Publications and media
One of the FOCUS project outputs includes the publication of quality scientific papers in reputable journals. Find below the links to our publications and training packages, in addition to conference presentations, videos, media reports and newsletters.
Graphical abstract
A comprehensive biophysical literature review was written to highlight the issues of saline intrusion in the Mekong River Delta and give context for the project. This review was published in Agricultural Systems and is open access.
Kaveney, Barrett-Lennard, Chau Minh, Dang Duy, Nguyen Thi, Kristiansen, Orgill, Stewart-Koster & Condon. 2023. Inland dry season saline intrusion in the Vietnamese Mekong River Delta is driving the identification and implementation of alternative crops to rice. Agricultural Systems. 207, 103632
Publications
An examination of two case studies that investigate the value chain characteristics, constraints and opportunities of alternative crops.
S. T. Le, N. H. Mao, P. Kristiansen and M. Coleman. (2025). "Innovation in two contrasting value chains: Constraints and opportunities for adopting alternative crop production in the Vietnamese Mekong River Delta." Regional Sustainability. 6(1): 100198.
An online survey and focus group discussions examine the challenges facing the youth of the Mekong River Delta, Vietnam.
M. Coleman, S. T. Le, N. H. Mao, K. M. Chau, J. Condon and P. Kristiansen. (2025). "Rural Youth Aspirations in the Face of Environmental, Economic and Social Pressures: Transformation in the Vietnamese Mekong Delta." The European Journal of Development Research.
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A study investigating three alternative upland crops (quinoa, soybean and cowpea) grown under saline conditions with Chameleon soil moisture sensors.
Kaveney, B., Khoi, C. M., Minh, D. D., Thi Kim Phuong, N., An Giang, C. D., Barrett-Lennard, E., Khanh, T. D., & Condon, J. (2025). Investigating the suitability of Chameleon soil moisture sensors to improve water use of upland crops under conditions of temporal salinity. Agricultural Water Management, 316, 1-11. Article 109602. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agwat.2025.109602
A greenhouse trial examining the effects of mulch on soil salinity and maize, beetroot and quinoa.
Nhien, C. T., An Giang, C. D., Kaveney, B., Condon, J., Khanh, T. D., Minh, D. D., Long, N. V., Loc, N. V., & Khoi, C. M. (2025). Growth and yield responses of maize, beetroot, and quinoa to salinity and straw mulching. Plant, Soil and Environment, 71(10), 681-694. https://doi.org/10.17221/317/2025-PSE
Growth and yield responses of maize, beetroot, and quinoa to salinity and straw mulching.
A comprehensive study examining soil available silicate in saline affected rice paddy fields.
My, H. M. T., Khoi, C. M., Condon, J., Barrett-Lennard, E. G., Kaveney, B., Orgill, S., Minh, D. D., Phuong, N. T. K., Khanh, T. D., Giang, C. D. A., Tien, T. M., Linh, D. T. T., & Toyota, K. (2025). Influence of rice straw mulching on soil available silicate and maize growth in paddy fields affected by saline intrusion in the Mekong River Delta, Vietnam. Plant and Soil, 516(1), 689-704. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-025-07761-4
An examination of the use of Chameleon soil moisture sensors in both greenhouse and field trials.
Nhien, C. T., Giang, C. D. A., Kaveney, B., Condon, J., Minh, D. D., Khanh, T. D., & Khoi, C. M. (2026). Assessment of the potential application of the chameleon soil moisture sensor to grow the upland crop in the Mekong River Delta, Vietnam. Advances in Agriculture, 2026, 1-13. Article 7723355. https://doi.org/10.1155/aia/7723355
A greenhouse trial growing beetroot under a range of mulching rates.
Nhien, C., Duy Khanh, T., Dinh, C., Giang, A., Minh, D. & Khoi, C. 2025. Effect Of Straw Mulching On Soil Moisture, Salt Accumulation, And Beetroot Growth On Saline Soil Under Greenhouse Condition. International Journal of Environmental Sciences,11, 2025.
