Dr. Tran Thi Ngoc Bich, also known as Bica Tran, is an environmental engineering and aquaculture researcher from Vietnam. She holds a Ph.D. in Environmental Engineering from Da-Yeh University, Taiwan, a Master’s degree in Animal Science from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, USA, and an Engineering degree in Aquaculture from Can Tho University, Vietnam.

She currently serves as Director of the STARS Water Center at Tra Vinh University and as Deputy Head of the Science and Technology Department of the Vietnam Association of Community Colleges. Her research focuses on water treatment, wastewater management and reuse, environmental ecology, sustainable agriculture, aquaponics, climate change adaptation, and the circular economy. She has led and contributed to numerous research and development projects promoting water security, climate resilience, sustainable aquaculture, and community development, particularly in Vietnam’s Mekong Delta. Dr. Bich has also authored and co-authored scientific publications and contributed to international conferences and collaborative research initiatives.

Growing Food Where People Live: Potential Applications of Aquaponics for Water-Smart, Green and Low-Carbon Cities in Vietnam:                                                                                     

Vietnam’s cities are growing rapidly while the farmland, freshwater and rural supply chains that feed them come under increasing pressure from climate change, salinity intrusion in the Mekong Delta and urban expansion. Aquaponics, which couples fish culture with soilless vegetable production in a recirculating loop, offers a compact way to grow protein and greens close to where people live while using a fraction of the water and producing little discharge. This presentation provides an overview of the potential applications of aquaponics in Vietnam, with a particular focus on urban settings. First, it examines how cities can supply aquaponic systems from water sources that are already available but largely wasted, such as air-conditioner condensate, harvested rainwater and treated greywater, turning buildings into part of a circular urban water cycle. Second, it explores the social and environmental co-benefits of rooftop, balcony, school and community installations: expanding urban green space, helping to cool the built environment, offering residents restorative contact with nature that may ease the stresses of dense city life, and supporting environmental education. Third, it considers how producing fresh fish and vegetables inside cities can shorten rural-to-urban food supply chains, reducing transport emissions, post-harvest losses and dependence on vulnerable supply routes. These opportunities are illustrated by a 14-week pilot at the STARS Water Center, Tra Vinh University, in which air-conditioner condensate fully replaced tap water as make-up water for climbing perch (Anabas testudineus) and Malabar spinach (Basella alba) without affecting water quality, fish survival or crop yield, while make-up water use stayed near 11–13 L per kilogram of product. The presentation concludes by outlining barriers to wider adoption, including energy use, start-up costs, technical skills, food-safety standards and urban planning policy, and proposes priorities for research, pilot programmes and policy support to integrate aquaponics into Vietnam’s green-city and circular-economy agendas.