14. CtC What we do 0
What we do
Challenge to Change works in coastal and
mountainous regions, in rural and urban areas, with
government and non-government organisations and
community-based organisations, to assist poor
communities which are vulnerable to the impacts of
climate change, to adapt, and to build their resilience.
Our current work is in the provinces of Ha Giang,
Quang Binh, Da Nang, Binh Dinh and Can Tho. Our
support includes:
Enabling communities to recover from
natural disasters, normally the impacts of
extreme weather events
High winds in Quang Tri
Increasing awareness on climate change
and disaster management
Building capacity to assess disaster-risk and
vulnerability, and to cope with disasters
Supporting communities to prepare their own
climate change and disaster management
plans at village, commune and district levels,
to minimise loss of life and livelihood
Providing technical support for new livelihood
models for local communities to improve
their resilience to climate change
Facilitating action research led by farmers to
finds best ways to cope with drought,
encroaching seas, salt intrusion, landslides,
and environmental pollution
Helping local communities to enhance their
social networks and to form groups (such as
farmer-interest groups) to be more resilient
to climate change
Advocating for government authorities at
Planning to adapt in Trieu Giang Commune
local and national levels to integrate climate
change and disaster management into their
development plans, with participation of
communities, including women, youth, and
the poor
Providing infrastructure and facilities for
communities and schools to better cope with
climate change, disaster management, and
related clearn water and sanitation issues
Building capacity for civil society
organisations and local community-based
organisations on project management
especially for climate change-related projects
Linking Vietnam with international expertise
on climate change, through research and
workshops
Enabling Youth to raise their voice and
participate in decisions regarding adaptation
to, and mitigation of climate change,
because Youth are the main stakeholders of
the future
Promoting knowledge, values and behaviour
which minimise the environmental and
carbon footprint of development activities
Supporting teachers and students to
increase their understanding of climate
change, its nature, causes, and effects on
their daily lives
Cities
Approximately 31% of Vietnamese population live in
cities, and this is due to rise to 45% by 2025. The
rapid growth of Vietnamese cities brings increasing
urban poverty, and risks of disaster caused by
extreme weather events. As part of the Asian Cities
Climate Change Resilience Network, funded by the
Rockefeller Foundation, Challenge to Change works
with poor communities, and with local government,
and with Youth groups in three cities – Quy Nhon, Da
Nang and Can Tho. These cities are vulnerable to
typhoons, floods, tidal surges and riverbank erosion,
and local livelihoods are partly dependent on nearby
agricultural production, which is affected by increasing
soil salinity as the sea encroaches from year to year.
Past support has included participatory assessments
of hazards, capacities and vulnerabilities across the
cities, and support to experimental projects, for
example a winch system to pull fishing boats
ashore before typhoons hit, adapted models of
construction of safer housing for vulnerable
households, and clean water supply in a remote area
of Can Tho using solar-powered electricity supply for
the water pumps. Future activities may include
improving water and waste management systems,
mainstreaming climate change into city planning,
improving the capacity of local health services to cope
with climate-related health issues, restoring and
protecting ecological systems, and enabling poor
households to have more diverse, adaptable
livelihoods options.
Youth
Challenge to Change gives priority to Youth,
supporting them in all our project areas – Ha Giang,
Quang Binh, Can Tho, Da Nang, Quy Nhon, and
Hanoi. Youth are the social group with the greatest
concern for future sustainability. They are also
possibly the most able and motivated to address
climate change and sustainability issues. Yet they are
marginalised from official decision-making processes.
CtC supports Youth Forums, where Youth initiatives
are showcased and Youth action plans are
developed. CtC works with local government to
improve levels of participation of Youth
representatives in local decision-making. We raise
funds for, and support Youth Action Plans for building
local resilience to climate change, and for ‘Green
Living’ (sustainability) actions.
