Vietnam’s Resilience-based Climate Adaptation Platform

As we researched and learned how Asian countries are adapting to calamities, extreme wet and dry monsoons, typhoons, and other climate events, we came across the document “A Visual Climate Adaptation Platform for Da Nang City of Vietnam—A Science-based Climate Resilience Approach.”

Da Nang is the third-biggest city in Vietnam, a coastal city located in the middle of the country. The city and its residents are highly vulnerable to tropical cyclones, flash floods, and heavy rains. These extreme climate conditions are predicted to become more frequent with climate change, and this poses a serious threat to the city’s infrastructure and housing (Studies and Planning, 2018).

Flooding is another problem facing the city, as developments and population are increasing along the river and coastal floodplains. A need for flood management along the city and nearby areas prone to flooding has also been identified.

To help the city cope with and adapt to these climate extremes, the CSIRO, a platform partner of 100RC, undertook a demonstration study of the proposed Visual Climate Adaptation Platform (VCAP).

The focus is on assessing potential impacts and damage costs on residential housing subjected to tropical cyclones in two pilot study areas. The study has proved the feasibility and benefits of the VCAP in assisting city planners and authorities in developing an integrated resilience strategy for natural disaster risk management and climate adaptation (A Visual Climate Adaptation, 2020).

Benefits of the Visual Climate Adaptation Platform.

The VCAP integrates the latest data and generates new knowledge to assist city planners in urban planning and policymaking to develop a resilient strategy. It also facilitates collaboration between relevant agencies.

Specifically, the study has shown the following benefits: a GIS Web-portal for improved land-use and infrastructure planning, estimates of damage costs for financial and insurance budgeting, maps of damaged hot spots to assist planners in targeting the most vulnerable locations, and a Risk Assessment Framework that allows to identify the cost-benefit assessment of adaptation options (A Visual Climate Adaptation, 2020).

The good news is that other cities and regions facing similar climatic threats and vulnerability to Da Nang, Vietnam, can also use the VCAP to assist them with their climate adaptation projects and build resilience against climate change, thus benefiting from it as well.

BACKGROUND PHOTO CREDIT: Bethany Waugh