Vulnerability and resilience to climate change in the northern mountainous region of Vietnam

Abstract

Vietnam is one of the most vulnerable countries to climate change in the world. Therefore, adaptation is increasingly seen as both a necessary and urgent response. However, little is known in terms of who are the most vulnerable and how adaptation will take place. This thesis examines vulnerability and resilience to climate variability and change among communities in the northern mountainous region (NMR) of Vietnam which have been identified as among the most vulnerable communities in Vietnam. The conceptual framework of this thesis draws on the linkage between vulnerability, adaptive capacity and resilience through which to gain a better understanding of vulnerability, adaptation and resilience to climate change in Vietnam's NMR. I adopt a participatory approach to vulnerability assessment using community villages as case studies and using drought, flood and cold weather snaps as study events. The case study of the human-natural system is located in the Ba Be district of Bac Kan province in the NMR of Vietnam. Data were collected in the field from July 2009 to February 2010. Primary data in the form of interviews, focus groups and community workshops, and field observations, as well as insights from local and regional decision-makers, resource managers, scientists and secondary data in the form of published and unpublished literature are used to investigate how communities manage and experience climate-related risks. This study found that households and communities in the NMR are vulnerable to multiple stresses. The main socio-econmic determinants of local vulnerability include poverty, inequality, environmental degradation, ethnicity and community. The interaction of climate risks and local vulnerability factors threatens to overwhelm their resilience. Therefore, this thesis argues that adaptation needs to be rooted in both reducing vulnerability and increasing resilience of communities. The central approach is to increase the adaptive capacity of communities to become resilient in the context of change and uncertainty. It will be more fruitful if policy interventions focus on improving adaptive capacity of vulnerable communities rather than providing specific solutions to uncertain future climates. Addressing fundamental livelihood and development problems and strengthening social, economic, and environmental resilience will make it easier for local communities to respond to climatic risks, whether they are droughts, floods or cold snaps. Another key conclusion is that communities that learn to live with change and uncertainty become resilient. The insights emphasize the importance of learning, information exchange, reflection, innovation, and anticipation, all of which are key elements of the adaptation process.