The Mekong: A river under Stress is the theme of a seminar which will be co-organized by the International Rivers (International Rivers), Faculty of Asian-American Studies, City College of San Francisco and the  Vietnamese Youth and students Association in California on 19 April  in San Francisco City (United States).

According to statistics, every year about 15-25 hailstorms occurred in Vietnam, which often cause great material damage and sometimes loss of life. However, only in the last few days of March in the northern mountainous provinces and central of Vietnam, there have occurred nearly ten hailstorms and this phenomena has happened repeatedly in many areas of the country in early April.

Recently, Staff Assistant to U.S. Senate paid a working visit to survey and evaluate Agent Orange/dioxin contamination and caring for the Agent Orange victims in Dong Nai.

According to meteorological experts, the South and Central Highlands provinces are facing serious drought in the dry season of 2013. Drought level in the two regions is equivalent to the drought in 2002, even in some areas reached to the level of the 1998 drought - the strongest El Nino events on record across the country.

Biodiversity plays an important role in maintaining ecological balance, ensuring sustainable development of socio-economy and culture. However, Tram Chim National Park has been facing the issue of declining biodiversity resulted from the effects of human-being and nonnative creatures.

Vietnam is a country rich of natural resources and mineral resources which play an important role in ensuring national energy security and socio-economic development. Among the potential solutions to the sustainable exploitation of natural resources, mineral resources is the harmonisation of exploitation and conservation of the national natural and geological heritage to promote tourism - smokeless industry with high economic efficiency.