Investigating the growth of maize under four different mulching rates.
Nhien, C., Ngoc, N., Kha, M., Duy Khanh, T., Dinh, C., Giang, A., Minh, D., Thi, T., Binh, N. & Khoi, C. 2025. Effect of straw mulching on Maize (Zea Mays L.) productivity in salt-affected soil in the Mekong River Delta, Vietnam. International Journal of Agriculture and Environmental Research, 11, 12.
A household survey investigating crop diversification in Soc Trang Province.
Nguyen Ngoc, K., Tran Duy, K., Dang Duy, M. & Chau Minh, K. 2025. Potential for diversifying crops on rice monoculture land affected by salinity intrusion in the Mekong Delta. International Journal of Agriculture and Environmental Research. 11, 1062-1076.
An examination of the soil salinity variations over time and space.
Nguyen Ngoc, K. & Chau Minh, K. 2025. Monitoring land use change in response to temporal salinity stress in the Vietnamese Mekong Delta. International Journal of Environmental Sciences. 11, 973-977.
Monitoring land use change in response to temporal salinity stress in the Vietnamese Mekong Delta.
Investigating how Chameleon soil moisture sensors can save water in conditions of salinity and drought.
Cao Dinh An, G., Chau Minh, K., Dang Duy, M., Nguyen Thi K.P., Tran Duy, k., Tran Minh, T., Le Thi Thuy, T., Kaveney, B., Condon, J., Orgill, S. & Barrett-Lennard, E. (2025). Soil moisture sensor improves water use efficiency and yield of the upland crop under conditions of drought and saline water intrusion in the Vietnamese Mekong Delta [In Vietnamese]. Journal of Agriculture and Rural Development (VJARD), No. 1+2 (2025).
Training resources
Project factsheets have been created and made available to farmers and DARD staff through FOCUS training sessions. Digital versions of these factsheets in Vietnamese or English can be downloaded here. These summaries provide 'big picture' messages of the project's findings.
Conference presentations and abstracts
The FOCUS project regularly attends reputable conferences across a number of countries including Australia, Vietnam and Korea to increase research impact and capacity build early career team members. Below are some examples of presentations recently given at a range of conferences. Presentations, abstracts or posters are linked below.
Global Soil Security Conference, Seoul Korea 2023
'Improved crop production under conditions of drought and seawater intrusion by integrated rice-upland crops rotation and soil management'
The Australian National Soils Conference, Darwin Australia 2023
'Creating farmer participatory monitoring of on-farm soil saline intrusion in the Mekong River Delta, Vietnam'
The International ACIAR Salinity Futures Symposium, March 2024
'Opportunity for alternative crops to offset rice crop failure in the dry season due to drought and saline'
The International ACIAR Salinity Futures Symposium, March 2024
'Building enduring capacity to meet future climate challenges through a FOCUS on connections and opportunities'
The International ACIAR Salinity Futures Symposium, March 2024
'Monitoring land use change in response to temporal salinity in the Mekong Delta'
The International ACIAR Salinity Futures Symposium, March 2024
'Lessons learned from successful crop-based agribusiness companies in the Vietnamese Mekong Delta'
TropAG Conference, Brisbane 2025
'Mulch and biochar provide plant and soil health benefits in a climatically changing Vietnamese Mekong River Delta dry season'
Global Soil Security Conference, Seoul Korea 2023
'Soil moisture sensor combined with straw mulching improves water use efficiency and yield of an upland crop under conditions of drought and saline water intrusion in the Vietnamese Mekong Delta'
