Over the course of our Action Learning Plan, AccLab Viet Nam embarked on a journey to catalyze innovation within the public sector and beyond, navigating complex challenges and diverse partnerships. Through experimentation, collaboration, and continuous reflection, we have gained valuable insights into what truly drives sustainable change in our context. Here are the five key learnings that have shaped our approach and outcomes: 1. Mindset Change is Foundational for Innovation The most significant impact of AccLab Viet Nam’s work was the shift in mindset among partners—especially in the public sector—towards embracing experimentation and collective intelligence. Demonstrating the value of these approaches led to greater openness to new methods and more sustainable innovation outcomes. 2. Effective Partnerships Require Alignment and Readiness Success was highest when AccLab collaborated directly with partners whose needs and priorities aligned with AccLab’s innovation focus. Readiness assessments and expectation management are critical to ensure partners have the necessary commitment, resources, and appetite for risk and experimentation. 3. Depth of Engagement Drives Sustainable Change In-depth, sustained support for a limited number of initiatives and partners resulted in more meaningful and lasting changes than broad, activity-based engagement. Training-of-trainer models and ongoing collaboration helped institutionalize new practices and knowledge. 4. Clear Communication and Simplicity Matter Stakeholders consistently requested clearer communication about AccLab’s specialization, service offerings, and value-add. Simplifying language and making innovation terminology locally accessible increased understanding and adoption of new approaches. 5. Structural and Resource Constraints Limit Innovation Bandwidth, budget, and time constraints, along with donor expectations and risk aversion, were major barriers to experimentation and scaling successful pilots. Addressing these challenges requires structural incentives, such as voluntary stretch goals, and strategic selection of partners and initiatives with a genuine appetite for innovation.

1. Some Continuation through new donor funded project The Head of Experimentation from AccLab Viet Nam will continue to lead innovation work, albeit in a slightly different role. This transition is supported by successful fundraising for a new innovation project with Japanese partners, focused on revitalizing the National Innovation Center (NIC) over the next two years. This ensures that core AccLab methodologies and approaches will be sustained and further developed within NIC. 2. Uptake by Other UNDP Country Office Units Several AccLab initiatives from 2025 will be carried forward by other units within the UNDP Viet Nam Country Office: AI and Public Sector Innovation: The Governance Participation Unit (PAPI team) will take over work related to AI and public sector innovation. This builds on previous collaboration between AccLab and PAPI, ensuring that knowledge and practices developed are institutionalized and expanded. Air Pollution: The Climate Change Team will assume responsibility for ongoing and future work on air pollution, leveraging AccLab’s experimental approaches and stakeholder engagement models. 3. Expansion and Scaling through Partnerships AccLab’s work has already influenced significant changes in programming and policy, and several partners (including DNES, NIC, and private sector actors) have adopted and expanded AccLab’s methods in their own initiatives. This includes scaling circular economy training, experimentation, and collective intelligence approaches to new regions and sectors. 4. Knowledge Transfer and Resource Sharing Throughout the handover, AccLab has prioritized documentation, knowledge management, and capacity building. Key resources, toolkits, and learnings have been shared with incoming teams and partners to facilitate smooth transitions and maximize impact.

1. Need for Contextual, Real-World Insights Traditional data sources (e.g., official statistics, reports) often lacked the granularity and relevance needed for innovation work in Viet Nam’s rapidly changing context. By collecting citizen-generated data, stakeholder feedback, and observational data, AccLab could capture lived experiences, local challenges, and practical solutions that were missing from existing datasets. 2. Addressing Gaps in Stakeholder Perspectives Available data was often top-down, reflecting only government or expert views. Participatory methods (interviews, hackathons, collective intelligence workshops) filled gaps by including voices of end-users, community members, and frontline workers—ensuring solutions were grounded in actual needs and realities. 3. Experimentation and Evidence for Policy Innovation There was a lack of experimental and pilot data to test new approaches before scaling. Experimental and behavioral data from pilots (e.g., waste segregation, circular economy initiatives) provided evidence of what works (and what doesn’t), helping inform policy and program design with real-world results. 4. Digital and Remote Collaboration Needs COVID-19 and remote work highlighted gaps in data collection and collaboration. Digital tools and online platforms (like MURAL) enabled virtual workshops, training, and data collection, ensuring continuity and inclusivity when in-person engagement was limited. 5. Filling Knowledge Gaps in Emerging Areas Topics like AI in public sector innovation, circular economy, and anticipatory governance were new and under-documented in Viet Nam. New qualitative and quantitative data from these initiatives helped build a local evidence base, supporting future scaling and adaptation.

1. Complexity and Uncertainty of the Challenge The frontier challenge involved accelerating innovation in public services, circular economy, and ecosystem transformation—areas characterized by complex, interconnected problems and rapidly changing contexts. Traditional approaches (top-down planning, static data) were insufficient to address these dynamic challenges. 2. Need for Contextual, Inclusive Solutions Innovation required understanding the real needs, behaviors, and constraints of diverse stakeholders (citizens, government, private sector, academia). Participatory ethnographic research and collective intelligence methods ensured that solutions were grounded in local realities and included voices often missing from conventional processes. 3. Testing and Learning Before Scaling Experimentation and pilot testing allowed AccLab to try new approaches on a small scale, learn from failures, and adapt before wider implementation—reducing risk and increasing the likelihood of success. 4. Breaking Down Silos and Building Collaboration Human-centered design, systems thinking, and stakeholder consultations helped bridge gaps between departments, sectors, and communities, fostering collaboration and shared ownership of solutions. How These Methods Helped Unpack the System Revealed Hidden Dynamics: Ethnographic research and stakeholder engagement uncovered underlying behaviors, motivations, and barriers that were not visible in existing data or reports. Mapped Relationships and Flows: Systems thinking and visual mapping clarified how different actors, resources, and policies interacted—identifying leverage points for change. Tested Assumptions: Experimentation challenged existing mental models and practices, providing evidence of what worked (and what didn’t) in real-world settings. Enabled Adaptive Learning: Continuous feedback from pilots, workshops, and digital collaboration allowed for rapid iteration and adaptation, making the system more responsive to emerging needs. Built Capacity for Innovation: Training, toolkits, and playbooks equipped partners with new skills and methods, enabling them to continue innovating beyond the initial intervention.

1. Innovation Methods Unlocked New Perspectives Experimentation, collective intelligence, and human-centered design allowed AccLab to move beyond traditional approaches. By piloting solutions and iterating quickly, the team could test assumptions, learn from failures, and adapt in real time—surfacing insights that static planning would have missed. 2. New Data Types Revealed Hidden Realities Gathering data directly from citizens, frontline workers, and community stakeholders (rather than relying solely on official statistics) exposed gaps, needs, and opportunities that were invisible in conventional datasets. For example, behavioral experiments and hackathons generated actionable evidence for policy and program design. 3. Unusual Partners Broadened the Learning Ecosystem By engaging with private sector innovators, academic institutions, and grassroots organizations, AccLab accessed diverse expertise, networks, and lived experiences. These partners brought fresh perspectives, challenged established thinking, and helped co-create solutions tailored to real-world contexts. 4. Synergy Created System-Level Insights The interplay of these elements enabled AccLab to map relationships, resource flows, and power dynamics within the system—unpacking complexity and identifying leverage points for change. Insights emerged not just from what was done, but from how different actors interacted, learned, and adapted together. 5. Achievements Beyond Conventional Boundaries This approach led to breakthroughs such as: Mindset shifts in government and business leaders. Adoption of new policy experimentation models. Scaling of circular economy practices and digital innovation. Creation of new knowledge products and toolkits for broader use.