of climate change adaptation measures, as evidenced by the formulation of social policies and individual decision-making on alternative adaptation strategies in resettled communities around hydropower projects in the Central Highlands. Enhancing understanding of these processes will provide valuable information to scientists, policymakers, and communities about the underlying causes of vulnerability and options to reduce damage. Risks mean different things to different people and cannot be measured without considering the consciousness and culture of the people involved. The research findings of the 2016 project “Climate Risks and Agriculture in Resettled Communities in Central Vietnam” indicated that adaptation efforts need to be based on a thorough understanding of how stakeholders perceive, interpret, and prioritize climate risks. Responsible and informed policy formulation is derived from an analysis of both the physical impacts of climate threats and the socio-psychological mechanisms that create risks and their effects on decision-making.
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