TropAg Conference, Brisbane Australia 2022
'Quinoa and cowpea provide alternative crop options for the Vietnamese Mekong Delta'
The International ACIAR Salinity Futures Symposium, March 2024
'Screening quinoa varieties for salinity and water limited conditions in the Mekong River Delta'
The International ACIAR Salinity Futures Symposium, March 2024
'Upland crop profitability and farming contract attribute preferences for marketing in the Vietnamese Mekong Delta'
The International ACIAR Salinity Futures Symposium, March 2024
'Saving water with Chameleons'
16th International Conference of The East and Southeast Asia Federation of Soil Science Societies, 2024
'Effects of rice straw mulching on trophic structure and metabolic footprints of the nematode community belowground in an alternative upland paddy rice system'
Asian Mega-Deltas Webinar
4th installment
'Dr Jason Condon and Brooke Kaveney discussing the FOCUS project at the CGIAR initiative Asian Mega-Deltas webinar series'
The Australian National Soils Conference, Darwin Australia 2023
'Using Chameleon soil moisture sensors to develop irrigation schedules for improving water use efficiency without yield compromise'
International Conference on Geography and Geoinformatics for Sustainable Development, Can Tho 2023
'Temporal assessment of soil salinity in coastal regions of the Vietnamese Mekong Delta: A case study of Soc Trang Province, Viet Nam from 2019 to 2022'
Oral Presentation
The International ACIAR Salinity Futures Symposium, March 2024
'Determinants of adaption strategies to saline intrusion among upland-crop farmers in a coastal province in Vietnam'
The International ACIAR Salinity Futures Symposium, March 2024
'Rural youth employment prospects in agriculture: a survey of university students in the Mekong Delta, Vietnam'
The International ACIAR Salinity Futures Symposium, March 2024
'Role of training/extension to understand soil constraints for crop selection'
TropAG Conference, Brisbane 2025
'The importance of understanding the legacy effects of soil ameliorants to optimise nitrogen fixation in the Vietnamese Mekong River Delta'
FAO International soil & water forum, December 2024
'Improved crop production under conditions of drought and seawater intrusion by integrated rice-upland crops rotation and soil management'
Media publications
Mr Ky is a Vinh Long Province farmer that has participated in FOCUS field trials growing alternative crops after his return to farming from a career of civil engineering. He is featured in the ACIAR Vietnam newsletter on page 25. ACIAR newsletter 2026.
The ABC iView program 'Beyond awesome' featured the FOCUS project and its work using the Virtual Irrigation Academy Soil Moisture Chameleon sensors. This water saving device has helped researchers and farmers involved in the FOCUS project reduce irrigation water without the yield compromise of upland crops. Watch the episode here on iView or on the ABC YouTube channel. Series 2 Episode 5 Vietnam's Soil Saviours : ABC iview
The annual FOCUS project meeting was held at Can Tho University in December 2024. Project staff in addition to representatives from DARD sub-departments of plant protection in An Giang, Soc Trang and Hau Giang provinces, and local farmers attended meetings and training sessions. https://www.facebook.com/ACIARAustralia/
The International ACIAR salinity futures symposium, hosted at Can Tho University, featured on the prominent Vietnamese agricultural TV channel HCTV. Watch footage from the event from 2.48 min onwards as participants are shown FOCUS field trials in Soc Trang Province.
