CSA Event in My Loi – Photography and Participatory Methodology for CSA

Phew, finally got to the end of the photovoice process - at least the practical part - and it was a hectic last week. With hindsight a two week window between the discussions and the exhibition would have been more manageable, especially considering the 16-hour round trips involved.

Mr Pham Huy Hoang with his photovoice presentation on the impacts of flooding in the area and remediation measures.

I travelled back to My Loi on the Tuesday night bus with Hamy and Trung, and all I could think with every jolt and shudder of the bus was that the prints we had in the hold were going to get wrecked, so it was a real relief when, at 4.30am, we pulled them out unscathed in Ky Anh. We crashed a couple of hotel rooms occupied by ICRAF staff already there and after an hour or two rest it was time to get busy with final day of prep in My Loi - setting up all the stands and photos, inviting the farmers who would present to come and practice (and trying not to get in the way).

Ms Le Thi Than practices her presentation with help of Hamy and Trung.

Thursday saw the event itself, hosted by ICRAF (World Agroforestry Centre) together with the Farmers Union, and it was bigger than I'd expected - a big outdoor stage with sound system, a canopy-covered seating area, dancing and singing performances.

In terms of CSA, the main presentations were the photovoice exhibition, and presentations on 3D models made by groups of farmers over the previous few days. The event was covered by local TV and other news media and from what I can gather, the response seems to have been positive. You can see a news report here.

Mr Nguyễn Văn Nhàn - Mỹ Tân village, presenting his photovoice poster.

Probably the most severe and oft-cited impacts of climate changes here in Ky Son province were the impacts of drought and heat, and severe rainfall events - with several participants reporting loss of formerly productive lands. Some participants pointed out the influence of forestry practices on slopes (clear-cutting of acacia) and the need for landscape-scale bank stabilisation, using bamboo, for example. I found the following image and caption particularly striking in relation to landslides and soil loss:

Rough translation of caption for this image from Mr Nguyễn Văn Nhàn: Formerly a hill of acacia production, farming. But three years ago, due to the impact of rain and storms so the whole land was landslide and erosion. Now, nothing can be farmed on this land. This loss area is about 0.5 hectares of a household in the village.

Some feedback on the event:

Farmers' Union Representative:

My first impression about the photovoice exhibition is the photos themselves. They all look very attractive and provide a wide range of information, from the impacts of climate change to the adaptation in agriculture production.

Village head:

I think through the photovoice exhibition, the farmers in Ky Son commune and My Loi village learnt a lot. They can be aware of the current climate change situation and its impacts at the local level. In addition to the raised awareness, they also learnt about the CSA practices which can help to reduce those adverse impacts.

IFAD:

Overall, the CSA event was very well organized in a professional manner. And I'm very impressed by the proactive participation of the farmers and their beautiful photos. But you know, the photos are not only beautiful, they are also very meaningful.