Acting Assistant Secretary of State for Oceans, International Environmental and Scientific Affairs Judy Garber visited Vietnam this past week to explore collaborative efforts to adapt to and mitigate the effects of climate change and combat illegal wildlife trafficking and address other environmental concerns. While in Hanoi, she met with senior government officials and hosted a panel discussion with some 50 young Vietnamese on combating wildlife trafficking, with a focus on rhino horn, at the American Center together with Ms. Hoang Vu Lang Phuong, of the NGO Freeland, and Ms. Nguyen Phuong Dung, Deputy Director of the NGO Education for Nature.
Ambassador Garber also joined with Ambassador Osius and a team from the U.S. Embassy for a day-long visit to Nam Dinh province, where they met with local officials and farmers and paid a brief visit to Xuan Thuy National Park to learn about efforts to preserve the region’s vitally important, yet fragile mangrove ecosystems. In Nam Dinh they also launched the Red River Delta Adaptation and Youth (READY) program, a new USAID-sponsored climate change mitigation program that focuses on the role of youth. The U.S. Government places a high priority on solving environmental problems in collaboration with other countries because most of these problems transcend national boundaries and no one country can solve them alone.