Đồng bằng Sông Cửu Long vào cao điểm hạn mặn | Truyền hình Hậu Giang (youtube.com)
The prominent Vietnamese agricultural TV channel VTV did a recent episode on the FOCUS project where they discussed the salinity prediction model, alternative crops and Chameleon soil moisture sensors. Watch our project team members in the footage here. BẢN ĐỒ SỐ: GIẢI PHÁP CHO MÙA KHÔ - BIẾN ĐỔI KHÍ HẬU | VTV CẦN THƠ
The FOCUS project supports many undergraduate and postgraduate students with their research. Australian Honours student Sarah Fraser detailed her stay at Can Tho University as part of her research using the FOCUS field trials in this Crawford Fund post. #nextgenag4d | The Crawford Fund for Food Security
Australian Honours student Sarah Fraser was supported by The Crawford Fund to travel to Vietnam as part of her Honours research. Sarah was co-supervised by FOCUS project collaborators from both Australia and Vietnam, and utilised the FOCUS field trials and Can Tho Universities soil laboratories to complete her research. Investigating the influence of biochar on the nitrogen fixation process of cowpeas
The ABC Riverina radio show interviewed recent CSU graduate Sarah Fraser who completed her Honours research at Can Tho University using the FOCUS trial sites. Sarah discusses how the FOCUS project has helped shape her career and education. ABC interview
Cao Dinh An Giang is a FOCUS staff member who completed his Masters on the project and was recently awarded a John Allwright Fellowship to study his PhD at Charles Sturt University Australia. Read his interview with ACIAR Vietnam on page 28.
Recently, 6 CTU researchers from the soil and crop management team visited Australia for 10 days thanks to funding from the Crawford Fund and Select Carbon. It was a wonderful capacity building opportunity allowing for plenty of networking, collaboration and relationship building. Watch participants reviews here.
Crawford fund training September 2023 - YouTube
The FOCUS project recently featured on a famous Vietnamese agricultural TV show VTC16 that was highlighting the partnerships between ACIAR, Australia and Vietnam. Well done to the CTU team for presenting the FOCUS research so wonderfully. Keep an eye out some of our greenhouse experiments in the footage!
Hiệu quả mô hình canh tác nông nghiệp thích ứng với biến đổi khí hậu | VTC16 - YouTube
ACIAR and Australian Embassy officials recently visited Can Tho University to see the work of the FOCUS project in a celebration of the 30th anniversary of ACIAR and Vietnam's collaboration. Chameleon soil moisture sensors, alternative crops and mulching were all displayed.
Drought-tolerant and salinity-resistant agriculture model in the Mekong Delta (nongnghiep.vn)
The FOCUS project was featured in the 2023 edition of ACIAR in Vietnam newsletter (pg 28-29) where water savings are being made by the use of Chameleon soil moisture sensors in field trials.
ACIARVN_Newsletter_Jan23_ENG_FINAL_web.pdf (embassy.gov.au)
Vietnamese FOCUS project lead, Dr Chau Minh Khoi featured in the 2023 edition of ACIAR in Vietnam newsletter (pg. 36-37) where he discusses his involvement in international research. FOCUS project farmer Mr. Sol was also featured (pg. 38). Mr. Sol talks about his desire to grow upland crops and that red beet grown as part of the FOCUS field trials is 10x more profitable than rice.
ACIARVN_Newsletter_Jan23_ENG_FINAL_web.pdf (embassy.gov.au)
Salt- The Untold Story. This incredible video was produced by a talented member of the FOCUS team Anh Minh Nguyen. It tells the story of saline intrusion from a different perspective.
Salt - The Untold Story - AM Project - YouTube
A Vietnamese news outlet reported on the success of the soils constraints training that occurred in May 2023.
Nông dân tự làm 'nhà khoa học' phân tích đất nông nghiệp - Tin tức - Dân Việt (nongthonmoinghean.vn)
Gender in FOCUS. This wonderful video explores how climate change and saline intrusion is impacting women in the Mekong River Delta. Produced by Anh Minh Nguyen, AM project.
Due to COVID restrictions, glasshouse trials were conducted in Australia to simulate field conditions in the Mekong River Delta. This glasshouse trial was exploring if quinoa, cowpea and soybean would be suitable alternative crop options.
The glasshouse trial that was conducted in Australia attracted media attention with a range of local and national media outlets.
Media for the glasshouse trial also included an interview with 7news Riverina who were interested in sustainable alternative crops to rice to be grown in the Mekong River Delta.
https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=644506673211745
'Salty land turns productive in the Mekong' is an ACIAR blog item written about the FOCUS project.
Salty land turns productive in the Mekong | ACIAR
