Australia Assists Vietnam Monitor, Protect Coral Reefs against Climate Change

Maritime cooperation between Vietnam and Australia is growing fast, supported by a new Australian AUD 64 million program focused on supporting Vietnam and other Southeast Asia maritime countries to sustainably develop and manage their marine resources and address marine challenges.

The Institute of Oceanography, in collaboration with the Australian Embassy in Vietnam, on April 1 organized training on technology transfer and improvement of monitoring capacity over coral reefs in Vietnam, VNA reported.

Coral reef at Nui Chua. Source: Australian Embassy in Vietnam

Specifically, Australia will support the use of advanced ReefScan technology (a blockchain discovery tool) to help Vietnam monitor and protect coral reefs against the impacts of climate change. This is part of stepping up the marine conservation and maritime cooperation engagement.

This is a program announced by Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese in March and also reflected in the Joint Statement on the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership of the two countries.

This year, Australia will have three training activities to transfer this technology to Vietnam, at the Institute of Oceanography in Khanh Hoa province, the Nui Chua Marine Reserve in Ninh Thuan province and the Cu Lao Cham Marine Reserve in Quang Nam province in the central region in July and August.

As a result, about 20 scientists and managers will be trained on how to use ReefScan and ReefCloud to support enhanced coral reef monitoring, preservation and rehabilitation activities in Vietnam.

At the ceremony, Australian Ambassador Andrew Goledzinowski presented ReefScan devices to the Institute of Oceanography.

Australian Ambassador Andrew Goledzinowski hands over Reef Scan equipment to the Institute of Oceanography. Source: Australian Embassy in Vietnam

ReefScan is a modular suite of automated marine monitoring systems that translate field data into comprehensive information about the state and health of critical marine ecosystems such as coral reefs.

Meanwhile, ReefCloud is a digital tool that uses machine learning and advanced analysis to rapidly extract and share data from images of coral reefs anywhere in the world.

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