Case study: Huong Khe district, Ha Tinh province, Viet Nam. Characterising agro-ecological zones with local knowledge (original) (raw)

2015, World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF) - Vietnam

Local knowledge and active participation in research is increasingly encouraged, not the least for identifying sustainable adaptation options. However, despite that participatory mapping has advanced from sketches to informing digitalised maps since the 1990s this type of local knowledge is rarely included in agroecological zones (AEZ) mapping. For a new project on climate-smart agriculture and forestry local knowledge was incorporated to characterise agroecological zones in Huong Lien commune, Ha Tinh province, northcentral Viet Nam. The purpose was to determine adaptation options associated with particular agroecological zones. A GIS spatial database with land use, topography, NDVI was generated to derive an agroecological zones map and ground-truthed with the participation of local villagers through transect walks and SWOT analyses by land use type. The study shows that local participation is vital for ground-truthing maps, to fill in gaps when time series data is available and for marking out natural hazard areas. In this particular case, local perceptions of strengths and potential adaptation options associated with particular agroecozones was useful for revealing adaptation gaps. The classification rules for the AEZ need careful consideration, especially when the mapped areas are small, to make the maps useful beyond the study area. This may require more careful transect walks to identify nuances in forest quality for determining forest management. Methodology for inclusive local knowledge needs to be further developed.

Scaling Climate-smart Agriculture in North-central Vietnam

While the demand for climate-smart agriculture practices is rapidly growing in the 2010s, it remains vague in practice how to evaluate integrated farming systems, in particular. The study draws lessons learned from the My Loi climate-smart village, Ky Son commune, Ky Anh district, Ha Tinh province to explore the scalability potential to Ky Trung commune in the same district, and in the province. Specifically, we use mixed participatory field-based approaches to categorise current farming practices for the purpose of proposing context-specific climate-smart interventions, in addition to biophysical feasibility, policy support and expert consultations. Originating from local knowledge, five climate-smart agriculture models were derived with incremental implementation steps developed with technical expertise. While the specific components of the models are context-specific, the technologies and this improved approach for identifying CSA practices can be generically applied.

Agroforestry -The Most Resilient Farming System for the Hilly Northwest of Vietnam

Journal Article, 2017

Over 94% of the land of northwestern Vietnam is classified as sloping. Population growth has exerted pressure on local natural resources, with agricultural expansion on steep slopes resulting in forest degradation, landscape fragmentation and severe environmental consequences. Efforts to restore forest ecosystems have been made by the government, however, as the livelihoods of 80% of the population depend on agriculture, the reconversion of land to forest has proven to be an inappropriate solution. Agroforestry offers a potentially sustainable land-use solution, which could re-establish forests, restore ecosystem services, and stabilize local livelihoods. In this paper, we assess the potential of agroforestry development in the region based on the results of two interrelated surveys conducted in 21 representative villages in six districts of three northwestern provinces: 1) a farming system diagnosis implemented in 17 representative villages; and 2) an agroforestry adoption survey with 210 households practising agroforestry in 14 villages. The analysis was strengthened by four years' experience in implementing an extensive agroforestry project in the region. The studies focussed on assessing key benefits and constraints of existing farming systems, including agroforestry practices, adopted by farmers and identifying the potential for agroforestry development in the region. The results showed that the dominant farming system in the northwestern provinces was monoculture of staple crops on slopes, which provided relatively low economic returns. Soil erosion, land degradation, and water shortages resultant from intensive farming practices were the most significant environmental issues in the area. Tree-based farming systems were rare and mostly a result of spontaneous adoption by farmers. Given the mountainous landscape and the need for soil stabilization, agroforestry was seen by farmers as a viable approach. Improving the existing and adopting new, integrated agroforestry systems were identified as viable ways toward sustainable livelihoods in Northwestern Vietnam.

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