Chapter 20 National coordination of the JSPS Coastal Marine Science Program in Vietnam Tran Duc Thanh Institute of Marine Environment and Resources, 246 Danang Street, Hai Phong City, Vietnam Introduction Fostering international cooperation through implementation of cooperative projects among research institutions and foreign counterparts has been considered as a priority task in the globalization of marine research activities in Vietnam. After the country was liberated from France in 1945, initially most cooperation projects focused on baseline studies of marine environmental conditions at the multidisciplinary level including physical, geological, chemical, and biological oceanography in the East Sea and Tonkin Gulf (1960s 1970s). The foreign counterparts in this period mostly came from China, the USA and Russia with several Vietnamese scientists joining research cruises for sampling and analysis, which were conducted primarily by the foreign scientists. Since 1975, the period which we call the independent time, many projects have been carried out jointly with various foreign partners, such as Germany, Thailand, Philippines (e.g., SEAFDEC or Southeast Asian Fisheries Development Center), aiming at the exploration not only of the marine environment but also its natural resources. The outcomes of several projects established a sound scientific basis for addressing current environmental issues in Vietnam such as the global climate change and tsunami risks. Three water bodies were chosen as major sites for the case study: Tonkin Gulf, East Sea and Gulf of Thailand, where researches were conducted to assess the status of living resources in the context of resource management in the trans boundary area in the South China Sea. Through these researches, a strong partnership has been established between Vietnamese and foreign scientists to deal with marine pollution and sustainable management of marine resources. This also enhanced the research capability of Vietnamese scientists themselves and their communication and discussion skills with foreign scientists, resulting in many international publications in the field of marine science. Among the joint research activities signed by the Vietnam Academy for Science and Technology (VAST), the VAST/ JSPS (Japan Society for the Promotion of Science) Multilateral Core University Program on the Coastal Marine Sciences (MCUP-CMS) has significantly implemented scientific personal exchanges S. Nishida, M. D. Fortes and N. Miyazaki, eds. Coastal Marine Science in Southeast Asia Synthesis Report of the Core University Program of the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science: Coastal Marine Science (2001 2010), pp. 201 209. by TERRAPUB 2011.
202 T. D. Thanh Table 1. Coordinators and number of scientists by project. Project No. and title Coordinator and institute Member institute Number of scientists Project 1: Water Circulation and process of material transport in coastal area and marginal sea of East and Southeast Asia Dr. Dinh Van Manh CMESRC, Institute of Mechanics Institute of Marine Environment and Resources 10 Project 2: Ecology and Oceanography of Harmful Marine Microalgae Dr. Chu Van Thuoc Institute of Marine Environment and Resources Nha Trang Institute of Oceanography, Research Institute of Marine Fishery, Vietnam National University in Hanoi, Hue University of Science, Institute of Tropical Biology 15 Project 3: Biodiversity Study in the Coastal Waters of the East and Southeast Asia Prof. Bui Dinh Chung Research Institute of Marine Fishery Institute of Ecology and Biological Resources, Vietnam National University in Hanoi, Nha Trang Institute of Oceanography, Institute of Marine Environment and Resources 16 Project 4: Pollution of hazardous chemicals in the coastal marine environment and their ecological effect Prof. Pham Hung Viet CETASD, HUS, Vietnam National University in Hanoi Institute of Mechanics, Institute of Fisheries Economics and Planning, Institute of Marine Environment and Resources 13
National coordination of the JSPS Coastal Marine Science Program in Vietnam 203 among the member countries which enhanced the capacity of young scientists in Vietnam. Membership Table 2. Number of scientists by institution and project. No. Institution Project 1 Project 2 Project 3 Project 4 Total 1 Institute of Marine Environment and Resources 6 2 9 2 19 2 Research Institute of Marine Fishery 1 1 2 3 Vietnam National Univ. in Hanoi 1 3 9 13 4 Institute of Mechanics 4 1 5 5 Institute of Fisheries Economics and Planning 1 1 6 Institute of Ecology and Biological Resources 2 2 7 Nha Trang Institute of Oceanography 5 2 7 8 Hue Univ. of Science 4 4 9 Institute of Tropical Biology 1 1 10 Institute of Biotechnology 1 1 Total 10 15 16 13 54 On the basis of the discussions in project meetings in Vietnam, the Institute of Marine Environment and Resources (IMER) has been designated as the core institution to