A pathway for adaptive practice of mangrove restoration and conservation in Vietnam

Mangrove restoration and conservation are increasingly promoted as coastal Nature-based Solutions (NbS) for climate change adaptation, disaster risk reduction, biodiversity protection and livelihood resilience. Yet outcomes remain uneven and often limited in success, reflecting not only the design of ecological interventions but also broader socio-economic, institutional and environmental contexts, including the effects of structural coastal interventions that can alter system dynamics. However, existing NbS frameworks rarely translate empirical findings into place-based typologies that directly support implementation decisions. This study examines the enabling and constraining conditions shaping mangrove restoration and conservation in Vietnam's Mekong and Red River deltas. Drawing on interviews, focus groups and questionnaires with multiple stakeholders, we develop a typological framework identifying systemic enablers and barriers across ecological, institutional and socio-economic dimensions. Enablers cluster around relational governance, livelihood incentives, learning systems, ecological fit, institutional coherence and resilience framing. Barriers include governance rigidities, funding and capacity constraints, weak social inclusion, technical-ecological challenges, external environmental pressures and fragmented coordination. Rather than reducing outcomes to binary assessments of "success" or "failure", often measured through survival rates or area restored, the analysis frames them as emergent properties arising from interactions among ecological, socio-economic, technological, institutional and management processes. Building on international NbS standards, the typology is operationalised into a reflective-question checklist that translates the analytical framework into a practical decision-support tool. The checklist highlights flexible implementation pathways through three operational modes, allowing adaptation across Vietnam's provincial contexts. The findings indicate that long-term effectiveness depends on mutually reinforcing systems of governance legitimacy, ecological fit to local ecosystem dynamics and community engagement. By situating Vietnam's experience within broader NbS debates, the study highlights successes and persistent uncertainties demanding adaptive, interdisciplinary approaches to restoration and conservation.