The city of Yangon is one of the most vulnerable cities worldwide to climate change, suffering from widespread flooding during the monsoon while experiencing severe water shortages in the dry season. Starting in 2019, through a joint initiative of local and international partners, the Yangon Htee City program (“htee” meaning “umbrella” in Burmese) has been promoting local communities to get actively involved in making their neighbourhoods more climate resilient. Focusing on small-scale, practical measures, such as rainwater harvesting, drainage improvements, awareness and education programs, water quality monitoring, mobile apps and household water filters, local residents feel more empowered to strengthen the resilience of their families and communities.

Facing the combined impact of Covid and a severe political crisis, the Yangon Htee City program had to find new, innovative ways of engaging with communities. One of these is the partnership with UN-Habitat and the Block by Block Foundation to use Minecraft as a tool for visualisation and collaboration. Under this innovative program, the Yangon Raincraft program was launched in July 2021, allowing local residents to learn from local and international experts about water and climate adaptation interventions, while giving them the chance to develop and visualise their own ideas and solutions for clean and safe water in their virtual neighbourhoods (modelled true-to-life in Minecraft!).

The first edition of the “Yangon Raincraft” program was successfully organized in July 2021, and accordingly with the overwhelming interest of the community towards the program, the second round “Yangon Raincraft II” was launched in October 2021.