IPSI Case Study Summary Sheet
Basic Information
Title of case study (should be concise and within approximately 25 words)
The importance of the Farmers Field School approach: A case study - Farmers Field School practical training
programs, Vietnam
Submitting IPSI member organization(s)Social Policy Ecology Research Institute (SPERI)
Other contributing organization(s) (IPSI members and/or non-members)
Author(s) and affiliation(s)Kien To Dang, SPERI
Format of case study (manuscript or audiovisual)
Manuscript
Language
EnglishKeywords (3-5 key concepts included in the case study)
Farmers Field School approach, training programs, forest landscape management, ecological farming practices,
indigenous minority students, learning experiences
Date of submission (or update, if this is an update of an existing case study)
22 December 2015
Web link (of the case study or lead organization if
http://speri.org/, http://ffs.org.vn/
available for more information)

Geographical Information
Country (where site(s) or activities described in the case study are located – can be multiple, or even “global”)
Viet Nam and Lao P.D.R.
Location(s) (within the country or countries – leave blank if specific location(s) cannot be identified)Longitude/latitude or Google Maps link (if location is identified)
https://www.google.com/maps/@15.7477692,101.4156929,6z?hl=en
https://www.google.com/maps/place/HEPA/@18.4174858,105.2205705,17z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m5!3m4!1s0x313
9902bd400f6db:0x426732850836328d!8m2!3d18.4174858!4d105.2227592?hl=en
Ecosystem(s) (please place an “x” in all appropriate boxes)
Forestx
Grassland
AgriculturalDryland

Mountainx

Urban/peri-urbanx

In-land water
Other(PleaseCoastalspecify)

Socioeconomic and environmental characteristics of the area (within 50 words)
The FFS’s are located in remote upland areas where limited infrastructure and rough mountainous terrain arepresent. SPERI and FFS witnessed that many minority youths lack access to an education that incorporates
minority culture, particular their ecological ways of thinking, and indigenous wisdom. At the same time, ethnic
youths do not have the financial resources to access education.
Description of human-nature interactions in the area (land-use, traditional resource management practices etc. – within 50words)

Deforestation in many areas of Vietnam and Lao P.D.R., especially the upland, is a serious issue that results inincreased poverty, increased food insecurity and also landscape/ ecosystem degradation. In the context of anincreasingly urbanized and industrialized country, many minorities find it very hard to maintain their way of life.

Contents
Note: The following fields are used for information about activities described in the case study or the production of the case study itself, andcontents may vary depending on the nature of the case study. For example, a case study about on-the-ground activities may include therationale, objectives etc. for the activities; a case study about a SEPLS-related policy may describe the policymaking process; or a case study
describing a SEPLS may address particular practices used there. Please make an effort to fill as many fields as possible.

Status (“ongoing” or “completed”)
Ongoing
Period (MM/YY to MM/YY)
2006 - 2018
Rationale (why activities or policies described, or information shared in the case study are needed – within 50 words)
FFS-HEPA works with ethnic minority youths to help improves their lives and landscapes respecting andintegrating parts of their own knowledge and culture. By establishing and running FFS’s in remote mountainous
upland areas, FFS hopes to contribute to empowerment and enhancement of practical knowledge on how toaddress the various issues mentioned.
Objectives (goals of activities or policies described, or of producing the case study – within 50 words)
SPERI has a network of four active FFS’s across Lao Cai, Ha Tinh, and Quang Binh provinces of Vietnam, and one
extending to Luang Prabang province, Lao P.D.R. on the three core hands-on training programs: forest
regeneration/ conservation, ecological farming practices and the nurseries program.
Activities and/or practices employed (within 50 words)

FFS facilitates hands-on trainings. The curriculum is composed of various topics that are critical for securing andrecovering the integrity of forests and associated ecosystems in the target areas, including forest regeneration/conservation in the upper and mid elevations, ecological farming practices in the mid and lower zones and anursery program in the lowest land.
Results (within 50 words)
Since 2006, FFSs network have educated more than 200 disadvantaged ethnic minority students with a highschool equivalent degree conferred in Vietnam and Lao P.D.R. In total, there have been nearly 200 visiting
groups and thousands of people since 2006. As a result of continuous protection of the forests, the data hasindicated a reduction of illegal logging cases over the years in the area.
Lessons learned (factors in success or failure, challenges and opportunities – within 40 words)
What makes FFS’s continue is the ongoing dedication and strong will, guided by the leadership structure,
toward the necessity to improve ecological system. FFS’s address poverty and create autonomy for eachdisadvantaged ethnic minority youth and thus their associated local community. The autonomy allows them toimprove local community land use planning and resources management. These are achieved throughenhancing knowledge, largely learning-by-doing knowledge, and at the same time facilitating different meansof learning.
Key messages (within 40 words)
Positive changes and better management of SEPLS can be possible if education takes place at the grassroots
level, reaches out to many groups including disadvantaged ones, and is delivered with the most practicalhands-on components. Promoting further on-the-ground activities as well as increasing farmer-to-farmer
learning and action-taking would be the most effective way to allow target groups at the grassroots level toparticipate and benefit from managing their landscapes.
Relationship to other IPSI activities (if the case study is related to any other IPSI collaborative activities, case studies, etc.)
This case study originally appeared in the Satoyama Initiative Thematic Review v. 1.
Funding (any relevant information about funding of activities or projects described in the case study)
During the period 2000 to 2009, FFS (as the concept and approach in the overall of Vietnam) was adopted
largely through agricultural projects supported by international donors, such as Agricultural Development
Denmark Asia (ADDA). Under SPERI, FFS was supported by ICCO from the Netherlands, BftW from Germany.

Contributions to Global Agendas
CBD Aichi Biodiversity Targets (https://www.cbd.int/sp/targets/)
The table below shows based on the self-evaluation by author(s).  and  indicates the “direct” or “indirect” contributions to theCBD’s Aichi Biodiversity Targets respectively to which the work described in this case study contributes to.

Strategic Goal A

Strategic Goal BStrategic Goal CStrategic Goal DStrategic Goal EUN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) (https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/sdgs)
The table below shows based on the self-evaluation by author(s).  and  indicates the “direct” or “indirect” contributions to theSDGs respectively to which the work described in this case study contributes to.
