Until recently there was minimal agricultural precedent or appreciation for farmed reptiles, and most people strongly preferred wild-caught alternatives. Vietnam has since celebrated the success of the reptile farming industry, and the general public are now well informed about the industry and the end products. Farmed reptile products are available in most wet markets and on the menu of many mainstream restaurants. A remaining challenge is that there has been no attempt to regulate or inform customers of what farmers feed to their reptiles. Wild-sourced animals (e.g., rodents captured in rice fields), commerical feeds (e.g., fish pellets), and waste protein from agri-food chains (e.g., still born pigs and male chicks from hatcheries) are the most common feed types. The risks associated with these feed inputs need further research and evaluation. The risk of wild laundering of reptiles also remians, but the scale and likelihood have been significantly reduced through more lucrative production models (e.g., selective line breeding to improve production genetics) and improved law enforcement.  

Legitimate closed-cycle reptile farming is a relatively new phenomenon. Many Vietnamese reptile farmers were subsistence farmers who shifted over to reptile farming by modifying traditional poultry- and pig-type systems. The trade in wild caught reptiles was rife up until the early 2000s, and laundering through so-called ‘reptile farms’ was commonplace. However, as technological knowhow advanced, legal and policy frameworks were established by the Vietnamese government to permit the establishment of legitimate reptile farms. Many of these farms remain small-scale and operate within the informal sector, but governance mechanisms and appropriate institutional capacity have been able to establish successful structural and functional outcomes in terms of legality, animal welfare, transparency, and environmental sustainability. Reptile farming in Vietnam is regulated by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. Farms must be registered to and supervised by Provincial Forest Protection Departments (PFPD). PFPDs inspect facilities on a regular basis. Permits and certificates are issued to verify responsible sourcing practices (e.g., captive bred) in compliance with the law. 

A cost effectiveness assessment of the planned intervention and an options appraisal was undertaken during the planning phase. The proposed options were assessed on their costs and benefits, technical viability and environmental outcomes. This allowed for comparison of alternatives and selection of the solution that would provide the greatest environmental, social and economic benefits. Economic benefits derived from the Nature-based Solution, include around GBP 91.7 in economic benefits (including GBP 13.5 million in environmental benefits). The coastal realignment contributed to the protection of more than 300 residential and commercial properties as well as infrastructure. An estimated 22,000 people visit the area annually supporting the local economy.

In 2009, a vision exercise that involved local communities, government representatives and statutory organisations highlighted disaster risk reduction, especially flooding, as a major challenge. Coastal flood events have been increasing in frequency in the area and caused significant damage to public and private property. The vision exercise enabled discussions around two key questions: (1) Imagining that it is 2019, what is it about the recreational aspects and management of the site that you are proudest of?, and (2) What were the big dilemmas that you had to think about? The results of this exercise and the subsequent inclusive and participatory processes, informed design decisions and the exploration of multiple benefits. Environmental assessment data of flood events, flood risk mapping and modelling confirmed flooding as the main societal challenge. Impacts of climate change were found to be an exacerbating factor. The mapping and modelling was done in line with Government best practice and enabled assessment of the flood risk to nearby communities.

The process of responding to the mass mortality event, from the initial discovery of turtle carcasses through to eventual reintroduction of captive bred juveniles to the wild, was done through collaboration between government authorities, researchers, in situ and ex situ conservation managers, and local people who were personally invested in the turtles’ wellbeing. The communities living around the Bellinger River derive pride from the species endemic to their corner of the world, and their concern and participation as citizen scientists played a large role in raising awareness and ensuring resources were directed to the turtles. The government authorities were the central facilitators of the response, seeking out expertise across many sectors to ensure a comprehensive analysis was done.

Developed by IUCN CPSG, the One Plan Approach (OPA) is a method of species management that develops a conservation plan with input from all stakeholders involved with both in situ and ex situ populations of the species. This brings together conservation managers: field biologists, researchers and wildlife managers who monitor wild populations, and zoo and aquarium personnel who manage various ex situ populations. Experts, researchers, decision-makers, and stakeholder representatives were brought together for a workshop, hosted by neutral CPSG facilitators, to carry out a species status review, a disease risk analysis, and develop a conservation management plan.

WildHealthTech: WildHealthNet develops and employs innovative, appropriate, and user-friendly technologies for surveillance. With proven, globally distributed, open-source software (e.g., SMART for Health) and hardware like handheld cell phone devices for data collection and diagnostics, WildHealthNet supports effective and timely communication of data for improved reporting of wildlife health and rapid response.

WildHealthSkills: WildHealthNet conducts capacity bridging and building with in-person and virtual trainings for all actors in the network, from field-based rangers to laboratory techs to national coordinators. The goal is to develop and share science-based protocols and best practices, and implement strong curricula so that each actor is empowered to fully participate.

- WildHealthBuild: Building partnerships and breaking down silos across the human health, animal health, and environment/ wildlife sectors is an essential first step in planning and implementing wildlife surveillance for One Health intelligence, improving coordinated result sharing and response and the likelihood that networks and sustainable and used to guide science-based policy and disease control mechanisms going forward.

Automatically the results are generated by the IMET and are easily interpreted. IMET contains several data visualization tools, based on an embedded statistical analyses. As soon as the assessment is completed, scores and bar-charts are displayed. Aspects which need attention are coloured along a colour and percentage scale. This makes it very simple ans easy to allocate resources to where they are most needed.