build a network of all the concerned research bodies to participate in the collaboration. There are three major organizations/ ministries taking part in the program: VAST (5 research institutions), Ministry of Education and Training (2 universities), and Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (2 research institutions). A total of 54 experts joined the 4 main projects (Tables 1, 2). Administration The administrative activities have been done through e-mail among members of research projects and subprojects following the key activities discussed at the annual national coordinator s meeting. Information was also exchanged during the seminars, symposia and conferences. The annual national coordinator s meetings were organized alternately in member countries. Vietnam hosted two meetings: the 6th meeting at Ha Long City and the 9th meeting at Hai Phong City in combination with the 4th VAST/JSPS Seminar on Coastal Marine Science. Every year one or two meetings were organized with the attendance of the project leaders, subproject leaders and national coordinators. In the program meeting of 2005 at Hai Phong, the Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Science and Technology, Le Dinh Tien, also attended and delivered a talk on the future directions in Vietnamese marine science. Other important meetings such as the 6th National Coordinator s Meeting in Ha Long City and the 4th VAST/JSPS Joint
204 T. D. Thanh Fig. 1. A: Oil spill modeling in Bach Dang River estuary. B: Numerical model to assess spreading of suspended sediment and oil spill in the Bach Dang - Cam estuaries area. Fig. 2. Collaborative microscopic (A) and biochemical (B) analysis on harmful microalgae. Seminar in Hai Phong City were graced by the attendance of the President of the VAST, representatives from the Ministry of Science and Technology and other local authorities. They were all important and active supporters for the successful implementation of the multilateral program. Evaluation of the performance of project members (in terms of their research activities, publications and participation at joint scientific meetings) was done annually. In parallel, the participation of new scientists into the program was encouraged by the project leaders in Vietnam with recommendations from the Japanese counterparts, with the approval of the National Coordinator. Research Activity by Projects Vietnam implemented all four projects of the JSPS-CMS Program, namely, Project- 1: Water Circulation and the Process of Material Transport in the Coastal Areas and Marginal Seas of East and Southeast Asia; Project-2: Ecology and Oceanography of Harmful Marine Microalgae; Project-3: Biodiversity Studies in the Coastal Waters of East and Southeast Asia; and Project-4: Pollution of Hazardous Chemicals in the Coastal Marine Environ-
National coordination of the JSPS Coastal Marine Science Program in Vietnam 205 Fig. 3. Photos from biodiversity research. A: Sampling of coral reef fishes with SCUBA. B: Sampling of jellyfish in northern coastal waters. C: Jellyfish identification in laboratory. ment and Their Ecological Effect (POME). The research activities and outcomes by the projects are given below. Project-1 There were several main activities that applied numerical modeling to hydrodynamic processes, in relation to the water quality, water circulation, sediment transportation, ecological processes or prediction of the impacts of natural hazards, as summarized below: a. Numerical models for hydrodynamics and sediment transport, using patching and wet-dry techniques. The models have been applied for calculating the regime characteristics of currents, including tidal and wind drift components, as well as simulating the shoreline evolutions with 100 100 m grids. b. Numerical models for simulation of tsunami propagations in the South China Sea due to earthquake events, considering potential inundation in some real coastal areas and applying 6 6 km grids for the whole South China Sea. An inundation modeling with finer grids for Danang Bay is now in progress. c. A numerical model to assess spreading of suspended sediments and oil spills in the Bach Dang-Cam estuaries area (Fig. 1). d. A 3-D numerical model for hydrodynamics and water quality in Ha Long - Bai Tu Long Bay. e. Ecological modeling of Cat Ba-Ha Long coastal area. Project-2 This project has been conducted with the collaboration of IMER and NIO (National Institute of Oceanography) as core institutes, with other members, focusing on several aspects including species composition of red tide organisms along the Vietnamese coasts, toxicology of red tides, and the topics relevant to enhance public awareness about safety of seafood products (Fig. 2). In particular, much progress has been made in red-tide ecology and toxicology as summarized below: a. Microalgae of the genus Pseudonitzschia were identified and known to produce domoic acid in Vietnam, and the origin and accumulation processes of the acid in marine bivalve were studied. b. Among others, Pseudonitzschia caciantha was identified to cause the accumulation of domoic acid in Spondylus versicolor at Nha Phu lagoon, Khanh Hoa province. c. The paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP) that occurred in marine bivalves at the Ha Long-Cat Ba coastal waters has been studied. Project-3 This project involved a large number of members and biodiversity researches
