Renewing the Mekong collaboration between SEI and Mekong Institute (MI)

The Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI) and Mekong Institute (MI) are signing a renewed Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on 16^th June 2026. The renewed partnership builds on a strong foundation of collaboration that began with the first institutional MoU signed in 2018. Over the past eight years, SEI and MI have worked together on a range of initiatives addressing transboundary water cooperation, climate resilience, and sustainable development in the Mekong Region.

Through this partnership, the two organizations have jointly contributed to regional projects and dialogues under the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation (LMC) framework, supported knowledge exchange and capacity development activities, and collaborated through regional platforms and programmes including Sustainable Mekong Research Network (SUMERNET), the Strategic Collaborative Fund (SCF), and the Mekong Thought Leadership and Think Tanks (MTT) Network. Most recently, SEI and MI partnered on the research study “Partnership Models for Nexus-Based Regional Cooperation,” which explored innovative approaches to strengthening cooperation across water, energy, food, environment, and economic development sectors in the Mekong region. https://mekonginstitute.org/mekong-nexus-and-partnership-research/.

The new five-year MoU expands the scope of cooperation to address emerging regional challenges and opportunities. Areas of collaboration include climate change adaptation and mitigation, climate finance, transboundary water and environmental cooperation, integrated nexus approaches, nature-based solutions, sustainable agriculture and agribusiness, climate-smart technologies and innovation, and community-based research and capacity development. The partnership also places strong emphasis on multi-stakeholder engagement involving governments, academia, civil society, youth, young professionals, the private sector, and regional cooperation mechanisms.

Through this renewed partnership, SEI and MI reaffirm their shared commitment to generating knowledge, strengthening capacities, fostering dialogue, and supporting evidence-informed decision-making to contribute to a more resilient, inclusive, and sustainable Mekong Region.

Mekong Institute (MI) is a reputed intergovernmental organization (IGO) based in the Mekong Region focusing on regional cooperation, capacity building, and sustainable socioeconomic development.

Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI) and Mekong Institute (MI) will seek to leverage their respective expertise, capacities, and networks to cooperate on mutually agreed projects, activities, and interventions in the following areas:

• Climate change adaptation and mitigation, climate finance, and climate-resilient development, including green economy, green transition, renewable energy, and just energy transition.
• Transboundary water, environmental, and natural resources cooperation, including water diplomacy, integrated water resources management (IWRM), and sustainable management of shared natural resources.
• Integrated nexus approaches linking climate, water, energy, food, ecosystems, infrastructure, economic development, trade, tourism, digital connectivity, and health.
• Nature-based Solutions (NbS) and ecosystem-based approaches for strengthening climate resilience, improving water quality and quantity, and reducing disaster risks.
• Sustainable agriculture, agribusiness, and climate-smart technologies and innovations to support resilient livelihoods and sustainable development.
• Community-based research, knowledge co-production, and capacity development on climate resilience, sustainable natural resource management, and Gender Equality, Disability, and Social Inclusion (GEDSI).
• Other areas of cooperation as may be mutually agreed upon by the Parties.