What's your experience with climate change?

In late April 2009, thousand of people in Vi Thanh commune, Hau Giang province had to buy drinking water because sea water encroached into all rivers and canals in the area. This phenomenon had never happed so far in the region. This year a severe draught effected parts of Vietnam. In 2009 expertes were gathering at a conference in Can Tho and discussing climate change issues related to the Mekong Delta. But you dont have to be an expert, to see what's going on.

So please, tell us how you experience a change in the delta. Write a comment or upload a picture and take part of the Mekong Photocontest (you can win up to 10 million VND).

Join the GTZ Mekong Photocontest in Vietnam

The GTZ Projects of “Sustainable management of coastal forest and wetland in the Mekong Delta Provinces Bac Lieu, Soc Trang and Kien Giang” jointly carry out an online photo contest on the topic “Climate Change in the Mekong Delta” from July 2010 until September 15th 2010.

The coastal zone of Vietnam particularly in the Mekong Delta is one of the most effected regions which is facing the challenging impacts of climate change. Rising sea levels and storms of increasing magnitude, flooding and drought threaten the poor rural population, Viet Nam’s rice and shrimp production and Ho Chi Minh City with increasing regularity.

The Mekong Delta is of extreme economic importance though, as it is seen as Viet Nam’s “rice chamber”. Intensive rice production and the rapid expansion of aquaculture have contributed to economic growth and poverty reduction. In addition, the population of the Mekong Delta makes a living principally from agriculture (rice cultivation) and aquaculture (shrimp production). Over the last 20 years, however, large areas directly behind the protected mangrove forests were converted into shrimp farms, which further endangers the protective function of the coastal forests.

Every Vietnamese aged above 16 years can participate in the photo contest by uploading photos to the website http://gtz-mekong-photocontest.com. “Effects of climate change on
peoples living conditions” and “Effects of climate change on agriculture” are the two categories and focus of the contest. The range of the best pictures will be carried out by online voting on the webpage and by a jury nominated by GTZ and Goethe Institute.

The prices will be awarded in the two categories “Jury voting” and “User voting”. In each category the prices are nominated as follows:
1. Best picture in the category:
10 million VND
2. Second best picture in the category:
5 million VND
3. Third best picture in the category:
2 million VND

The exhibition of the best photos will take place within the “Information days on Integrated
coastal Management” during October 12th and 13th 2010. The “Information days” are part of
the “German Year in Vietnam” events to celebrate 35 years of diplomatic relations between
Germany and Vietnam. The winners will be invited to the event for a prize giving ceremony.

Please also spread the word!!!

One of the smartest presenters I ever met

One of the smartest presenters I ever met
Originally uploaded by thomaswanhoff

I couldn't catch her name, but she was one of the smartest persons I ever met on a Barcamp. Her talk at Barcamp Mekong in Can Tho, Vietnam, was about being an active student. Not only that she presented in fluent English, she did not use a single powerpoint, instead she draw a mindmap during her speech. In her hands some notes, where she took a look from time to time, but mostly she spoke free.
The topic was, in summary, that students should find their own way of learning and researching. She herself, she said, discovered the way of speed reading while browsing the internet, and she also discovered how to use mindmaps.
Maybe because I am a huge fan of mindmaps I was so excited. It also shows, that Barcamps even in remote areas like Can Tho are always full of surprises.
Although this Barcamp was more for students than developers, I do not regret to took the trip. It was exciting, I learned a lot, mainly about other people and their skills, but also about traditional music in the south.
Thanks to the organizers, Mario and Hong Phuc, for doing a great job, and also thanks to APC school and the volunteers.

Public live blogging from Barcamp Mekong in Can Tho

Barcamp Mekong aka Barcamp Can Tho

Vietnam is getting its third location for a Barcamp (after Hanoi and Saigon), this time further south in Can Tho, the capital of the Mekong Delta. With German efficiency and Vietnamese enthusiasm Hong Phuc, Mario and their team organized the Barcamp for May the 8th an the Can Tho University.

Form the website:

Good topics are topics you are passionate about. Previous Barcamps in Vietnam were held in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City with an incredible range of topics. We feel that the “unconference” style of Barcamps are a great chance to share and learn and bring the community of the Mekong Delta together. Some of the topics we would like to see are:

Copyrights and Creative Commons for education
Making educational videos
Google Maps and Google Earth in education
Collaborative tools, microblogging tools, classroom polling tools
Virtual Worlds in education
Making better presentations
Digital Photography
Making themes and setting up CMS like Joomla, Drupal and Wordpress
Storytelling
Ideas on using social networks with students
Finding the right job
Marketing in Vietnam
The “camp” however, is not restricted to these topics and we encourage everyone to suggest topics and lead sessions. We want to invite the wider community in the Mekong Delta to participate.

Together with my buddy Dylan I will do a iPad presentation. Expect a lot of fun!