206 T. D. Thanh sediments and bivalves. b. Heavy metals: Cu, Pb, Zn, Fe, Al, Cd in water, sediments and bivalves. c. Base lines factors: DO, ph, S ; TSS, TDS, BOD, COD. Publications Fig. 4. Cover of the book Biodiversity and Living Resources of the Coral Reef Fish in Vietnamese Marine Waters. from the species to ecosystem levels. Some of the major topics and results are outlined below: a. Continued basic research on marine biodiversity, along with general oceanographic observation, in the coastal waters of Vietnam, with emphasis on two major sites, Nha Trang Marine Protected Area and Ha Long Bay Natural World Heritage Site (Fig. 3A). b. Seasonal monitoring of zoobenthos in Ha Long Bay and Nha Trang Bay. c. Continued seagrass monitoring in Ha Long Bay. d. Researches on the diversity of jellyfish and jellyfish fisheries in Vietnam (Figs. 3B, C). Project-4 This project has been conducted by the members of the Department of Chemistry, Vietnam National University (VNU) in Hanoi and the Department of Marine Environmental Chemistry, IMER focusing on the coastal marine pollutants and parameters as listed below: a. Pesticides: Lindan, Aldrin, Endrin, Diendrin, DDD, DDE, DDT in water, All the Vietnamese members were encouraged to present papers (oral or poster) at the joint seminars and workshops, resulting in more than 100 scientific papers, of which 25 have been published in international journals and proceedings. In collaboration with the Fish Research Group of Project 3 (biodiversity), we published a book on the coral reef fishes entitled Biodiversity and Living Resources of the Coral Reef Fish in Vietnamese Marine Waters in Vietnamese under the flagship of the VAST/JSPS program (Fig. 4). Scientific Exchange and Capacity Building Vietnamese institutional members sent 150 personnel to take part in 30 technical training courses abroad and locally. Six technical training courses were held in Vietnam. There were about 30 Japanese scientists who made short visits (one week to 15 days) in collaboration with Vietnamese counterparts for field sampling and laboratory analyses. Two PhD students from Vietnam visited Japanese members at their laboratories for data analysis and discussion under the latter s supervision. Five training courses and/or workshops on taxonomy were organized in Vietnam. These were focused on: seaweeds and seagrasses (1 course), zooplankton (1, Fig. 5A), zoobenthos (1), and marine fish (2, Fig. 5B). Young scientists in Vietnam benefited from these valuable activities under the guidance of leading Japanese scientists in their respective fields. Two meetings were hosted by VAST: (1) the 6th National Coordinator s Meeting in Ha Long City,
National coordination of the JSPS Coastal Marine Science Program in Vietnam 207 Fig. 5. A: Training course on methods of zooplankton ecology and identification in Hai Phong City, 2005. B: Marine fish workshop and training course in Hai Phong City, 2009. Fig. 6. A: The 4th VAST-JSPS Joint Seminar on Coastal Marine Science, Hai Phong City, 2009. B: The 6th National Coordinator s Meeting in Ha Long City, 2006. 2006 (Fig. 6A) and (2) the 4th VAST-JSPS Joint Seminar in Coastal Marine Science in Hai Phong City, 2009 (Fig. 6B). These meetings have been successful in bringing the scientists of the member countries together to share and discuss updated knowledge in the fields of coastal marine science and to set up implementation plans for the next stage of the project. These activities have also contributed much to enhance the network of the marine scientists in Vietnam. Moreover, young scientists have been much benefited by having close contacts with regional and foreign experts, so that they were able to learn updated technical skills in their respective fields and consult the experts with problems whenever possible. During the project 16 post graduate students from Vietnam (9 MSc, 7 PhD) have received, or are receiving, either full-time training in Japan or Vietnam, or part-time training in other member countries. After finishing the training processes they have, or will, come back to Vietnam to play major roles in filling the gaps in the human resources needs of the research institutions concerned. As such, the program has significantly contributed to the capacity building in the field of marine science in Vietnam, especially in recent years when recruitment of new personnel in scientific institutions is getting progressively difficult.
