In August 2025, field missions were conducted across villages around the Namkong–Xexou Protection Forest (Attapeu Province) and the Hin Nam No National Park (Khammouane Province) in Lao PDR, as part of the Mekong PAD III Program funded by the Australian Government under the Mekong-Australia Partnership Phase 2 (MAP 2). The mission aimed to assess the Gender Equality, Disability and Social Inclusion (GEDSI) dynamics and gather essenti...

A new chapter in Viet Nam’s urban development story began this week with the opening of the Training Hub on Nature-based Solutions (NbS) and Water Sensitive Urban Design (WSUD) at the Hanoi University of Civil Engineering (HUCE). The launch marks a major step in the country’s journey toward building climate-resilient and liveable cities. Developed with funding from the Global Environment Facility (GEF), administered by the Asian...

Healthy ecosystems provide buffers against extreme weather conditions and disasters. They also bring multiple benefits to communities residing within them, such as food, water, clean air, income, and recreation. Strengthening the ecological infrastructure of a landscape by restoring forest cover and reintroducing biodiverse vegetation and cropping plays a vital role in building resilience to climate change, increasing biodiversity, and ...

Healthy ecosystems are fundamental to climate-resilient landscapes. These landscapes provide multiple benefits, such as food, water, clean air, income, and recreation, to communities residing within them. Alongside other development activities in the landscape, it is essential to invest in strengthening this natural ‘ecological infrastructure’ by restoring forest cover and reintroducing biodiverse vegetation. In Cambodia, a project ...

On March 22, 2024, ADB’s landscape restoration project held its final national workshop at Hyatt Hotel, Phnom Penh, to present and discuss the outputs and lessons from Cambodia’s demonstration sites. The project is funded by the Japan Fund for Prosperous and Resilient Asia and the Pacific.  ICEM – International Centre for Environmental Management and ICRAF – World Agroforestry Centre, are the technical partners responsi...

Forest and landscape restoration play a pivotal role in building resilience to climate change in livelihoods and ecosystems. In Cambodia and the Philippines, the Asian Development Bank (ADB), with support from the Government of Japan through the Japan Fund for Prosperous and Resilient Asia and the Pacific, is working with ICEM – International Centre for Environmental Management and World Agroforestry (ICRAF), to implement the regi...

BACKGROUND The Mekong is one of the world’s great rivers. It is the third-largest river in Asia and the largest river in Southeast Asia. The source of the Mekong is located on the high Tibetan plateau in China. As the river flows downstream, it is joined by tributaries from Myanmar, Lao PDR, Thailand and Cambodia, eventually reaching its delta in Vietnam. On average, every year about 460 billion cubic metres of water flows from the Me...

In the context of promoting green and sustainable urban development, from 10 – 21 July 2023 ICEM and the Hanoi University of Civil Engineering – Faculty of Architecture and Planning (HUCE-FAP) organized a student design competition and workshop to reimagine the C.4 site on the HUCE campus, supported by the Asian Development Bank and the Global Environment Facility. The competition provided a platform to develop new ideas and solutio...

Ministries and technical experts gather to discuss application of Nature-based Solutions (NbS) in the water sector – barriers, potential solutions and entry points to policy and planning Hyatt Regency, Phnom Penh, Cambodia On the 15th of February 2023, the World Bank and ICEM organized a cross-sector dialogue with technical experts and key Cambodian ministries on the application of Nature-based solutions (NbS) in the Cambodian water...