Awareness and Behaviour Change (ABC)
Sustainability can only be achieved through changes
in human behaviour. Behaviour change can be
achieved in many ways, including through raising
awareness, and influencing human values, and by
increases in responsible legislation to regulate human
exploitation and consumption of natural resources. A
useful typology of behaviour change techniques can
be downloaded here. Challenge to Change
advocates for all types of good change in human
behaviour, and supports a range of awareness-raising
and behaviour change initiatives in Vietnam and also
in the UK. In Vietnam, CtC is active within the Climate
Change Working Group (CCWG) among International
NGOs, and also in the ABC Subgroup. In the UK, CtC
is a member of the Stop Climate Chaos Coalition, a
group of civil society organisations which advocates
for change in government policy and for reductions in
carbon emissions. We promote re-use, reduce and
recycling, and community-based initiatives where
responsibilities for environmental care are shared.
We follow developments in technology which may
lead to breakthroughs in the reduction of our
environmental footprint, and we engage in
development education with local community groups.
Currently our key partners include:
Caritas Switzerland is an
International NGO supporting poor
communities in Vietnam since the
mid-1990s. In 2010 Caritas is
increasing its focus on Disaster
Risk Reduction and Climate
Change Adaptation, and is
working closely with Challenge to
Change in Quang Binh Province,
supporting communities to recover
from extreme weather events on
the coast.
Plan International is an
International NGO working with
ethnic minority communities in Ha
Giang Province, one of the
poorest areas of Vietnam in the
remote northern mountainous
region. Together, Plan and
Challenge to Change are
supporting Ha Giang local
government to plan its response to
climate change, with special
consideration for women and for
the poor.
The Institute for Social &
Environmental Transition (ISET) is
an international organisation with
offices in the United States and
Nepal, with academic and
practical expertise in bridging
climate science and adaptive
responses to climate change.
ISET is establishing its work in
Vietnam, and works in partnership
with Challenge to Change in Da
Nang, Quy Nhon and Can Tho
cities.
The Rockefeller Foundation is a
philanthropic institution seeking
to address the underlying causes
of human suffering. Rockefeller
initiated the Asian Cities Climate
Change Resilience Network in
Vietnam, and is also working on
climate change programmes in
Africa in relation to agriculture,
and the United States in relation to
policy, and is supporting the CtC
Youth Programme in Vietnam.
The Worldwide Fund for Nature
initiated Earth Hour several years
ago. Challenge to Change is
working in cooperation with WWF
to carry out activities within the
‘Earth Hour 60+’ programme, in
Hanoi, with the aim of ‘going
further’ than simply turning off the
lights for one hour. ‘Earth Hour
60+’ aims to generate broader
initiatives towards global
sustainability.
The People’s Aid Coordination
Committee (PACCOM) was
established in 1989 under the
Vietnam Union of Friendship
Organizations at central level.
PACCOM facilitates humanitarian
and development aid activities of
International NGOs working in
Vietnam, and works in partnership
with International NGOs to host a
Resource Centre in Hanoi.
CtC’s local government partners
within Vietnam are the Provincial
People's Committees of Ha Giang,
Da Nang, Binh Dinh, Quang Binh
and Can Tho, and their technical
departments such as the
Departments of Natural
Resources & Environment, and
the Peoples Committees at lower
levels (District and
Ward/Commune). CtC works in
full cooperation with local
government.
The Association for Empowerment
of People with Disabilities is a
Vietnamese NGO based in Quang
Binh Province. It emerged from
the International NGO, the
Landmines Survivors Network.
Challenge to Change works with
AEPD and with Caritas in Quang
Binh Province to support recovery
of vulnerable communities from
extreme weather events.
In addition to support to vulnerable communities,
Challenge to Change carries out research and
consulting assignments on climate change-related
issues for local government and other international
development agencies in Asia.
In the UK we campaign against over-consumption and
degradation of the environment. We join other
development agencies to engage in policy dialogue
with our government to make the transition to
renewable energy and to take action to halt climate
change. We promote re-use, reduce and recycling.
We support community-based initiatives where
responsibilities for environmental care are shared.
We follow developments in technology which may
lead to breakthroughs in ecological balance, and we
engage in development education with local
community groups.
Challenge to Change works in coastal and
mountainous regions, in rural and urban areas, with
government and non-government organisations and
community-based organisations, to assist poor
communities which are vulnerable to the impacts of
climate change, to adapt, and to build their resilience.
Our current work is in the provinces of Ha Giang,
Quang Binh, Da Nang, Binh Dinh and Can Tho. Our
support includes:
Enabling communities to recover from
natural disasters, normally the impacts of
extreme weather events
High winds in Quang Tri
Increasing awareness on climate change
and disaster management
Building capacity to assess disaster-risk and
vulnerability, and to cope with disasters
Supporting communities to prepare their own
climate change and disaster management
plans at village, commune and district levels,
to minimise loss of life and livelihood
Providing technical support for new livelihood
models for local communities to improve
their resilience to climate change
Facilitating action research led by farmers to
finds best ways to cope with drought,
encroaching seas, salt intrusion, landslides,
and environmental pollution
Helping local communities to enhance their
social networks and to form groups (such as
farmer-interest groups) to be more resilient
to climate change
Advocating for government authorities at
Planning to adapt in Trieu Giang Commune
local and national levels to integrate climate
change and disaster management into their
development plans, with participation of
communities, including women, youth, and
the poor
Providing infrastructure and facilities for
communities and schools to better cope with
climate change, disaster management, and
related clearn water and sanitation issues
Building capacity for civil society
organisations and local community-based
organisations on project management
especially for climate change-related projects
Linking Vietnam with international expertise
on climate change, through research and
workshops
Enabling Youth to raise their voice and
participate in decisions regarding adaptation
to, and mitigation of climate change,
because Youth are the main stakeholders of
the future
Promoting knowledge, values and behaviour
which minimise the environmental and
carbon footprint of development activities
Supporting teachers and students to
increase their understanding of climate
change, its nature, causes, and effects on
their daily lives
Cities
Approximately 31% of Vietnamese population live in
cities, and this is due to rise to 45% by 2025. The
rapid growth of Vietnamese cities brings increasing
urban poverty, and risks of disaster caused by
extreme weather events. As part of the Asian Cities
Climate Change Resilience Network, funded by the
Rockefeller Foundation, Challenge to Change works
with poor communities, and with local government,
and with Youth groups in three cities – Quy Nhon, Da
Nang and Can Tho. These cities are vulnerable to
typhoons, floods, tidal surges and riverbank erosion,
and local livelihoods are partly dependent on nearby
agricultural production, which is affected by increasing
soil salinity as the sea encroaches from year to year.
Past support has included participatory assessments
of hazards, capacities and vulnerabilities across the
cities, and support to experimental projects, for
example a winch system to pull fishing boats
ashore before typhoons hit, adapted models of
construction of safer housing for vulnerable
households, and clean water supply in a remote area
of Can Tho using solar-powered electricity supply for
the water pumps. Future activities may include
improving water and waste management systems,
mainstreaming climate change into city planning,
improving the capacity of local health services to cope
with climate-related health issues, restoring and
protecting ecological systems, and enabling poor
households to have more diverse, adaptable
livelihoods options.
Youth
Challenge to Change gives priority to Youth,
supporting them in all our project areas – Ha Giang,
Quang Binh, Can Tho, Da Nang, Quy Nhon, and
Hanoi. Youth are the social group with the greatest
concern for future sustainability. They are also
possibly the most able and motivated to address
climate change and sustainability issues. Yet they are
marginalised from official decision-making processes.
CtC supports Youth Forums, where Youth initiatives
are showcased and Youth action plans are
developed. CtC works with local government to
improve levels of participation of Youth
representatives in local decision-making. We raise
funds for, and support Youth Action Plans for building
local resilience to climate change, and for ‘Green
Living’ (sustainability) actions.
