This UK–Vietnam collaboration is reshaping how climate action is taught and led—by putting women academics at the centre.
Introduction
A pioneering UK–Vietnam partnership led by London South Bank University (LSBU), in collaboration with the University of Economics Ho Chi Minh City (UEH) and the Southern Institute of Water Resources Research (SIWRR), has launched the project "Empowering Change: A Comprehensive Approach to Climate Action, Sustainable Development, and Behaviour Change Among Female Scholars in Ho Chi Minh City".
Funded by the UK Department for Science, Innovation and Technology in partnership with the British Council, the project places female academics at the forefront of climate action by combining advanced training, live business challenges, public exhibitions. Its centrepiece, an eight-week hybrid training programme on Integrated Contemporary Communications for Sustainable Marketing, has already equipped 35 female scholars with the skills to influence sustainable enterprises, design AI-driven campaigns, and engage communities in climate change action.
Project overview
The "Empowering Change" project was initiated through the VIS (Vietnamese Intellectual Society in the UK & Ireland) Mentorship Programme, connecting LSBU’s Dr. Ngan Luong (Emily) with Vietnamese partner Dr. Minh Le (UEH). Together, they have invited team members - Dr Mai Khanh Tran, Dr Ha Doan, and Lien Nguyen - to co-design a practical, interdisciplinary response to climate and sustainability challenges in Ho Chi Minh City. The project’s core purpose is to empower female scholars, an underrepresented group in Vietnam’s sustainability ecosystem, to become key drivers of change by integrating natural and social science insights into applied solutions for sustainable development.
LSBU, UEH and SIWRR are collaborating across three interconnected pillars:
- Training and capacity building
- Community engagement and dissemination
- Practice-based research that directly addresses local needs
The collaboration is designed to translate academic knowledge into accessible, action-oriented communication for professionals, businesses and policymakers.
Programme highlight: an eight-week hybrid training course with a live client brief
Purposeful curriculum for impact
From June to early August 2025, the project delivered "Integrated Contemporary Communications for Sustainable Marketing", a hybrid course (in-person and online) designed specifically for female academics and professionals within and beyond higher education in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.
The curriculum combined a solid theoretical foundation with hands-on tools tied to real-world practice, enabling participants to refine skills in sustainable marketing communications, stakeholder engagement, and behaviour change for climate action.
Training was provided by international experts: Dr Ngan Luong (Emily) and Dr Tran Mai Khanh (Mika) from LSBU; Dr Le Thi Hong Minh from UEH; and Dr Doan Ha from SIWRR. This cross-institutional structure ensured the course bridged scientific research, marketing communications and on-the-ground sectoral insight.
Live brief with Nature Queen (Sao Thai Duong JSC)
A distinctive feature of the programme was the incorporation of the live Bbrief model which places a real business challenge at the centre of learning. Learners tackled marketing communications challenges for Nature Queen, a sustainable cosmetics brand from Sao Thai Duong Joint Stock Company, led by CEO Nguyen Thi Huong Lien.
Nature Queen products are developed to meet demanding US/EU market requirements and have been exported internationally, including to the UK which made it an ideal context for a live brief focused on sustainable growth, brand positioning and responsible communications. This approach fostered learners’ rapid skill development, building confidence and professional readiness. The client pitch took place during the Showcase Event on 3 August 2025.
What participants gained
Across eight weeks, 35 learners built capabilities in sustainable marketing communications strategy, message framing, and the effective use of AI-assisted tools to design communications proposals for the brand. The hybrid format expanded access while enabling international input, and the live brief ensured outputs were grounded in actual market conditions. The course concluded with formal recognition of learner achievements, certificates awarded at completion and a public showcase of work products - a signal to employers and stakeholders of readiness to contribute to climate-aligned, sustainable enterprise initiatives.
Dissemination and impact
International conferences
To extend its educational impact and invite peer review, the team aligned dissemination with three international fora in 2025:
Marketing Education Thought Leadership Forum (King’s College London, April 2025): Hosted by the Academy of Marketing for educators advancing innovative pedagogy in marketing. The training programme on "Integrated Contemporary Communications for Sustainable Marketing" situates within current debates on pedagogy, interdisciplinarity and SDG-aligned marketing education.
