Climate Skills – Seeds for Transition: Supporting Vietnamese Youth in the Green Transition

Equipping young people with the skills needed to participate in the green transition. Photo: British Council. On April 21, the British Council in Vietnam announced that it had organized the closing ceremony of the youth dialogue project and an exhibition of social action ideas. This activity is part of the Climate Skills – Seeds for Transition program, a global program implemented by the British Council in collaboration with HSBC. The program aims to equip young people with the skills and knowledge necessary to help accelerate the shift from a high-carbon economy to a low-carbon economy. Vietnam is one of six countries participating in the program, alongside Brazil, Mexico, India, Indonesia and the United Kingdom. In Vietnam, the British Council partners with the Mekong Institute, Can Tho University to support youth in the Mekong Delta in sowing the seeds for the green transition, aiming for sustainable and inclusive development. "These collaborations will create international opportunities for young people to develop practical skills, confidence, and experience in sustainable entrepreneurship," said Isobel Cecil, Global Head of Climate Skills, British Council. Climate change is a top priority for both the UK and Vietnamese governments, and for the British Council and Vietnamese research institutes and educational organizations. The British Council’s Vietnam Youth Generation Research Report, together with the Vietnam youth generation dialogues, analyzed the report’s findings and clarified key issues of interest to Vietnamese youth, including participation in social activities, gender equality, climate change response, entrepreneurship, education and skills training. Based on these findings, and in partnership with Vietnamese youth—an ambitious group for positive contributions to emerging fields such as green economy and digital economy—the British Council launched the Climate Skills – Seeds for Transition project in 2023. The project aims to equip vulnerable young people with the necessary skills to participate in and become an active part of the green transition. After three years of implementation (2023–2026), the project has strengthened capacity and resources for 142 core trainers from 13 local organizations, by enhancing knowledge of climate change and 21st-century skills using the British Council’s Climate Skills toolkit. As a result, knowledge and competencies have been disseminated to more than 1,600 youths in the Mekong Delta, and 15 youth-led social action initiatives have been supported. Closing ceremony after three years of implementation. The initiatives focus on addressing urgent climate-change-related challenges and gender balance, such as saltwater intrusion and coastal flooding affecting agriculture in the Mekong Delta, community-level waste management and environmental pollution, enhancing skills and employment opportunities in the green economy, improving community awareness of climate adaptation, and small-scale renewable energy solutions for households and communities. In 2026, the Climate Skills – Seeds for Transition journey will continue to empower youths in the Mekong Delta, with particular emphasis on young women, vulnerable youth, and underrepresented communities. Through the co-creation scholarship program, the project focuses on entrepreneurship and green skills, helping to expand access to sustainable economic activities. At the same time, it fosters strategic partnerships between British organizations and Vietnamese educational institutions, implementing collaborative projects and maintaining long-term engagement.