Social and Environmental Resilience in Upland Areas of Vietnam. Responses in Land Use and Livelihood Strategies

project summary

The proposed PhD-research addresses the issue of vulnerability in relation to climate change in upland areas of Vietnam and views vulnerability and resilience as determinants of adaptive capacity. The overall objective of the PhD is to investigate the underlying factors that contribute to an understanding of social and environmental resilience of upland farming systems in the context of environmental change. The immediate objectives of the study are to: 1. Establish links and probable relationships between environmental stress and shocks and changes in land use and livelihood strategies. 2. Identify farming practices that have been adopted as a response to environmental change. 3. Examine the sustainability of current farming practices through environmental indicators such as soil erosion and soil fertility. 4. Establish the level of household social vulnerability to environmental change.