Consumer Culture Theory Conference (King’s College London, June 2025). The work entitled “Education as Sustainability Intervention” was well received by the audience members for its focus on tackling social issues and enhancing purpose-driven marketing.
Academy of Marketing Conference (University College Cork, July 2025): The marketing field’s flagship annual conference, providing a platform to share teaching cases and pedagogical models with an international audience of marketing scholars. The project teaching case “Embedding UN Sustainable Development Goals in Teaching Integrated Contemporary Communications for Sustainable Marketing” situates the programme against SDG priorities, particularly SDG 4 (Quality Education), SDG 5 (Gender Equality), SDG 13 (Climate Action) and SDG 17 (Partnerships for the Goals).
Public exhibitions: from classroom to community
Women and Climate Change Research Exhibition (UEH Campus B, 3–8 August 2025): Launched alongside the course showcase event. Curated by Dr Mai Khanh Tran (Mika) with co-curator Ms Lien Nguyen, the exhibition showcased the project journey, the team initiatives and final outputs created by 35 learners, translating teaching and learning insights into creative, public-facing communication.
Empowering Change Exhibition (UEH Campus A from 13 August – 15th September 2025): Building on the momentum, this exhibition opened in the main hall of UEH Campus A as a public-access exhibition. Under the coordination of the Vietnam Project Lead and with support from UEH, the exhibition was designed as an open learning space, it highlights the course content and learner outputs, while inviting broader community participation via survey on their understanding and engagement on climate action, gender equality and the social uptake of sustainable innovations.
Project impact on addressing the gender gap in climate initiatives
Despite progress in Vietnam’s policy frameworks, women remain under-represented in academic and research leadership roles, hindering the sector’s ability to mobilise diverse perspectives for climate action and female empowerment. Evidence from international research associates gender diversity with improved decision-making and innovation -benefits that are particularly salient for multifaceted challenges like climate resilience and sustainable development. The programme’s explicit focus on female academics helps address this gap by building capacity, visibility and professional for sustainable initiatives.
A model for interdisciplinary, practice-based education
The LSBU–UEH- SIWRR programme advances a pragmatic template for Education for Sustainable Development (ESD): start with real problems, convene interdisciplinary cohorts, integrate AI-enabled methods for content and communication tactics, and anchor learning in a Live Brief with a values-aligned business partner. The result is a cohort that can translate knowledge into market-ready strategies while interrogating the ethical, environmental and social implications of their decisions. The initiative advances policy and SDG alignment, demonstrating how partnerships can mainstream sustainability across disciplines and stakeholders.
What’s next?
The partnership will continue to Phase 3 of the project until July 2026 to develop an evidence base around pedagogy and practice, focusing on research on impacts of programme on learners’ skills and behavioural changes, the longer-term impact of project initiatives, and the effects of behaviour-change interventions.
Looking ahead, the team’s approach offers a replicable model for universities seeking to integrate climate action into marketing and communications curricula: co-design with partners; teach across disciplines; embed a live client; and share outcomes publicly. The aim is not only to train individuals but to cultivate a local ecosystem - connecting researchers, businesses, policy makers and citizens - capable of turning research, knowledge and skills into sustainable climate action.
The project team
From left to right:
- Dr. Ngan Luong (Emily), London South Bank University (UK Project Lead)
- Dr. Minh Le, University of Economics Ho Chi Minh City (Vietnam Project Lead, Empowering Change Exhibition Lead)
- Dr. Mai Khanh Tran (Mika), London South Bank University (Project Co-Investigator, Women and Climate Change Exhibition Lead and Curator)
- Dr. Ha Doan, Southern Institute of Water Resources Research (Researcher, Natural Science Lead)
- Ms. Lien Nguyen, University of Economics Ho Chi Minh City (Administrative and Research Support; Women and Climate Change Exhibition Co-curator)
Further insights
Read more about the project from our international partner, UEH’s publicity.
Acknowledgement
The project was awarded a Research Collaborations grant, ID 1203769377, under the International Science Partnerships Fund. The grant is funded by the UK Department for Science Innovation and Technology in partnership with the British Council.