208 T. D. Thanh Community Outreach The project activities have received great interests from a wide audience, including local authorities and the central government through dissemination of the outputs via internet, television broadcasting and published papers. Especially, the local authorities in Hai Phong City and Quang Ninh province have highly appreciated the JSPS products as crucial in providing the scientific voices to conserve the natural heritage sites in their vicinity. Issues, Concerns and Solutions While the project activities in Vietnam had substantial accomplishments, we have also experienced some difficulties in maintaining collaborative activities and communication among members from the different research groups and universities/institutes. This type of difficulty has been due mainly to the difficulty in securing funding supports for research and management from the Vietnam side. Most collaborating research instititions have their own interested topics for solving the specific marine science issues as made by order from funding donors (central agencies, provincial organizations). All the funding items normally do not cover the outhreach activities such as organization of technical training courses or in/out going staffs to attend the meetings or workshops. In other concerns, the JSPS program require big name funding donors who can support all the program activities and be able to provide the appropriate budget needed. The prospective funding donors in Vietnam can be the Ministry of Science and Technology or National Foundation for Science and Technology Development (NAFOSTED). If the program runs follow this funding structure, the VAST can significantly play as the coordinating institution and linkages among marine research institutions. Conclusion The JSPS-CMS Program, with the 10 years of multilateral collaboration, has significantly contributed to the marine science in Vietnam in various aspects, as summarized below. The network among marine research institutions established through the program has much enhanced accessibility of marine scientists, especially young generations, to various resources, such as laboratory facilities, literature in libraries, and up-to-date information from internet and direct human communications. The training cources/workshops and joint seminars have provided with excellent opportunities to Vietnamese students and researchres to exchange ideas with and learn experiences from experts on coastal marine science in member countries. The capacity building has also been enhanced by short and full term visit of students and young researchers to Japan for MSc and PhD degrees and higher-level expertise. Vietnamese scientists have received much support from these activities in disseminating their accomplishments in international and domestic peer review journals. While these are the positive products of the program, we also noted several challenges that should be improved and/or focused in future collaboration. First, not all the 54 collaborators from Vietnam have been fully active during the program, both in research and network communication. This may be due partly to the research duties in their organization and budgetary constraints and partly to their research interests and abilities. Renovation of the membership would be important and should be based on all relevant information and good comunication for efficient future collaboration. Second, there were several cases where sub-projects competed each other, rather than collaborate, for budget proposals. This should also be addressed on the basis of efficient commu-
National coordination of the JSPS Coastal Marine Science Program in Vietnam 209 nication between collaborating institutes and members. With all these accomplishments and challenges, we hope the collaboration among Southeast Asian countries and Japan will be further enhanced beyond 2010, after the completion of the present JSPS- CMS Program. Acknowledgements On behalf of the VAST/JSPS project members in Vietnam, I would like to express my sincere thanks to the VAST for its guidance in the 10 years of program implementation. Thanks are also due to all the project and sub-project leaders for their assistance and encouragement throughout the project. Special thanks are due to the AORI and JSPS for their financial and logistic support for country members to effectively work together. Reference Tran DT, Nguyen VQ (2009) Report of JSPS Multilateral Core University Program Coastal Marine Science 2001 2009 Viet Nam Activities. Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology.