Story | 05 Feb, 2018
60 year-old Sau Dung is a fisherman who lives by the Hau River, a tributary of the Mekong in Viet Nam’s Hau Giang Province. His family relies on his catch, and with his skill and hard work, he can earn VND 6 million (US$ 265) every month. But there are not many…
Story | 02 Nov, 2017
Cooperative governance of the Ganges Brahmaputra Meghna Basins (GBM) region was strengthened through the recent launch of a Civil Society Organisation (CSO) vision for improved transboundary water management. The vision, which was developed by a network of over 25 CSOs from Bangladesh, Bhutan,…
Story | 05 Sep, 2017
On August 29-30, 2017, 85 delegates from India, Bhutan, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh gathered in Delhi, India for a South Asia regional consultation on forest landscape restoration (FLR). The consultation was hosted by IUCN in partnership with the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate…
Story | 24 Aug, 2017
When voices are heard in Cu Lao Cham Marine Protected Area
With a total area of 3.7 hectares (roughly the size of 5 football pitches), the coastline in front and the famous Hai Tang pagoda in back, the Pagoda Field in Cu Lao Cham, Viet Nam is a place of great natural beauty and of religious and historical value. The area is part of the Cu Lao Cham…
Story | 18 Jul, 2017
U.S.-ASEAN Conference on Marine Environmental Issues to be held in Bangkok, Thailand
The Stimson Center, on behalf of the U.S. State Department and in collaboration with IUCN and the Mangroves for the Future (MFF) Programme, is co-chairing the U.S.-ASEAN Conference on Marine Environmental Issues.
Story | 26 Jun, 2017
New tools to assess vulnerability of wetlands in the Mekong
From June 19 to 21, IUCN staff, partners, and local officials from the Xe Champhone and Beung Kiat Ngong Ramsar sites in Lao PDR gathered in Champhone District for a training on the use of a new series of tools to assess the vulnerability of the areas’ wetlands. The…
Story | 23 Jun, 2017
TROSA: New trans-boundary water governance initiative aims to enhance regional cooperation
Over the last decade, IUCN has been working with governments, civil societies and academics in Asia on trans-boundary hydro-diplomacy through its initiatives in the Ganges-Brahmaputra-Meghna (GBM) and Mekong river basins. Based on IUCN’s experiences and its long-term experience in the Mekong…
Story | 21 May, 2017
Banning vs. legalise and regulate in forest management
Two years ago, on a field survey in Bac Kan Province in Viet Nam, we heard about a farmer who needed 30 stamps to get a permit to harvest a single Styrax tonkinensis tree that was growing on his land. Even though the tree was on land that was designated as plantation forest and the farmer had a…
Story | 05 Apr, 2017
CEPF launches two new calls for proposals in Indo-Burma hotspot
The Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund (CEPF) has launched a call for proposals for projects in Cambodia, Lao PDR, Thailand, Viet Nam and parts of Southern China. A separate call for proposals for projects in Myanmar has also been issued simultaneously.
Press release | 03 Apr, 2017
Enhancing regional cooperation to protect and restore Indo-Burma wetlands
The importance of regional cooperation took centre stage at the first Steering Committee meeting and inception workshop for the Indo-Burma Ramsar Regional Initiative (IBRRI), held on 29 and 30 March in Bangkok, Thailand.