Awareness and Behaviour Change (ABC)
Sustainability can only be achieved through changes
in human behaviour. Behaviour change can be
achieved in many ways, including through raising
awareness, and influencing human values, and by
increases in responsible legislation to regulate human
exploitation and consumption of natural resources. A
useful typology of behaviour change techniques can
be downloaded here. Challenge to Change
advocates for all types of good change in human
behaviour, and supports a range of awareness-raising
and behaviour change initiatives in Vietnam and also
in the UK. In Vietnam, CtC is active within the Climate
Change Working Group (CCWG) among International
NGOs, and also in the ABC Subgroup. In the UK, CtC
is a member of the Stop Climate Chaos Coalition, a
group of civil society organisations which advocates
for change in government policy and for reductions in
carbon emissions. We promote re-use, reduce and
recycling, and community-based initiatives where
responsibilities for environmental care are shared.
We follow developments in technology which may
lead to breakthroughs in the reduction of our
environmental footprint, and we engage in
development education with local community groups.
Currently our key partners include:
Caritas Switzerland is an
International NGO supporting poor
communities in Vietnam since the
mid-1990s. In 2010 Caritas is
increasing its focus on Disaster
Risk Reduction and Climate
Change Adaptation, and is
working closely with Challenge to
Change in Quang Binh Province,
supporting communities to recover
from extreme weather events on
the coast.
Plan International is an
International NGO working with
ethnic minority communities in Ha
Giang Province, one of the
poorest areas of Vietnam in the
remote northern mountainous
region. Together, Plan and
Challenge to Change are
supporting Ha Giang local
government to plan its response to
climate change, with special
consideration for women and for
the poor.
The Institute for Social &
Environmental Transition (ISET) is
an international organisation with
offices in the United States and
Nepal, with academic and
practical expertise in bridging
climate science and adaptive
responses to climate change.
ISET is establishing its work in
Vietnam, and works in partnership
with Challenge to Change in Da
Nang, Quy Nhon and Can Tho
cities.
The Rockefeller Foundation is a
philanthropic institution seeking
to address the underlying causes
of human suffering. Rockefeller
initiated the Asian Cities Climate
Change Resilience Network in
Vietnam, and is also working on
climate change programmes in
Africa in relation to agriculture,
and the United States in relation to
policy, and is supporting the CtC
Youth Programme in Vietnam.
The Worldwide Fund for Nature
initiated Earth Hour several years
ago. Challenge to Change is
working in cooperation with WWF
to carry out activities within the
‘Earth Hour 60+’ programme, in
Hanoi, with the aim of ‘going
further’ than simply turning off the
lights for one hour. ‘Earth Hour
60+’ aims to generate broader
initiatives towards global
sustainability.
The People’s Aid Coordination
Committee (PACCOM) was
established in 1989 under the
Vietnam Union of Friendship
Organizations at central level.
PACCOM facilitates humanitarian
and development aid activities of
International NGOs working in
Vietnam, and works in partnership
with International NGOs to host a
Resource Centre in Hanoi.
CtC’s local government partners
within Vietnam are the Provincial
People's Committees of Ha Giang,
Da Nang, Binh Dinh, Quang Binh
and Can Tho, and their technical
departments such as the
Departments of Natural
Resources & Environment, and
the Peoples Committees at lower
levels (District and
Ward/Commune). CtC works in
full cooperation with local
government.
The Association for Empowerment
of People with Disabilities is a
Vietnamese NGO based in Quang
Binh Province. It emerged from
the International NGO, the
Landmines Survivors Network.
Challenge to Change works with
AEPD and with Caritas in Quang
Binh Province to support recovery
of vulnerable communities from
extreme weather events.
In addition to support to vulnerable communities,
Challenge to Change carries out research and
consulting assignments on climate change-related
issues for local government and other international
development agencies in Asia.
In the UK we campaign against over-consumption and
degradation of the environment. We join other
development agencies to engage in policy dialogue
with our government to make the transition to
renewable energy and to take action to halt climate
change. We promote re-use, reduce and recycling.
We support community-based initiatives where
responsibilities for environmental care are shared.
We follow developments in technology which may
lead to breakthroughs in ecological balance, and we
engage in development education with local
community groups.